General Guidance
The Journal of American Studies has a lively reviews section, published in both the print issue and online. Please see our most recent issue for examples of our reviews format (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-american-studies/latest-issue).
While we do not accept unsolicited reviews, we do welcome all colleagues, at any career stage, volunteering to review titles in their fields of expertise. Please email [email protected] with your interests or with the title of a forthcoming book that you are interested in potentially reviewing; you will then be added to our reviewer database. Please note that we cannot guarantee that you will be able to review specific books.
Book Reviews
Commissioned book reviews are approximately 750-1000 words in length and completed within three months of receipt of the review copy. Please be aware that your review copy may be sent to you electronically as an ebook.
Review Essays
Review Essays provide an academic assessment of a number of recent publications connected by subject or theme. They should explicitly discuss the distinctive contribution of each text in detail, while also situating them within the broader scholarly context. The standard word count for review essays is 1500-2000 words (2500 words if three books are reviewed). We request that essays are submitted within three months of being commissioned.
Please send all correspondence relating to book reviews to