What is an annotated bibliography?
A bibliography is an organized list of sources (books, journal articles, web sources, etc.) formatted in a particular citation style (such as MLA, APA, or Chicago). An annotation is a descriptive paragraph. So, an annotated bibliography is a bibliography that contains a descriptive paragraph about each of the sources listed in the bibliography.
Why write an annotated bibliography?
Annotated bibliographies demonstrate to your readers the quality and depth of the research you have done for your paper. The annotations also provide the reader with more information on which of your sources they should read to learn more about specific aspects of your topic.
When preparing for a research paper, writing annotations for your sources compels you to read and understand each source more critically. Annotations help you to examine the relevance and unique contribution of each source to your topic while at the same time, may identify gaps in your research for further study.
Use an annotated bibliography to: