ETAS Journal Book or Digital Tool Review Guidelines

Book Review Guidelines

A full book review should be about 500-800 words and should be a constructive appraisal of one book or monograph, or several works. This review is not primarily a summary; rather it is an analytic or critical discussion of a book or article, hence it comments on and evaluates the author’s purpose, thesis, contentions, and methods of analysis in an engaging and informative way.

A good review may include many or all of these themes:

  • the intended audience for the book and who would find it useful
  • a brief background of the author(s), including the circumstances, context, or impetus of the book’s creation and publication
  • the main ideas and major objectives of the work and how effectively these are accomplished
  • the theoretical issues, debates, and trends raised by the work
  • the soundness of methods and information sources used
  • the work’s merit in comparison with others on this subject
  • relevance of the work and its contributions to the field
  • constructive appraisal of the work’s strength and weaknesses
  • for edited books: dominant themes with reference to specific chapters
  • coherence and clarity of author(s’) presentation, including effectiveness of writing style, organization, and tone

The header of the review should include:

  • the author(s) or editor(s) first and last name(s) (please indicate if it is an edited book)
  • the title of book
  • the year of publication
  • the place of publication
  • the publisher
  • the number of pages
  • Hard- or paperback
  • the ISBN

At the end of the review, please include:

  • the reviewer’s first and last name
  • Institutional affiliation
  • a (scanned) photo of the front cover.

Digital Tool Review Guidelines

A digital tool review should be about 500-800 words and should be a constructive appraisal of one tool, or several related tools for comparative purposes. This review is an analytic or critical discussion of a tool; hence it comments on and evaluates the tool’s purpose, uses, advantages and limitations in an engaging and informative way. Practical examples of how it can be used are welcome.

A good review may include many or all of these:

  • the intended audience for the tool and who would find it useful
  • a brief background of the author(s), including the circumstances, context, or impetus of the tool’s creation and publication
  • the main ideas and major objectives of the tool and how effectively these are accomplished
  • practical examples of its use
  • the theoretical issues, debates, and trends raised by the tool
  • the soundness of methods and information sources used
  • the tool’s merit in comparison with others on this subject
  • relevance of the tool and its contributions to the field
  • constructive appraisal of the tool’s strength and weaknesses

The header of the review should include:

  • the name of the tool 
  • the website link

At the end of the review, please include:

  • the reviewer’s first and last name
  • Institutional affiliation
  • a (scanned) photo of a use of the tool, if appropriate.

Style and submission guidelines:

The review must be written as MS Word, in Times New Roman, font size 12.
Language must be direct and void of unnecessary jargon and technical terms. Use the active voice as much as possible.
All references should be made in-text, rather than as footnotes or endnotes. When citing references, use the APA 7th Edition referencing style.
The review must include a statement that the submission has not been previously published or is not being considered for publication elsewhere.
Reviews should be written within three months of receiving the materials. Reviewers are welcome to contact the Book Reviews Editor for help or to send drafts.

The ETAS Journal reserves the right to edit reviews for style, conciseness, and consistency. The completed review should be sent as an email attachment to the Book Reviews Editor: bookreview@e-tas.ch. Reviewers should ensure that a complete e-mail address is provided when submitting reviews. It is VERY important that if, for any reason, reviewers cannot meet the agreed upon date for submission, that they contact the Book Reviews Editor. Reviewers whose native language is not English should consult with the editor beforehand about having their reviews edited into idiomatic English.