• 3-minute read
• 10th July 2020

How to Cite a Review in Chicago Footnote Referencing

If you’re writing an academic paper, you may want to refer to reviews of books, films, or artworks to back up your arguments. In this guide, then, we will show you how to cite a review in Chicago footnote referencing.

How to Cite a Review in Chicago Footnotes

In Chicago footnote referencing, to cite a review, give the following information in the first footnote citation:

n. Name of Reviewer, “Title of Review,” review of Title of Reviewed Work by Creator(s), location and date of performance (if applicable), Title of Periodical/Website, date of review, edition/section information, URL (online sources only).

That’s quite a lot to pack in! Not all of it will be relevant for every review, but try to include as much detail as possible. Let’s look at a few examples. Below are footnote citations for reviews of a book, a film, and a play:

1. Deborah Levy, “An American Writer Goes into the Jungle to Commune with a Tiger,” review of All the Way to the Tigers: A Memoir by Mary Morris, The New York Times, June 9, 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/09/books/review/all-the-way-to-the-tigers-mary-morris.html.

2. Kambole Campbell, review of Da 5 Bloods, directed by Spike Lee, Empire, June 10, 2020, https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/da-5-bloods/.

3. Arifa Akbar, review of The Seven Streams of the River Ota, written and directed by Robert Lepage, National Theatre, London, March 13, 2020, The Guardian, March 15, 2020, Culture section, https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/15/the-seven-streams-of-the-river-ota-review-national-theatre-london.

If the reviewer’s name isn’t available, simply start your footnote with “Unsigned review of” instead. The rest of the citation stays the same.

Reviews in a Chicago Bibliography

The bibliography entry for a review uses the same information as the footnote citation, but the presentation is a little different:

Reviewer’s Surname, First Name. “Title of Review,” review of Title of Reviewed Work by Creator(s), location and date of performance (if applicable). Title of Periodical/Website, date of review, edition/section information. URL (online sources only).

So, for example, we would list the book review above as follows:

Levy, Deborah. “An American Writer Goes into the Jungle to Commune with a Tiger,” review of All the Way to the Tigers: A Memoir by Mary Morris. The New York Times, June 9, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/09/books/review/all-the-way-to-the-tigers-mary-morris.html.

And if no reviewer is named, give the title of the periodical first:

Classical Concert Monthly. Unsigned review of concert performance by John Smith (ukulele) and Jane Roberts (kazoo), Concert Hall, Birmingham, January 13, 2020. January 14, 2020, Unusual Duets section.

These pointers will help you to cite reviews in Chicago footnote referencing. If you would like an expert editor to check your writing, though, why not upload a paper and try our proofreading services?