Types of BOOKS and characteristics
The books they are compendiums of texts organized in paragraphs, chapters and pages in which different interesting ideas are shown for the reader and that will contribute knowledge or fun. The books found their beginning in 1450 after the creation of the printing press that made it possible to make more than one copy of each literary work and offer it to a specific public.
In today's lesson from a TEACHER we want to explain the types of books and their characteristics so that you can understand a little better the different ways we use to preserve a written message and make it last over time.
We have all read a book at some time in our life and we have realized that they are written in a format that makes the reader immerse yourself in history and learn or have fun as you go through the proposed plot. The books have some specific characteristics within which the author can play freely to offer an innovative and fresh proposal.
These are the characteristics of a book:
- A book must have a minimum length of at least 49 pages, otherwise it would be considered as a brochure.
- Have to have a cover page. The cover is the first part of the book and is what covers the book in order to protect and identify it. It is usually made of a more resistant material than the sheets it contains inside and usually has information such as the title and author along with some image. In the back, call back cover, usually contains a short synopsis of the book or a review.
- May include a index. The index is a guide in the form of a list that indicates on which page each of the chapters that are explained later in the content is located. Is a fairly intuitive guide so that the reader can move through the book if he needs to find a specific paragraph.
- It usually has a Foreword at the beginning. The prologue is a small text fragment that is located at the beginning of the book to orient the reader about the work you are about to start or to tell the author's motives for writing that book.
- The largest part of the book is the content. It is a set of texts and graphic content so that the reader can understand all the information that you want to give. This is where I know develop the story of the characters or the topics you want to discuss are explained.
- Finally you will find a epilogue in which you can read the conclusions of the author or a small summary of everything that has been treated in the content section.
Image: Slideplayer
exist different types of books according to the reader's need to express his ideas. As a reader, you should know how to identify and select the book that suits you best on each occasion. It is not the same to read a book for entertainment than a book to learn about a specific topic.
If what you want is to have a good time, we recommend that you read a fiction bookOn the other hand, if you want to learn the meaning of a word, you should go to a consultation book as can the dictionary. Here we explain the types of books and we give you some examples so you can see it more clearly.
Stories or novels
Are Narrative texts what do they talk about fictional stories that the author has created and that serve solely for the reader entertainment. They have to be books that are easy to read and that capture the attention of whoever is on the other side. They usually present stories set in a place and time that happen to certain fictional characters. It may be that the book has a single plot or that it has several (a main one that carries the thread of the story and other secondary ones that complement it).
These books are very good at stimulating imagination development of the person who reads them and they must always be interesting stories and with a certain rhythm. The stories or novels do not have any need to contribute knowledge to their readers because everything is the fruit of imagination or the author's experience. Novels can be science fiction, adventure, romance, horror, etc. A good example is harry potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J. K. Rowling.
Textbooks
The textbooks They are another of the most common types of books and are the ones that are usually used in schools. They serve so that the teacher can have a guide to give their classes in an orderly way and that the students go deeper in the learning of a certain topic. They can be from different subjects such as mathematics, language, science, etc. And it serves so that the student reinforce the teachings taught by a teacher.
They usually come accompanied by exercises so that the student can test the concepts that she has just learned and make sure that she has assimilated them correctly. They are organized by thematic units and chapters and contain a wide variety of images and references to help the student understanding. An example from a textbook is Mathematics oriented to academic teachings - 3rd of ESO scored by Fernando Alcaide Guindo when we have the information.
Reference books
Are quick reference books in which you can intuitively find all the technical information you need on a topic or word. They are very useful when carrying out a written work, since the writer can quickly consult a concept that is not clear to him to refresh it and thus continue writing. They are also called reference books and they serve only to go to them in case of having a specific doubt and need a specific piece of information.
They are books like dictionaries and encyclopedias which are not made to be read in a row, but to be consulted. The information is usually presented in alphabetical order to make it easier for the reader to find it and is usually arranged in vertical format to facilitate a quick reading. An example of a reference book is The Larousse Encyclopedia from Editorial Planeta.
Scientific books
They are books that are characterized by addressing scientific topics with a lot of depth. They can be of different themes such as physics, chemistry, medicine, astronomy, etc. These books have been created with a clear purpose of instruct the reader on a specific topic and present scientific truths accompanied by hypotheses that have not yet been proven.
its language is usually very technical and they are subjected to various content reviews before being published. They are written with a certain intention of hooking the reader, although it is not what worries them the most, since the authors know that users who approach that book do so with the desire to learn and solve doubts. The authors of these books are scientists who have extensive studies on the subject they deal with. An example from a scientific book is Brief history of time, written by Stephen Hawking.
Biographical books
They are books that narrate the life of a real person giving exact and concrete data and recounting the most remarkable events that happened to him. The information they have is very reliable and has been contrasted with various sources. They are usually written in chronological order and narrate the lives of important people who have contributed something relevant to society: actors, musicians, scientists, presidents, etc.
In the event that a person decides to write his own story, we will be talking about a autobiography. An example of a biographical book is Lincoln, written by Cesar Vidal.
Travel books
Travel books are another of the most common types of books and they are compendiums of experiences and advice that one or more travelers have experienced when visiting a country. They are written in the first person and chronologically tell the adventures that a traveler encountered in a certain place.
These books used to be written by adventurers who went to live in unpopulated areas of the world or who adapted to indigenous cultures very different from them. They tend to lean on photographic material or maps. A good example of travel books is Towards wild routes written by Jon Krakauer.
Religious books
The religious books They are very old books whose language and format have been updated, but which express the same original meaning.
They sustain a religion and mark the bases by which his followers should be governed. They are books with a great sacred, historical and cultural load. An example of a religious book is The Bible.
Instructional books
They are books that show the step by step of an activity specifically, that is, the instructions you must follow. It can be both to assemble an appliance, to learn how to configure a software or recipes to learn how to cook.
They are books that use a very clear and concise language so that the reader can follow the steps in a very easy way. An example of an instructional book is Cooking with Mambo written by Patricia Cotán García.
Poetry books
Poetry books are part of the lyric and include a compendium of poems of one or more authors. They are written in verse and stanzas are respected. An example from a poetry book is Rhymes and legends, written by Gustavo Adolfo Becquer.
Now you know how to recognize types of books and their characteristics and you have seen some examples. If you are interested in continuing to learn about this or some other related topic, do not hesitate to consult the articles that you can find in the literature section.
