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4 pages/β‰ˆ1100 words
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Subject:
History
Type:
Book Review
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English (U.S.)
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Topic:

History of Atlantic Black Christianity

Book Review Instructions:

BOOK ANALYSIS ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
OVERVIEW
The point of a scholarly book analysis is not to summarize the content of the book but instead to situate the historical merit of the book and to evaluate critically the author's purpose, thesis, contentions, and methods of analysis. Therefore, the bulk of the essay body will be an evaluation of how convincing the author's presentation of his/her thesis was and a commentary on the book's contribution to one's understanding of important issues in comparative world history. To put it another way, the review is an analysis of the text, not a summary of its content.
Here's how the historian Jacques Barzun discussed the importance of the beginning of a book
review:
The beginning, we know is important. The first [paragraph] should present an idea of interest to the readers. If your first words are "This book . . ." they will not be able to distinguish your review from twenty others, and they will be entitled to conclude that you have not expended much thought on enlisting their attention. The opening statement takes the readers from where they presumably stand in point of knowledge and brings them to the book under review. The briefest possible description of its aim, scope, and place in the world, therefore, follows the baited opening sentence and completes the first paragraph. [Jacques Barzun, The Modern Researcher, 4th ed. (New York, 1985), 290.]
INSTRUCTIONS
- The analysis must cover the book Jon Sensbach’s Rebecca’s Revival: Creating Black Christianity in the Atlantic World.
- The analysis must be double-spaced with 12-point, Times New Roman font.
- The margins must be set at 1 inch.
- The analysis must be free of grammatical and mechanical errors.
- The top of the first page of the analysis must include the bibliographical reference for the book.
- Below the final line of text on the left-hand margin, you must include your name and the course title.
- Page numbers must be included.
- The book analysis will be approximately 1,000 words (roughly 3–4 pages) in length and must NOT exceed 1,250 words. An essential feature of a good book analysis is the reviewer's ability to write concisely so that a comprehensive evaluation of the book can be obtained from a brief reading. So do not write more; write more concisely. Find creative ways to communicate your critical evaluation of the book in a short essay.
- The features you will want to include in a strong review include a discussion of the author's main contentions, an explanation of the type of sources the historian utilized and the methods the author employs in choosing and organizing those sources, and an assessment of the strong points or shortcomings of the book.
- How does this book change the way one should think about the subject (or about debated issues in the history of colonial America)?
- Were you persuaded by the argument? If so, what are its strong[est] points, and, if not, where are its weaknesses?
- Finally, you will want to make references to specific portions of the book to illustrate your evaluation. The challenge will be to do as much of this as possible and yet to not let it interferes with the restricted length of the essay. In other words, find creative ways to give examples from the book in a limited space. Obviously, quotations must be kept to a minimum and should rarely exceed 1 sentence.

Book Review Sample Content Preview:
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History of Atlantic Black Christianity
In Rebecca's Revival: Creating Black Christianity in the Atlantic World, Jon F. Sensbach delves into the story of one woman named Rebecca, who inspired the rise of black Christianity in the Atlantic world. The enduring influence that the protagonist left on the African American religion and society is immense. Rebecca began her life in Antigua as a slave. She learned to read and was later granted her freedom. During the 1730s, Rebecca used her ingenuity to become a critical part of the Moravian church movement and ministered in her home in St. Thomas. While traditionally, white missionaries have been known to be responsible for the spread of Christianity even among black communities, the book presents a thought-provoking idea that Rebecca, a formerly enslaved person played a critical role in the spread of black Christianity.
The author uses three main contentions related to Rabecca’s story. Firstly, Sensbach demonstrates that Rebecca navigated through two worlds; slavery and religion. Rebecca came to St. Thomas as a slave girl. She had probably been “kidnapped” from Antiqua, or probably her master sold her to traders. At St. Thomas, she was sold to Lucas van Beverhout, a family of high standing (Sensbach 32). However, meeting with Freidrich Martin, a German missionary, transformed her life. Martin believed that Rebecca’s demeanor and devotion made her an ideal spokesperson for Christ (Sensbach 46). This was the start of her journey as a priestly woman. Another contention is the balance between religion and gender. Rebecca, a woman, had to overcome gender constraints that would otherwise make it impossible for her to preach the gospel to the black community. The male Moravian perception of females was that they were intellectually inferior to men (Sensbach 47). Nonetheless, Martin and other Brethren gave women a “wide latitude to express themselves” while at the same time subjecting themselves to Paul’s injection (Sensbach 49). As a result, Rebecca overcame the limitation placed on her because she was a woman to participate in the gospel's spread in the black community.
The author uses only primary sources to compile the book. Sensbach thoroughly marshals manuscripts from Penn Sylvia, Denmark, Germany, and West Indies. The author chooses sources that directly provide an account of Rebecca and the activities related to starting the evangelical movement in the black community. While organizing the materials, Sensbach has to overcome the multilingual challenges of the materials. The sources were in different languages like English, Germany, and Dutch. The materials are organized chronologically to provide an account of Rebecca from the earlier days moving forward.
A strength of the book is the use of primary sources and the concentration on a small community. Sensbach endeavors to present an accurate account of black Christianity in the Atlantic. As a result, he turns his attention to primary sources like handwritten letters by Rebecca and Martin. Primary sources are critical because they provide an accurate historical account of the events as they unfolded. Moreover, Sensbach concentrates on the sma...
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