How To Create An Annotated Bibliography

What is a Bibliography with Annotations?

In a bibliography, you list the sources (usually articles, books or websites) used to create your paper. An annotated bibliography follows each source with a brief description that explains why it is relevant to your topic. Annotated bibliographies ensure you carefully read and understand your sources.

Getting Started

Gather relevant sources. You should carefully read the assignment sheet. Look at the requirements of your assignment sheet.

1. How many sources are required?
2. You need to find certain books and articles.
3. Are you looking for scholarly or popular sources?

Consider the question or topic that you're researching. What type of information are you going to need to create a research paper about your topic? Is it necessary to narrow your topic? 

Annotated Bibliographies require good research skills. Many indexes are available to help you find articles and books related to your subject. To find out how to locate information, visit the Library Subject Guides of your course.

Reviewing your sources 

You should then read through and critically evaluate your sources. Don't read every single word. Concentrate on the evidence and argument presented in the book/article: What topic/question is it responding to? What is the thesis of this work? What is its thesis? Also, think about the relationship between your topic and your source: How can you use it in your essay? Does it contradict or support your tentative conclusion? What other sources have you read that are similar to yours?

To learn more about reading academic sources, please consult our guides to reading effectively and critically.

Annotating a Bibliography

Annotated Bibliographies include the complete publication information of each source along with a paragraph-long summary of the content.

1. The correct format for citing sources is used. The style you use is determined by the discipline or course you are taking. In history classes, for example, bibliographic entries would be created in Chicago style. You would most likely use Modern Language Association style for Politics. Documentation guide contains an exhaustive list of referencing styles used by Trent departments.
2. The sources are alphabetized by author's name.
3. After each source, a paragraph-length summary of 3-5 sentences is provided.

What is in a summary

When you summarize the information from each source, it is important to include:

• You should provide a short explanation of the author's experience in certain disciplines. You could mention, for instance, the author's title and place of work. This information can be found on articles' title pages or dust jackets.
• Two sentences (or more) that describe the overall topic or research questions the work addresses
• The thesis or argument in the work should be stated in a sentence.
• The author's methods are described in a single sentence. 
• A sentence describing how the source will benefit your paper. It can be a research tool, an analysis tool, or a comparison to other scholarship.

Sample Entry using Chicago Bibliographic style

Nicholson, Helen. "Women in the Third Crusade." Journal of Medieval History 23.4. (1997): 335-349.

Nicholson explores this controversial question in his article. Nicholson is Reader in History, Cardiff University. After examining different historians' opinions on the topic, she looks at the different depictions of the participation of women in the crusade that are given in Muslim or Christian accounts.

Nicholson examines the biases of both Muslim accounts and Christian ones to see how Muslim sources exaggerated women's involvement in armed war, while Christian reports tended conceal women's role. The article's thesis is explained in the two sentences that precede it. This article is important to my paper, as it offers a great overview of primary sources and secondary ones that relate to the debate on women and the Crusades. In addition, it will support my thesis that, despite their importance to the Crusades and their role within it, women's participation in armed conflict was limited due to social stigma.

Sample Entry using Modern Language Association Referencing style

Chappell examines, in this article [This sentence introduces author and topic] the innovative child heroism Rowling develops with Harry Potter. Rowling compares Harry Potter's character to that of traditional child-heroes like Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz as well as Oliver Twist. Rowling asserts that Potter represents a new type of postmodern superhero in that good and evil as well as right and wrong are not binary concepts but ambiguous continuums. Harry Potter must question adult authority constantly and seek to extend his powers past what adults allow. The thesis is stated in the two previous sentences. Chappell's argument is developed by looking at several "trajectories", such as freedom and control and institutions and injustice. She also examines rule compliance and defiance. This article is crucial to my paper as it provides insight into the complex relationship between good, and evil. I will use this relationship to discuss the characters of Snape and Potter.

An illustration of how to make an entry in American Psychological Association format is given.

This article documents the common practice of humans burying dogs, and asks what it can tell us about the relationship between them [This sentence shows the topic of the piece]. He asserts that dogs have been buried more frequently and consistently than other animals. This suggests that humans have imbued dogs with a personal and spiritual identity. Morey demonstrates also that the study can help scholars date domestication better. He challenges scholars to not rely solely genetic data when dating domestication. Morey compares his conclusions from the data he provides to those derived by other scholars based on genetics. This article will be helpful to a review of literature on the domestication or dogs, because it shows how burial data can help date dog domestication.