Book Review Guidelines

PLEASE NOTE:  Iranian Studies invites critical analyses of books reviewed.  The journal does not publish book reviews that are simply summaries that recount, chapter by chapter, the book’s content.  Please make sure that the review articulates the book’s principal argument(s), its strengths, as well as its weaknesses.  The review should also address the book’s originality; its relevance in its (sub)fields; and its engagement with primary and secondary sources. Please refer to the guidelines below.

Even when commissioned, reviews are subject to the approval of the Editor-in-Chief.

The maximum length for book reviews: 1500 words.
The maximum length for review essays: 4000–5000 words.

The titles of book reviews should follow the format: Title. Author (publishing location: publisher information, year). Total Pages. Pricing. ISBN.

Reviewers should engage a book through a critical analysis of its claims, structure, and style, and avoid lengthy summary of its chapters. Please consider some of the themes from the following list, provided by IJMES, as your guide:

• The persuasiveness of the author's thesis, originality, and theoretical framework
• The coherence and clarity of the author's presentation
• The soundness, accuracy, and thoroughness of the scholarship
• The effectiveness of the writing style and organization of the book
• The relevance of the source material relative to the book's larger aims
• The book's contribution to debates in a field or body of literature
• The audience for which the book would be most appropriate or useful
• the clarity/effectiveness of the author's use of footnotes/endnotes/bibliography
• The effectiveness of the inclusion of charts, maps, illustrations, etc.

In addition, readers should know whether or not you recommend the book.

Books for review should be sent to:

Maryam Alemzadeh (Social Sciences), Oxford University  (Email: [email protected])

Kayhan Nejad (Modern History), University of Oklahoma, (Email : [email protected])

Shervin Farridnejad (Pre-Islamic Iran), University of Hamburg, (Email: [email protected])

Amy Motlagh (Modern Literature), UC Davis, (Email: [email protected])

Austin O'Malley (Classical Literature), University of Arizona, (Email: [email protected])

Nahid Siamdoust (Cultural Studies), University of Texas at Austin, (Email: [email protected]