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• What Is an Annotated Bibliography? | Examples & Format

What Is an Annotated Bibliography? | Examples & Format

Published on March 9, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on August 23, 2022.

An annotated bibliography is a list of source references that includes a short descriptive text (an annotation) for each source. It may be assigned as part of the research process for a paper , or as an individual assignment to gather and read relevant sources on a topic.

Scribbr’s free Citation Generator allows you to easily create and manage your annotated bibliography in APA or MLA style. To generate a perfectly formatted annotated bibliography, select the source type, fill out the relevant fields, and add your annotation.

An example of an annotated source is shown below:

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Table of contents

Annotated bibliography format: apa, mla, chicago, how to write an annotated bibliography, descriptive annotation example, evaluative annotation example, reflective annotation example, finding sources for your annotated bibliography, frequently asked questions about annotated bibliographies.

Make sure your annotated bibliography is formatted according to the guidelines of the style guide you’re working with. Three common styles are covered below:

In APA Style , both the reference entry and the annotation should be double-spaced and left-aligned.

The reference entry itself should have a hanging indent . The annotation follows on the next line, and the whole annotation should be indented to match the hanging indent. The first line of any additional paragraphs should be indented an additional time.

In an MLA style annotated bibliography , the Works Cited entry and the annotation are both double-spaced and left-aligned.

The Works Cited entry has a hanging indent. The annotation itself is indented 1 inch (twice as far as the hanging indent). If there are two or more paragraphs in the annotation, the first line of each paragraph is indented an additional half-inch, but not if there is only one paragraph.

Chicago style

In a  Chicago style annotated bibliography , the bibliography entry itself should be single-spaced and feature a hanging indent.

The annotation should be indented, double-spaced, and left-aligned. The first line of any additional paragraphs should be indented an additional time.

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For each source, start by writing (or generating ) a full reference entry that gives the author, title, date, and other information. The annotated bibliography format varies based on the citation style you’re using.

The annotations themselves are usually between 50 and 200 words in length, typically formatted as a single paragraph. This can vary depending on the word count of the assignment, the relative length and importance of different sources, and the number of sources you include.

Consider the instructions you’ve been given or consult your instructor to determine what kind of annotations they’re looking for:

• Descriptive annotations : When the assignment is just about gathering and summarizing information, focus on the key arguments and methods of each source.
• Evaluative annotations : When the assignment is about evaluating the sources , you should also assess the validity and effectiveness of these arguments and methods.
• Reflective annotations : When the assignment is part of a larger research process, you need to consider the relevance and usefulness of the sources to your own research.

These specific terms won’t necessarily be used. The important thing is to understand the purpose of your assignment and pick the approach that matches it best. Interactive examples of the different styles of annotation are shown below.

A descriptive annotation summarizes the approach and arguments of a source in an objective way, without attempting to assess their validity.

In this way, it resembles an abstract , but you should never just copy text from a source’s abstract, as this would be considered plagiarism . You’ll naturally cover similar ground, but you should also consider whether the abstract omits any important points from the full text.

The interactive example shown below describes an article about the relationship between business regulations and CO 2 emissions.

Rieger, A. (2019). Doing business and increasing emissions? An exploratory analysis of the impact of business regulation on CO 2 emissions. Human Ecology Review , 25 (1), 69–86. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26964340

An evaluative annotation also describes the content of a source, but it goes on to evaluate elements like the validity of the source’s arguments and the appropriateness of its methods .

For example, the following annotation describes, and evaluates the effectiveness of, a book about the history of Western philosophy.

Kenny, A. (2010). A new history of Western philosophy: In four parts . Oxford University Press.

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A reflective annotation is similar to an evaluative one, but it focuses on the source’s usefulness or relevance to your own research.

Reflective annotations are often required when the point is to gather sources for a future research project, or to assess how they were used in a project you already completed.

The annotation below assesses the usefulness of a particular article for the author’s own research in the field of media studies.

Manovich, Lev. (2009). The practice of everyday (media) life: From mass consumption to mass cultural production? Critical Inquiry , 35 (2), 319–331. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/596645

Manovich’s article assesses the shift from a consumption-based media culture (in which media content is produced by a small number of professionals and consumed by a mass audience) to a production-based media culture (in which this mass audience is just as active in producing content as in consuming it). He is skeptical of some of the claims made about this cultural shift; specifically, he argues that the shift towards user-made content must be regarded as more reliant upon commercial media production than it is typically acknowledged to be. However, he regards web 2.0 as an exciting ongoing development for art and media production, citing its innovation and unpredictability.

The article is outdated in certain ways (it dates from 2009, before the launch of Instagram, to give just one example). Nevertheless, its critical engagement with the possibilities opened up for media production by the growth of social media is valuable in a general sense, and its conceptualization of these changes frequently applies just as well to more current social media platforms as it does to Myspace. Conceptually, I intend to draw on this article in my own analysis of the social dynamics of Twitter and Instagram.

Before you can write your annotations, you’ll need to find sources . If the annotated bibliography is part of the research process for a paper, your sources will be those you consult and cite as you prepare the paper. Otherwise, your assignment and your choice of topic will guide you in what kind of sources to look for.

Make sure that you’ve clearly defined your topic , and then consider what keywords are relevant to it, including variants of the terms. Use these keywords to search databases (e.g., Google Scholar ), using Boolean operators to refine your search.

Sources can include journal articles, books, and other source types , depending on the scope of the assignment. Read the abstracts or blurbs of the sources you find to see whether they’re relevant, and try exploring their bibliographies to discover more. If a particular source keeps showing up, it’s probably important.

Once you’ve selected an appropriate range of sources, read through them, taking notes that you can use to build up your annotations. You may even prefer to write your annotations as you go, while each source is fresh in your mind.

An annotated bibliography is an assignment where you collect sources on a specific topic and write an annotation for each source. An annotation is a short text that describes and sometimes evaluates the source.

Any credible sources on your topic can be included in an annotated bibliography . The exact sources you cover will vary depending on the assignment, but you should usually focus on collecting journal articles and scholarly books . When in doubt, utilize the CRAAP test !

Each annotation in an annotated bibliography is usually between 50 and 200 words long. Longer annotations may be divided into paragraphs .

The content of the annotation varies according to your assignment. An annotation can be descriptive, meaning it just describes the source objectively; evaluative, meaning it assesses its usefulness; or reflective, meaning it explains how the source will be used in your own research .

A source annotation in an annotated bibliography fulfills a similar purpose to an abstract : they’re both intended to summarize the approach and key points of a source.

However, an annotation may also evaluate the source , discussing the validity and effectiveness of its arguments. Even if your annotation is purely descriptive , you may have a different perspective on the source from the author and highlight different key points.

You should never just copy text from the abstract for your annotation, as doing so constitutes plagiarism .

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2022, August 23). What Is an Annotated Bibliography? | Examples & Format. Scribbr. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/citing-sources/annotated-bibliography/

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BIOL 3030: Genetics and Society: Annotated Bibliography Tips

• Key Resources
• Annotated Bibliography Tips
• Organize & Cite

About the annoted bibliography

• An annotated bibliography is a bibliography that contains both the bibliographic information for a source (the citation) and a summary, evaluation, and/or reflection on the source.
• An annotated bibliography can help you keep track of the many sources you'll be using in a research paper or project and even help you write or create your final project!
• To see some examples of what annotations can look like, check out the library's Annotated Bibliography Guide . It has a bit more explanation of what an annotated bibliography may look like, some explanation of the differences between summary, evaluation, and reflection, and how an annotated bibliography can help you create your final research product.

Evaluating Sources

Evaluating sources goes beyond the distinction between scholarly and popular. You must also evaluate your sources based on relevancy. Watch this video and check out the library's evaluating sources tutorial for more tips!

Reading the Scientific Literature

Reading a scientific paper isn't like reading a book.  Hint:  Don't try to read it straight through from beginning to end!

Here are some tips to help you become skilled:

• How to Read a Scientific Paper  - Infographic from Elsevier
• How to Read a Scientific Article  by Mary Purugganan, Ph.D. and Jan Hewitt, Ph.D., Cain Project in Engineering and Professional Communication at Rice University
• How to Read a Scientific Paper - Minimally modified from John W. Little and Roy Parker at the University of Arizona (which is no longer retrievable).  This version is from a Biology course from by taught by Professor Devoto Fall 2011 at Wesleyan University.
• How to read and understand a scientific paper: a guide for non-scientists

Primary vs. Secondary Research

In addition to distinguishing between popular and scholarly articles, you need to be able to understand if the scholarly articles you are reading are reporting primary research or secondary research.

Primary research articles report original research and results.  You will see the data and work that the authors produced. A primary source is an article that reports this.  Other primary sources can include documents such as diaries and scrapbooks, photographs, and eyewitness accounts.

Secondary research often summarizes the work of many primary research studies.  In the sciences, a common example of this is a review article .  Review articles report and analyze the results of primary research articles, but don't report any new information.

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What is an annotated bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is a list of sources on a topic, properly cited, with commentary about each article. It is NOT just a summary of each article. Instead, it includes analysis of the quality of the source and how it fits in with your research.

This page focuses on how to create annotations. Visit the citing sources page for information on how to create the citations for your source.

Writing Good Annotations

A good annotation includes:

• A short summary of the article. The summary should be no more than a few sentences. It is not the majority of your citation.
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the article?
• Did the researchers use good methodology?
• Is the study replicable?
• Are the data analysis methods appropriate for the study?
• Did you identify any sources of bias?
• How the source relates to your research topic . It is rare that you will find an article that is an exact match for your topic -- this is a good thing! It means your research will make a unique contribution to the field. Explain how this source is related to your study.
• Does it provide context for your experiment?
• Would you consider using similar experimental methods?
• Does it explain or contradict the results you found?

Annotated Bibliography Examples

The links below show examples of annotated bibliography entries for articles in biology.

• University of South Florida - Annotated Bibliography Scroll to the bottom of this USF guide to find two sample annotations.
• University of New England - Writing an Annotated Bibliography UNE's guide to annotated bibliographies contains two sample annotations: one in APA style and one in CSE style.
• Pomona College - Annotated Bibliography Example The Pomona College Department of Molecular Biology has shared a sample annotation that a student created.
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BIOL 120: Intro to Biological Inquiry: Creating Annotated Bibliographies

• Primary & Review Articles
• Find Articles
• Evaluating Resources
• What is Peer-Review?
• Comparing Popular & Scholar
• Creating Annotated Bibliographies
• Citing Sources (CSE)
• Requesting Items (ILL)

The Process

Each department/discipline may have different requirements for annotated bibliographies. The following steps are general guidelines on how to create an annotated bibliography:

1. Locate literature that contains useful information on your topic.  Try to choose works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.

2. Cite each resource using your subject specific citation style (e.g. APA or MLA).

3. Review each item by writing an evaluation of the work and how it is interesting and important to your research. This is the annotated portion and each reviewed item should:

(a) Offer your explanation of the main findings revealed in the article,

(b) Include your reasoning/thinking on how this specific study pertains to your inquiry, questions and/or research,

(c) Provide your assessment of the source reliability and evidence for this,

(d) Use brief and precise language - aim for a short paragraph. Always use your own voice and avoid jargon wherever possible.

4. Arrange the bibliography  alphabetically as specified by your citation style guide. 

Annotated Bibliography

What is an annotated bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents that informs the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited. There are two parts to an annotation:

• The citation - how a resource is cited using a discipline-specific citation style, such as APA or MLA. 
• The annotation  - highlights key findings in the resource you care about, and includes your own considerations for why and how this work is relevant to your own work. Annotations usually include an evaluation of the quality of the resource. 

In the example below, the yellow is the citation and the blue is the annotation. It still needs a hanging indentation: top line is all the way to the left, and subsequent lines are "tabbed" to the right underneath the first line. 

Waite, L. J., Goldschneider, F. K., & Witsberger, C. (1986). Nonfamily living and the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults. American Sociological Review , 51 , 541-554.

The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

In the example below, the yellow is the citation and the blue is the annotation. It still needs a hanging indentation (top line is all the way to the left, and subsequent lines are "tabbed" to the right underneath the first line).

Waite, Linda J., et al. "Nonfamily Living and the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults." American Sociological Review , vol. 51, no. 4, 1986, pp. 541-554.

Chicago Style

Waite, Linda J., Frances Kobrin Goldscheider, and Christina Witsberger. "Nonfamily living and the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults." American Sociological Review (1986): 541-554.

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Willamette University Libraries

Biology 231 - Research Methods

• Verifying If An Article Is Peer-Reviewed
• Should I Trust Internet Sources?
• Suggested Databases for Finding Sources
• Critical Analysis
• Creating an Annotated Bibliography
• Creating a Literature Review
• Resources for Writing Research Proposals
• Off-Campus Access

Creating a Hanging Indent in MS Word

Select the text where you want to add a  hanging indent .

Go to Home > Paragraph dialog launcher. >  Indents  and Spacing.

Under Special, select  Hanging . You can adjust the depth of the  indent  using the By field.

Creating a Hanging Indent in Google Docs

It's a little more cumbersome to do this in Google Docs.  Click this LINK to open for directions.

What is An Annotated Bibliography

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations for books, articles, and/or documents that you have read in pursuit of your research.  Each citation is followed by a brief (at least 100 words) paragraph that describes and evaluates the source. 

Annotated bibliographies are useful tools for gathering and condensing information about the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources you're planning to cite in your paper/project/presentation. 

What Should Each Citation Include?

1.  The full citation for the source (or whatever citation style is required for the assignment). 

2.  A paragraph that includes:      a.  A brief summary of the source – its main point or argument, written in your own words.      b.  A description of the authority or background of the author(s).      c.  A description of how this source compares and/or contrasts with other sources you have read on        this topic.      d.  An explanation of how this source contributes to answering your research question.

3.  All of this needs to be written in your own words, to convey your own understanding of the      source.  If you simply copy or lift language (or cut and paste) from the source or its abstract, you      have failed.

Example 1: Fullard, D. (2005). Biodiversity Education at a Natural World Heritage Site: Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden. Roots 2(1): 3. Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, in Cape Town, is the first botanical garden to be recognized as a natural World Heritage Site. The Kirstenbosch Environmental Education Program supports the World Heritage Convention’s mission to encourage participation of the local population in the preservation of their cultural and natural heritage. The program’s stated mission is to inspire and enable people from all walks of life to take responsibility for their environment. Learners/youth from the disadvantaged areas and under-resourced schools of the Cape Flats in the Western Cape participate in a curriculum-linked, gardenbased and outreach greening program which cover a wide variety of themes, learning program and activities. The article does not describe and specific outcomes or how program successes were measured and evaluated.  Example 2:

Kletou, D., Hall-Spencer, J. M., & Kleitou, P. (2016). A lionfish (Pterois miles) invasion has begun in the Mediterranean Sea.  Marine Biodiversity  Records 9( 46) .  1-7. doi:10.1186/s41200-016-0065-y ​ This article discusses the recent invasion of the lionfish in the Mediterranean Sea and offers reasons for the sudden increase in the species' presence.  The study concludes that growth of the lionfish population can be controlled by encouraging commercial fishermen and divers to capture the lionfish to be sold on the market. While the article provides data and graphs that forecast the decline of the lionfish with a commercial fishing intervention, the methodology is incomplete. The researchers do not fully explain how they obtained these results.  The article does not address external factors that may derail the fishing plan proposed by the authors; for example, the researchers do not consider the population growth rate of the lionfish or how aggressive the fishing rate needs to be to control the population in a timely manner. Although the introduction is helpful in providing a framework for why the lionfish invasion is a concerning issue, the discussion lacks depth in addressing other issues that may arise.

(Source: University of West Florida LibGuides: EVR 2001: Introduction to Environmental Science.  https://libguides.uwf.edu/c.php?g=436278&p=3891645)

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• Annotations vs. Abstracts (Cal Poly)
• Examples of an Annotated Bibliography (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
• How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography (University of Maryland)

Preparing an Annotated Bibliography

The purpose:, why annotate  .

To save yourself time and frustration later! Truly, this is your opportunity to quickly evaluate a source for key ideas, important data, and helpful quotes which can easily be recalled for use throughout the writing process. Why struggle to remember where you saw a key piece of information, when a quick, organized note or highlight could easily save you the trouble. Doing this work at the beginning of exploring sources will save you some real headaches later.

Annotation vs. Abstract

Both are helpful, but the difference is perspective... Remember, an annotation  is a critical evaluation (the notes)  you make of a source and its key elements, conclusions and objectives. In contrast, an abstract is a descriptive summary (purpose, methods, and general conclusions) of a source written from the perspective of the source's author(s) and is typically found at the beginning of an article, essay or book. 

The Process : 

For more information.

Article : How to Critically Analyze a Source  -  Cornell University  

Video : How to Create an Annotated Bibliography  -  Brock University

Sample Annotated Bibliography Entry

APA Style ( Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th edition, 2020)  for the journal citation:

​Source: Columbia College (BC), LibGuides (Annotated Bibliography)                                                                                   -  https://columbiacollege-ca.libguides.com/apa

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How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography: The Annotated Bibliography

• The Annotated Bibliography
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Explanation, Process, Directions, and Examples

What is an annotated bibliography.

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief (usually about 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

Annotations vs. Abstracts

Abstracts are the purely descriptive summaries often found at the beginning of scholarly journal articles or in periodical indexes. Annotations are descriptive and critical; they may describe the author's point of view, authority, or clarity and appropriateness of expression.

The Process

Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed library research.

First, locate and record citations to books, periodicals, and documents that may contain useful information and ideas on your topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items. Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.

Cite the book, article, or document using the appropriate style.

Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare or contrast this work with another you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.

Critically Appraising the Book, Article, or Document

For guidance in critically appraising and analyzing the sources for your bibliography, see How to Critically Analyze Information Sources . For information on the author's background and views, ask at the reference desk for help finding appropriate biographical reference materials and book review sources.

Choosing the Correct Citation Style

Check with your instructor to find out which style is preferred for your class. Online citation guides for both the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA) styles are linked from the Library's Citation Management page .

Sample Annotated Bibliography Entries

The following example uses APA style ( Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th edition, 2019) for the journal citation:

Waite, L., Goldschneider, F., & Witsberger, C. (1986). Nonfamily living and the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults. American Sociological Review, 51 (4), 541-554. The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

This example uses MLA style ( MLA Handbook , 9th edition, 2021) for the journal citation. For additional annotation guidance from MLA, see 5.132: Annotated Bibliographies .

Waite, Linda J., et al. "Nonfamily Living and the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults." American Sociological Review, vol. 51, no. 4, 1986, pp. 541-554. The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

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Biology: Annotated Bibliographies

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• Annotated Bibliographies

What is an annotated bibliography?

An annotated bibliography includes citations with descriptive and evaluative information about each source listed.

Descriptions should be brief (100-150 words, unless otherwise specified by your instructor) and should communicate the accuracy, relevancy, and appropriateness of the source in regard to your paper or assignment.

An annotated bibliography may also be called an Annotated List of Works Cited .

To write an annotation, it is necessary to read MORE than just the source title and abstract.

An abstract from the author or publisher may be included; however, additional information about the source should be provided in your own words .

Annotation Types

• Descriptive Annotations
• Critical Annotations
• Sample Annotation

A descriptive annotation may summarize:

• The main purpose or idea of the work
• The contents of the work
• The author’s conclusions
• The intended audience
• The author’s research methods
• Special features of the work such as illustrations, maps, tables, etc.

Descriptions from UMKC Libraries , used with permission.

A critical annotation includes value judgments or comments on the effectiveness of the work. In this context, critical means evaluative and may include both positive and negative comments. A critical annotation may contain the information found in a descriptive annotation and discuss some of the following features:

• The importance of the work’s contribution to the literature of the subject
• The author’s bias or tone
• The author’s qualifications for writing the work
• The accuracy of the information in the source
• Limitations or significant omissions
• The work’s contribution to the literature of the subject
• Comparison with other works on the topic

The following annotation is just a general example. Students should be alert and follow specific requirements that might vary with each professor’s assignment or to the course discipline.

*****************************************************************************

Sample Topic: The Effects of Hydraulic Fracturing on Ground Water

 Urbina, Ian. "A Tainted Water Well, And Concern There May Be More." The New York Times . (August 4, 2011 Thursday ):  LexisNexis Academic. Web. Date Accessed: 2013/09/24.  Annotation: This article identifies government agencies and industries that have done studies on the environmental effects of fracking, such as the EPA, Environmental Working Group and the American Petroleum Institute. One EPA official mentions that because of legal issues, it is difficult to access reports; this factor could be important in obtaining accurate information. The article also identifies ongoing conflicts between companies that want to use fracking and environmental groups and individuals that oppose it.

Additional Help

• How to prepare an annotated bibliography From the Concordia University Libraries
• Annotated Bibliographies Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) Annotated Bibliographies
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What is An Annotated Bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is a list of sources (books, articles, websites, etc.) with short paragraph about each source. An annotated bibliography is sometimes a useful step before drafting a research paper, or it can stand alone as an overview of the research available on a topic.

Each source in the annotated bibliography has a citation - the information a reader needs to find the original source, in a consistent format to make that easier. These consistent formats are called citation styles.  The most common citation styles are MLA (Modern Language Association) for humanities, and APA (American Psychological Association) for social sciences.

Annotations are about 4 to 6 sentences long (roughly 150 words), and address:

•     Main focus or purpose of the work
•     Usefulness or relevance to your research topic 
•     Special features of the work that were unique or helpful
•     Background and credibility of the author
•     Conclusions or observations reached by the author
•     Conclusions or observations reached by you

Annotations versus Abstracts

Many scholarly articles start with an abstract, which is the author's summary of the article to help you decide whether you should read the entire article.  This abstract is not the same thing as an annotation.  The annotation needs to be in your own words, to explain the relevance of the source to your particular assignment or research question.

Annotated Bibliography video

MLA 9th Annotated Bibliography Examples

Ontiveros, Randy J.  In the Spirit of a New People: The Cultural Politics of the Chicano Movement . New York UP, 2014.

This book analyzes the journalism, visual arts, theater, and novels of the Chicano movement from 1960 to the present as articulations of personal and collective values. Chapter 3 grounds the theater of El Teatro Campesino in the labor and immigrant organizing of the period, while Chapter 4 situates Sandra Cisneros’s novel  Caramelo  in the struggles of Chicana feminists to be heard in the traditional and nationalist elements of the Chicano movement. Ontiveros provides a powerful and illuminating historical context for the literary and political texts of the movement.

Journal article

Alvarez, Nadia, and Jack Mearns. “The Benefits of Writing and Performing in the Spoken Word Poetry Community.”  The Arts in Psychotherapy , vol. 41, no. 3, July 2014, pp. 263-268.  ScienceDirect ,  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2014.03.004 .

Spoken word poetry is distinctive because it is written to be performed out loud, in person, by the poet. The ten poets interviewed by these authors describe “a reciprocal relationship between the audience and the poet” created by that practice of performance. To build community, spoken word poets keep metaphor and diction relatively simple and accessible. Richness is instead built through fragmented stories that coalesce into emotional narratives about personal and community concerns.  This understanding of poets’ intentions illuminates their recorded performances.

*Note, citations have a .5 hanging indent and the annotations have a 1 inch indent. 

• MLA 9th Sample Annotated Bibliography

MLA 8th Annotated Bibliography Examples

Ontiveros, Randy J. In the Spirit of a New People: The Cultural Politics of the Chicano Movement . New York UP, 2014. This book analyzes the journalism, visual arts, theater, and novels of the Chicano movement from 1960 to the present as articulations of personal and collective values. Chapter 3 grounds the theater of El Teatro Campesino in the labor and immigrant organizing of the period, while Chapter 4 situates Sandra Cisneros’s novel Caramelo in the struggles of Chicana feminists to be heard in the traditional and nationalist elements of the Chicano movement. Ontiveros provides a powerful and illuminating historical context for the literary and political texts of the movement.

Alvarez, Nadia, and Jack Mearns. “The Benefits of Writing and Performing in the Spoken Word Poetry Community.” The Arts in Psychotherapy , vol. 41, no. 3, July 2014, pp. 263-268. ScienceDirect , doi:10.1016/j.aip.2014.03.004 . Spoken word poetry is distinctive because it is written to be performed out loud, in person, by the poet. The ten poets interviewed by these authors describe “a reciprocal relationship between the audience and the poet” created by that practice of performance. To build community, spoken word poets keep metaphor and diction relatively simple and accessible. Richness is instead built through fragmented stories that coalesce into emotional narratives about personal and community concerns.  This understanding of poets’ intentions illuminates their recorded performances.

• MLA 8th Sample Annotated Bibliography

APA 7th Annotated Bibliography Examples

Alvarez, N. & Mearns, J. (2014). The benefits of writing and performing in the spoken word poetry community.  The Arts in Psychotherapy, 41 (3), 263-268.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2014.03.004 Prior research has shown narrative writing to help with making meaning out of trauma. This article uses grounded theory to analyze semi-structured interviews with ten spoken word poets.  Because spoken word poetry is performed live, it creates personal and community connections that enhance the emotional development and resolution offered by the practice of writing. The findings are limited by the small, nonrandom sample (all the participants were from the same community).

• APA 7th Sample Annotated Bibliography
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What is an Annotated Bibliography or a research annotation

What is an Annotated Bibliography (AB)?

An annotated bibliography (AB) is a list of citations (journal articles, books, etc) where each citation is followed by a brief (about 120-150 words) evaluative and descriptive paragraph of the article (i.e. a summary of the research article in your own words). The purpose of annotating is for the reader to get the "gist" of the article by reading this one paragraph . I recommend that in your paragraph(s) [i.e., annotation] you expose the author's point of view , key findings , and show how their work is relevant (e.g., strengthens, has opposing views, complements, provides a new perspective) to your topic. As you build your AB ask yourself: (a) is the article/source adding information to your topic , (b) is it contradicting or confirming ideas you may have read previously about , (c) is it a new source , (d) is the author an authority in the area (e.g., published a lot in good journals)? Asking these questions will help you put together a succint annotated bibliography that will later provide key information to put your presentation together. It will also save you: (a) time , since recalling what the article is about will be easier after reading other papers for your topic, and (b) reduce the chances of word-for-word plagiarism because the summary will be in your words (you will still need an in-text citation though).

In general: summarize , assess and reflect on the work you are reading. By doing this you are engaging in the analysis of the article in meaningful ways- it will pay off later when you put your presentation or article together.

FYI: An annotated bibliography is NOT a copy of the ABSTRACT but it can be seen as your first step towards a REVIEW of THE LITERATURE in your selected topic.

For more details on Annotated Bibliographies check out the resources below.

Cornell: https://guides.library.cornell.edu/annotatedbibliography

Purdue: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/01/  (Direct LINK )

University of Wisconsin: http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/AnnotatedBibliography.html

Literature Review

What is a literature Review? How is this different or the same as a review paper?

A literature review can be: (a) a simple summary of the sources in a narrow topic within a subject area of interest or (b) it can be an organized summary and synthesis of the same topic/subject in the form of a paper. Some literature reviews, if standalone, could become review papers or survey papers. The latter usually relatet papers to one another, present what is the most important things in the field at present and perhaps provides future directions of work in such a field. These papers usually are longer and may have thousands of references associated to them.

Another way of thinking about this is that if the literature review is part of a "thesis or dissertation", it helps provide a context for the research and has less references than an actual review paper. However, if this review is a standalone paper that helps synthesize and summarize information in that particular (subject/field) then we could argue that it is a review paper or survey paper.

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Example Annotated Bibliography

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Introduction

1. Definition

A bibliography is usually thought of as an alphabetical listing of books at the end of a written work (book, book chapter, or article), to which the author referred during the research and writing process. In addition to books, bibliographies can include sources such as articles, reports, interviews, or even non-print resources like Web sites, video or audio recordings. Because they may include such varied resources, bibliographies are also referred to as 'references', 'works cited' or 'works consulted' (the latter can include those titles that merely contributed to research, but were not specifically cited in text). The standard bibliography details the citation information of the consulted sources: author(s), date of publication, title, and publisher's name and location (and for articles: journal title, volume, issue and page numbers). The primary function of bibliographic citations is to assist the reader in finding the sources used in the writing of a work.

To these basic citations, the annotated bibliography adds descriptive and evaluative comments (i.e., an annotation ), assessing the nature and value of the cited works. The addition of commentary provides the future reader or researcher essential critical information and a foundation for further research.

2. Composition

While an annotation can be as short as one sentence, the average entry in an annotated bibliography consists of a work's citation information followed by a short paragraph of three to six sentences, roughly 150 words in length. Similar to the literature review except for the shorter length of its entries, the annotated bibliography is compiled by:

• Considering scope: what types of sources (books, articles, primary documents, Web sites, non-print materials) will be included? how many (a sampling or a comprehensive list)? (Your instructor may set these guidelines)
• Conducting a search for the sources and retrieving them
• Evaluating retrieved sources by reading them and noting your findings and impressions
• Once a final group of sources has been selected, giving full citation data (according to the bibliographic style [e.g., APA, Chicago, MLA] prescribed by your instructor) and writing an annotation for each source; do not list a source more than once

Annotations begin on the line following the citation data and may be composed with complete sentences or as verb phrases (the cited work being understood as the subject)—again at the discretion of the instructor. The annotation should include most, if not all, of the following:

• Explanation of the main purpose and scope of the cited work
• Brief description of the work's format and content
• Theoretical basis and currency of the author's argument
• Author's intellectual/academic credentials
• Work's intended audience
• Value and significance of the work as a contribution to the subject under consideration
• Possible shortcomings or bias in the work
• Any significant special features of the work (e.g., glossary, appendices, particularly good index)
• Your own brief impression of the work

Although these are many of the same features included in a literature review, the emphasis of bibliographic annotation should be on brevity.

Not to be confused with the abstract —which merely gives a summary of the main points of a work—the annotated bibliography always describes and often evaluates those points. Whether an annotated bibliography concludes an article or book—or is even itself a comprehensive, book-length listing of sources—its purposes are the same:

• To illustrate the scope and quality of one's own research
• To review the literature published on a particular topic
• To provide the reader/researcher with supplementary, illustrative or alternative sources
• To allow the reader to see if a particular source was consulted
• To provide examples of the type of resources available on a given topic
• To place original research in a historical context
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What is an Annotated Bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is made up of two things: a bibliography and annotations.

• A  bibliography  is a list of sources concerning a particular research topic. These sources could be books, scholarly articles, films, etc. For the bibliography aspect of an annotated bibliography, you will create a citation that matches the 
• Summarize what the author is saying in their work
• Assess whether the work illuminates your understanding of the topic and how it fits in with your other sources
• Reflect on the role the citation has within your own argument

For more information on annotated bibliographies, see Cornell's guide on creating an annotated bibliography .

What is the Purpose of an Annotated Bibliography?

You might be wondering why it is helpful to create an annotated bibliography. When doing research, it is incredibly helpful to have an understanding of the scholarly literature around the topic that you're studying. Here are some reasons why completing an annotated bibliography might be helpful:

• When you take the time to research your topic and see what other scholars and experts in the field are saying about it, you are better able to situate yourself within the scholarly conversation.
• By the time that you complete an annotated bibliography, you should be able to have a sense of the prevailing opinions about your research topic.
• An annotated bibliography will also help you to understand how to incorporate your sources into your research assignment. It can sometimes be difficult to decide where to use a quotation or how a source might push your argument forward. When you take the time to create an annotated bibliography, this process becomes much easier. You'll have a better sense of the sources you've found and how they might be incorporated into your paper or project.

This guide is designed to help you through creating an annotated bibliography. Your first step, though, should be finding your sources. For help with finding academic/scholarly sources, see the library's other guide, How to Use Library Databases .

Once you have found the sources that you would potentially like to use in your paper, you can start to work on your annotated bibliography! 

Writing an Annotation

Annotations are  not  summaries of the research article. Instead they describe the work, while also evaluating it for point of view, authority, and the appropriateness/use for your research.

Cornell Libraries recommend following this process to create your annotation:

Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare or contrast this work with another you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.

Annotated Bibliography Example

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Understanding an Annotated Bibliography

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• Purdue OWL Annotated Bibliographies An explanation of annotated bibliographies from Purdue OWL, including examples in MLA, APA, and CSE styles.

What is an annotated bibliography? 

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to sources, such as books and articles. Each citation is followed by an annotation, a brief descriptive and evaluative paragraph, about 150 words long, that analyzes the source. An annotated bibliography usually looks like any other bibliography with alphabetized citations of sources, except that here each source is followed by an explanatory paragraph. This work can form the basis of a literature review later in the writing process. The purpose of the annotation is to inform on the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

What isn't an annotated bibliography? 

An annotation is not only a summary of the source in question. It should be a short but critical analysis as to why and how the source fits into the larger research question. An abstract functions as a summary, an annotation should be contextual to the specific topic at hand. It should be both descriptive and evaluative. 

Types of annotations: 

• Descriptive: states the topic of the source only
• Evaluative: evaluates the source, which may include placing the work in context of other research or evaluating its usefulness. This is the type expected for most research assignments. 
• Summary: summarizes the source but does not take a stance or make an argument about the source.

What about formatting?

Most of the major citation styles call for a  hanging first line  on annotated bibliographies. This means the first line of the citation will align with the left margin of the page, and all subsequent lines of the citation and annotation will indent to the right.

Example of an Annotated Citation using the Ecology Journal Style

Patra, A., Park, T., Kim, M. and Yu, Z. (2017). Rumen methanogens and mitigation of methane emission by anti-methanogenic compounds and substances.   J. Anim. Sci. Biotechnol.   8 , 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-017-0145-9

This study reviews some of the work through 2017 identifying ruminal methanogens and the in vivo and in vitro effects of anti-methanogenic compounds. Of specific interest is the summary of evidence suggesting that archaea make up only ~10% of the ruminal microbiome (see "Overview of methanogens present in the rumen"). Also of note, this paper cites work indicating many rumen ciliate protozoa have ecto- and endo-associated methanogenic archaea (see "Methanogens associated with rumen protozoa"). However, most ruminal methanogens are "free-living" (i.e. not protozoa-associated; see "Free-living ruminal methanogens").

[ Depending on your device and browser, the proper hanging first line may or may not be visible here. ]

To export a bibliography from EndNote with this format, see " Exporting a Bibliography From EndNote " on the " EndNote Resources For Bio195N " page of this guide.

Alternatively, to create this format in Word, see 

Open Format  > Paragraph

Alternatively, highlight the text, right-click and select Paragraph .

Under Indentation , there is a drop down menu for Special options. This includes the Hanging First Line . 

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