Book reviews

Like the MLQ articles, all the books reviewed for the journal comment on literary history. MLQ does not normally publish unsolicited reviews; the books have been selected by the Editor as appropriate to our mission, and we then locate and request a review from a scholar who specializes in that field. Collections of essays are not normally reviewed. We take care not to have the books reviewed by scholars who have been involved in the production of the book. Like most journals, we recommend you examine an issue before submitting.

Single reviews
Reviews of single books usually run from 1000 to 1500 words and have no title. When MLQ solicits reviews, we generally give a six month window to complete the review.

The proper header for an MLQ book review looks like this:

Note: MLQ no longer requires the prices of books in the title line.

The reviewer's name and the university affiliation appear at the end of the review, by the right margin.

Exceptionally we accept an unsolicited review for publication or will invite a review in response to an inquiry. If you wish to review for MLQ, you may write describing your background and proposing one or more titles for review. Enclose a sample review. If you wish to submit an unsolicited review, please send a preliminary inquiry by email to the MLQ office.

Review essays
Review essays—of single or of several books—can run up to article length and do have a title. A review essay must lead beyond the book(s) discussed.

The headers for review essays follow much the same format as the single review:

 

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