Writing Task (go to Checklist)
Writing Paper Part 2. Task Type: A Review
Set Text: Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White
Question
You are
looking at a magazine, which has the following announcement.
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Reviews wanted! A good book isn't great unless it has a bad guy! We're looking for reader reviews of thrilling stories with a convincing villain (or villains) at the centre of the plot. Send in your nomination and let us know how far you would recommend the book to other readers. We'll publish the best ones next month. |
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Write your review, based on your reading of 'The Woman in White' by Wilkie Collins. (around 120-180 words).
What
you need to do to pass
Use our checklist first to understand
what the examiner wants you to do.
Ideas for writing
Ask yourself the following questions to help you get started:
- In your introduction you should mention the author, the title of the book and the type of book (the genre) it is, e.g. a love story, a ghost story, a suspense story.
- What's
the basic plot? Make notes about the key events in the book but
in a review you don't usually reveal the ending!
- the meeting between Walter Hartright and the mysterious woman dressed in white
- Walter falling in love with Laura
- Laura Fairlie's marriage to her cruel husband, Sir Percival Glyde
- The plan to put Laura in a mental asylum while burying Anne Catherick as Laura - Who
are the villains, what role do they play and how would you describe
them?
- Sir Percival Glyde: wants to get Laura's fortune (cruel)
- Count Fosco: the mastermind behind the plan to gain Laura's money (clever, apparently charming) - What
type of person would this book most appeal to?
Drafting
and proofreading your work
You should look at your first draft of the task and decide:
- Have
you answered the question?
- Is the composition organised in a clear and logical way?
- Is the language correct with a good range of structures?
- Will
the reader enjoy reading your Review? Is the style OK?