How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography for Classes in History

How to Prepare an

Annotated Bibliography

for Classes in History

What is an Annotated Bibliography?

Citations to books, articles, and reports that focus on a central theme or topic.

Each citation is followed by a brief descriptive and evaluative paragraph to inform the

reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

When preparing a bibliography in preparation for writing a research paper, you

should know the difference between "works cited" and "works consulted."

"Works cited" are those that you have or will note in your paper in the form of

footnotes or endnotes.  "Works consulted" are those that provide background reading

and serve to help you become familiar with your topic and its issues.  "Works consulted"

may not necessarily appear in notes but should include all sources you consulted during

your research and for your final paper.

Identifying Works to Include in an Annotated Bibliography

• Locate and record citations to books, articles, and reports that may contain useful

     information and ideas on your topic.   When recording citations, use the citation style

     recommended by the instructor.

•  Examine and review the actual text of each work.

•  Choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.

If you have located your citations by searching a journal database you may

find that the database includes an abstract or summary of the article.  This

abstract may help you select the most appropriate articles.

Do not confuse "abstracts" with "annotations".  An "abstract" is just

descriptive; an "annotation" is descriptive and critical

• Critically evaluate each work to determine if it is suitable for your topic.

• Cite the book, article, or report consulting Rampolla's A Pocket Guide to Writing in

     History (REF D13 R295 in the library's reference collection.)

 Writing Annotations

An annotation, by nature, is brief; approximately 150 words.  It summarizes the

central theme and scope of the book, article, or report.  First, include one or more

sentences that:

• evaluate the authority or background of the author
• comment on the intended audience
• compare or contrast this work with others that you have cited or will cite
• explain how this work relates to your theme or topic

Sample Annotation

 Smith, John.  History of the Civil War in Colorado.  Boulder:  University of Colorado

Press, 1979.

Smith, a University of Colorado history professor, provides a thorough and well-

researched (newspapers, letters/diaries, official government records) discussion of

Colorado's participation in the Civil War from 1861 through 1865.  First, prospectors

came to the region in 1859; and the territory consisted of only scattered mining camps,

primarily male and with a total population of 20,000.  Most prospectors came from

northern states, so Union sympathies predominated.  Principle pro-war efforts involved

raising money to support the North; but in 1863, Col. John Chivington organized 1,500

volunteers responding to a Confederate presence in New Mexico.  These men

participated in the Battle of La Glorieta Pass, but Smith gives only the briefest account of

that conflict.  The book is very readable but of limited use to anyone studying Civil War

battles.