Hit the books: Read, write, and publish a book review

Course Description

Be a book influencer: read, write and publish a book review during this practical writing course. Over the week, you will pick a book from the Carleton University Library kids’ lit collection and then talk with local writers about good storytelling, learn why pictures are as important as words, and then write your own book review to be published on the Hit the books website. The course will also give you the chance to work collaboratively with a writing circle to give and receive feedback as well as record a mini podcast to supplement your written review. Your reviews will be published on a new section of the Hit the books website dedicated to high school student reviews. In the art and craft of book reviewing you will discover the power of story to open new vistas on the world and gain new insights into your own creative voice.

Each morning, you will work on reading the book you choose to review and then writing your review. Your review will follow a specific outline and cover important topics such as the author’s approach to storytelling, the visual and physical elements of the book, the characters and plot as well as the major themes or “big ideas” of the story. In the afternoon, you will hear from and talk with local authors and illustrators about how they tell their stories. You will also connect with Carleton University students who have written book reviews for the Hit the books project. The week will end with a presentation of student reviews and an opportunity to attend the Spring 2026 Ottawa International Writers Festival.

Books in the contemporary kids’ lit collection at the Carleton University Library cover a range of themes and topics including environmentalism and sustainability, children’s rights, and experiences of childhood around the world. The collection is used by undergraduate students in several programs (including Childhood and Youth Studies, English, and Philosophy) to think critically about core concepts and areas of research in their areas of study.

Martha Attridge Bufton is the Interdisciplinary Studies Librarian at the Carleton University Library. She is a teaching librarian and responsible for curating the children’s literature collection for the Library. She is the founder and editor of the Hit the books student book review project and a former editor of Open Shelf, the online magazine of the Ontario Library Association.

Neil Wilson is a professional journalist and the founder of the Ottawa International Writers Festival. The Republic of Childhood and Youth (an Ottawa International Writers Festival program) has been offering writing workshops free of charge, in public schools, libraries and community houses since 2017.