Whether you are an author, teacher, student, parent or librarian, your book reviews matter. They matter for both readers and writers. They help readers choose the right book and they provide feedback for all authors, including middle grade authors. So, let's take a look at the art of writing book reviews. Why Writing Book Reviews Matters How do  students find appropriate books for their interest, reading level and genre tastes? Of course there are many ways including book covers, book descriptions and book recommendations. We'll focus on that last one in this article. If students receive one or two book recommendations from a teacher, parent, librarian or fellow student, there's a good chance that it might not necessarily be taken seriously or provide enough information. But what about hundreds of recommendations from hundreds of readers? That's basically what book reviews are. And, needless to say, like snowflakes, no two book reviews will be the same. That's what makes them so valuable. They provide many different viewpoints. These different viewpoints are helpful when trying to decide what to read. So yes... your book review is helpful and valuable. The Art of Writing Book Reviews How to Write Useful Book Reviews for Middle school books How to Write Useful Book Reviews for Middle School Books You will find very few nuggets of advice on this topic, because it is assumed that everyone knows how to write helpful book reviews. Of course that is patently false. Most people do not know how to write useful book reviews. They focus too much on their opinion and their star ratings. Don't get me wrong, your opinion is important and, in most cases, the star rating is mandatory. But book reviews should be so much more than these two factors. For example, your opinion is just that... an opinion. Go ahead and write…