WEST AND THE WORLD BOOK REVIEW
DUE: _____________________
You will:
1. Book Synopsis including the Who, What , Where When. (1 page)
2. Describe the historical basis for the book. What historical era/incident does the movie
relate to? Put the movie in historical context (1 page).
3. How significant is the event or main historical characters to the development of ancient
civilization including their significance to the period and to the future. Use historical
evidence to help evaluate your decision obtained through research. Treat this like a miniessay using proper format. (2 pages)
4. Evaluate the book for its historical accuracy and as a historical effort ranking it on a scale
from one to ten with a clear justification. In order to properly evaluate the accuracy you
must know about the era. (1 page)
5. Include a bibliography.
Suggested Areas of Focus:
Weapons/Military Strategy
Medicine
Costumes
Music
Characters
Setting
Architecture
Class Structure
Technology
Transportation
Values and Beliefs
Religion
Geography
Government
Social Structure
HISTORICAL BOOK REVIEW: PRESENTATION RUBRIC
Name:_________________________
Level 4 (80-100)
Level 3 (70-79)
Level 2 (60-69)
Level 1 (50-59)
Thinking/Inquiry
- Ability to research,
question and reflect
upon the film/book
making excellent
use of historical
evidence
making considerable
use of historical
evidence
Lacking a varied use
of historical
evidence and
documentary support
making little use of historical
evidence
Application
- Video clips, or
passages from book
Using or describing
four well selected
segments
Using or describing
four segments
Using or describing
three segments of
the film
Using or describing two
segments
- Ranking and Critique
of Book
providing a clear
and justified ranking
of the book
providing a justified
ranking of the book
Communication
begins with a clear
intro. that sets the
historical scene
begins with an intro.
the sets the historical
scene
providing clear
descriptions of
segments and their
relation to history in
a highly effective
presentation style
providing
descriptions of
segments and their
relation to history in
an effective
presentation style
-Volume, language,
fluency and physical
expression
providing a ranking
of the book
begins with an intro.
that attempts to set
the historical scene
Begins with an intro. that does
not set the historical scene
providing
descriptions of
segments and their
relation to history in
a satisfactory
presentation style
providing clear descriptions
segments and their relation to
history in a poor presentation
style
- Creativity, engages
the audience
- Organization
ending with a clear
and effective
conclusion,
summing up the
evidence
ending with a clear
conclusion,
summing up the
evidence
Knowledge
clearly explaining
the relationship
between the book’s
portrayal of the past
and the historical
record
explaining the
relationship between
the book’s portrayal
of the past and the
historical record
- Knowledge &
Understanding of
film/book and the
Time Period & Events
within which it is set.
does not provide a ranking of
the book
ending with a
conclusion and
attempts to sum up
the evidence
making some effort
to explain the
relationship between
the book’s portrayal
of the past and
historical record
ending with a conclusion and
makes little attempt to sum up
the evidence
making a limited effort to
explain the relationship
between the book’s portrayal of
the past and historical record
General Comments
WEST AND THE WORLD – HISTORICAL FICTION LIST
The number of historical fiction books which fall under the curriculum of this course is
absolutely enormous. While choosing a novel may seem daunting the sheer number of
possibilities means that you have the luxury of being able to and should have no problem
choosing a novel which sparks a personal interest. It must be a novel and its selection must be
approved by the teacher. In order to assist you I have created some subdivisions. Your task
is to identify an area of interest and then research some of the authors in order to finally
choose at least three possible books.
Three useful tools
1. Google search the topic along with the words historical fiction
2. Wikipedia search a topic (especially figures) and look for the subject near the bottom
under the section “In Fiction”
3. Access book reviews on websites like Amazon.com or Chapters.ca.
Once you have a few possibilities in mind you must then set about the task of locating the
book in either a library, on-line or at a book store
The majority of the books that are easily accessible to an English reader do tend to be about
British or American topics and can be overwhelming. Many of the topics listed below do have
a European feel but this list is a starting point and limited in scope because of the enormous
number of available topics. There are many books available that deal with Non-European
areas or which are written by or from the perspective of non-Europeans. Please keep this in
mind and do not be afraid to read books that might be outside your comfort zone. Many of
the topics below overlap and you are certainly not limited to the topics below. If you discover
another author or subject area you are interested in please feel free to inquire about its use.
POSSIBLE TOPIC LIST
RENAISSANCE
(Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Machiavelli, Medici Family, Borges Family, Erasmus)
REFORMATION
(Martin Luther, John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, Thirty Years War,
Counter-Reformation, Roman Inquistition, Jesuits, Catherine D’ Medici, Bartholomew
Day Massace, Gustavus Adolphus, Puritans)
TUDOR/ELIZABETHAN
(Henry VIII, Mary, Elizabeth, Catherine of Aragorn, Thomas More, Jane Grey,Anne
Boleyn, James I, Mary of Scots, Shakespeare, Spanish Armada)
EXPLORATION
(Columbus, Cortez, Pizarro, Champlain, Cartier, Cabot, De Gama,
Magellan, Bartolome de Casas, Ferdinand & Isabella, Aboriginals)
ENGLISH CIVIL WAR
(Charles I, Charles II, Thomas Hobbes, Oliver Cromwell, John Locke, Glorious
Revolution, William of Orange, Jacobite Rebellion)
ABSOLUTISM
(Louis XIV, Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, Cardinal Richelieu, War of Spanish
Succession, Frederick the Great, Catherine the Great, French Indian Wars, Philip II)
ENLIGHTENMENT - SC REV
(Voltaire, Rousseau, Mary Woolstonecraft, Johnathan Swift, Slavery , Ben Franklin,
Mozart, Bach, Thomas Paine, Adam Smith, Copernicus, Galileo, Newton etc.)
U.S. & FRENCH REVS
(Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI, Robespierre, Revolutionary Wars, Danton, Marat,
George Washington, Napoleonic Wars, Napoleon & Josephine)
REACTIONARY ERA
(Congress of Vienna, Klemens von Metternich, Greek Revolution, 1848 Revolutions,
Romanticism, July Revolutions, Charles X, Goya)
NATIONALISM
(Otto Von Bismarck, Franco Prussian Wars, Crimean War, Camillo Cavour, Napoleon III,
Giuseppe Garibaldi, Giuseppe Mazzini, Irish Home Rule, WWI Kaiser Wilhelm,
Alliance System, American Civil War, Colonial resistance, Simon Bolivar)
VICTORIAN ERA
(Queen Victoria, Industrialization, Child Labour Suffragette movement, Novus Homo,
Benjamin Disraeli, Imperialism, Boer War, Opium War)
19th C THOUGHT
(Freud, Marx, Russian Revolution, Jeremy Bentham, Darwin, Nietzsche)