Choice Review

In this four-part book Edwards (Oregon State Univ.) aims to teach new sociological students how to think and write like sociologists. He explains what research is and how to do it thoroughly. He then explores each step of the research process--from the inspirational stages, to collecting data, and lastly, analyzing the results. Written in language that readers can understand, this book will be beneficial for those who have little experience in conducting and writing research. Section 1 looks at the beginning stages of the research process, including the literature review and citing sources. Section 2 focuses on writing quantitative papers. The third section explores other areas of sociological writing such as ethnographic interviewing, case studies, and internship journals. Section 4 provides advice on writing book reviews, theory papers, and content papers. Lastly, the appendix provides a list of words that are commonly misused and misspelled. General guidelines for proper syntax and punctuation are also included in this section. A practical and approachable book, Writing in Sociology could be a first step in transforming generic student writing into true scholarship. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through graduate students. S. L. Pham Kutztown University of Pennsylvania