How Do I Write an Annotated Bibliography?

An annotation is simply a note or explanation.

When a professor asks you to submit an annotated bibliography, s/he wants to see:

1. The citation or reference for the book or article or item you are using
2. A brief description of the item
3. A note about why you are using this item as opposed to the hundreds of other books and articles you could have chosen instead.

Example:

Fan, Hong	. Footbinding, Feminism, and Freedom: The Liberation of Women's Bodies in Modern China. Portland: F. Cass, 1997.
	This book gives a short history of the footbinding custom in China from the Ming Dynasty until the Communist party came into power. It primarily concentrates on how the Communist party finally eradicated the custom of footbinding in China.
Levy, How	ard S. The Lotus Lovers: The Complete History of the Curious Erotic Custom of Footbinding in China. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1992.
	This book is a comprehensive history of the custom of footbinding in China. It shows the evolution of footbinding from the Ming Dynasty to the rise of the Communist party in China.

Here are a few links to online bibliographies. Notice that some of these annotations are rather lengthy. This might be because the bibliographies are not appended to a research paper. They are stand-alone bibliographies that a researcher might consult at the beginning of the research process.

• The OWL at Purdue Annotated Bibliographies
  
• Standardized Testing Bibliography
• Contemporary Philosophy of Mind: An Annotated Bibliography - note that only some entries are annotated