The Book:

Select your top three choices from this list and submit these choices to Prof. Gendel. Use Book Choices - Global Apparel for the subject line. Books will be assigned on a first-come, first served basis.  You will be notified by return e-mail which one of your choices you should read or if you need to submit additional choices. Note that books that have been selected and assigned will be prefixed by the student’s [name]. You should buy your book as soon as possible.

Chapter Summaries:

Write three sentences--and only three--upon completing each chapter of the book. Begin all of your sentences as follows:

1. "The main subject of this chapter, (insert chapter title here), is . . . " Do not include any words from the chapter title in your description.
 
2. "The author's purpose in this chapter is to argue that . . ."
 
3. "One key piece of evidence that the author uses to support his/her case is . . ." List only one piece of relevant evidence.

These summaries require a thorough reading of the book. It demands that you comprehend your author's "arguments." Your purpose is to summarize the arguments of the author of your book and indicate some of the evidence used to support those interpretations.

The summaries for the first half of the chapters are due when you have finished reading the first half of the book. Submit them in the body of an e-mail.

For the subject line, use:
Title (shortened) of book - Chapter Summaries 1 - Global Apparel

Example: Travels of a T-Shirt - Chapter Summaries 1 - Global Apparel

Do the same for the second half of the book. These are due when you have finished reading the book. Change the subject line to:

Title (shortened) of book - Chapter Summaries 2 - Global Apparel

Example: Travels of a T-Shirt - Chapter Summaries 2 - Global Apparel

Please do not wait until the last minute and try to cram all of your reading into one or two days. You will not get as much out of the book and this will likely be reflected in the quality of your work and therefore your grade.  I think that you will enjoy reading these books and once you get started you will have difficulty putting the book down!

Thesis Statement:

After completing the entire book, compose a one-sentence detailed response to the book, and send it in an e-mail with the following "subject" line:

Title (shortened) of book - Thesis - Global Apparel

Example: Travels of a T-Shirt - Thesis - Global Apparel

Critique and Analysis:

At some point in your professional lives, you will probably have the opportunity, and perhaps even the responsibility to discuss aspects of your field of expertise knowledgeably. You may have to have a sustained discussion with your boss, with colleagues in the office, or within a professional publication. The latter may be in the form of a book review. To help move you in the direction of being able to do these things successfully, we want you to complete an analysis of the book. This will help you to read carefully, analyze systematically, and then communicate clearly your understanding or views of the book.

In this assignment, you need to address all of the following questions about the book that has been assigned to you:  What is the main idea of the book? What is your response to the author's ideas? Do you agree, disagree, partially agree? With which ideas do you agree or disagree? Is any part of the book poorly  supported? Are any of the ideas illogical? Would you recommend this book to classmates?  Family? Friends? Strangers?

Naturally, it is necessary for you to follow class lectures and keep up with class assignments so that you can make a good judgment of the book and to know how it adds (or does not add) to existing knowledge on the subject.

To assist you in successfully completing this assignment and to help you organize your review and analysis, follow this model:

Introductory section

•Summary (compilation of chapter note assignments - begin with the author, title, and main point, i.e., In Klein’s, No Logo, . . . )
•Thesis statement--a clear statement of your response (one sentence)

Body section

•Chapter-by-chapter analysis - select the five most important chapters and analyze, not merely describe, what you consider to be their valid or invalid ideas. Present supporting evidence to bolster your views.

Concluding section

•Conclusion (rincluding ecommendation on whether others should read the book and why)

This is not a research paper. You are supposed to read the book, write the chapter summaries, and then write the analysis and critique. Analyze the main argument from the standpoint of the course. What did this book teach you that you did not already know about the subject matter covered in the course? Was the argument convincing? Was it well-argued and clear? Well-supported? Why or why not? If you were writing a review, how would you evaluate the book? Would  you recommend it to others? Why or why not?

This paper should be 4 to 5 pages long using 12 point Arial font and in the APA format.  If you don't have MS Word on your own computer, write the final draft at the Computer Lab

For all of these written assignments, spelling and grammar, as well as organization and style count! Proofread the written assignments thoroughly. It is often helpful to read written assignments aloud, word for word, to be sure that they sound right. Better yet, have someone else read it aloud to you.

The book report, i.e., the Critique and Analysis, must be submitted to The Writing Center for review of grammar, spelling, coherency, etc. prior to sending it to me. Build in enough time so that the Center can review your paper with you and you can rewrite it as necessary. (To make an appointment with a tutor, click here. For more information about The Writing Center, click here.

Please note that all book reports will be thoroughly examined for any evidence of plagiarism. If you plagiarize, you will be caught and you will be subject to disciplinary action by the university.

Submission:

Submit this as an MS Word e-mail attachment to all three professors using the following:

Filename: your Lastname, Firstname - Title (shortened of book) .doc

Example: If your name is Sandy Beach and you read No Logo, it would be:

Beach, Sandy – No Logo.doc
(Notice the punctuation and that there are spaces between the words.)

Subject line of e-mail: Title (shortened) of book - Book Report - Global Apparel

Example: No Logo - Book Report - Global Apparel

Due date: June 2nd at 9:00 PM. (Grades will be reduced by one whole letter for each twenty-four hours or part thereof for any paper that is submitted late.)

When you send the e-mail, also send a copy (cc) to yourself. That way, in case it doesn’t go through for any reason, not only will you still have a copy, but you will have time and date-stamped "proof" that you did attempt to submit it. To be extra safe, you may want to keep copies of everything on floppies or CDs.

Discussions

Without any prior meeting, communication, or group preparation, we will discuss these books while in Costa Rica. This discussion is part of your grade. Be prepared for this discussion. At a minimum, you should have the book and your paper available. As you may want to quote from the book, be sure to have the appropriate pages noted or, better yet, bookmarked in some fashion.

Recap of assignment

To complete the assignment successfully:
•Begin reading your book as soon as possible.
•Write a chapter summary after completing each chapter.
•Submit the chapter summaries (three sentences each) in two batches.
•Submit your thesis statement (clear statement of your response to the book).
•Write book report.
•Submit book report to The Writing Center.
•Rewrite your book report as necessary
•Submit book report to all three professors
•Participate in the discussion of the books.