Stand up, Speak out - The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking

Reviewed by Richard Schutta, Adjunct Professor, University of Wisconsin- Stout on 1/7/16

Comprehensiveness rating: 5

This is by the best text book on public speaking that I have seen recently in terms of the overall content. What I would like to see is a better glossary of key terms. Yet, what makes this a great text is the break down of key takeaways and more importantly the end of section exercises that I find lacking in other public speaking texts.

The thoroughness of the text is what really has captured me. The text doesn't skim over key concepts, but instead really provides a detailed explanation with numerous references to scholarly supporting material for students. The use of in-text sources provides a great illustration of the comprehensiveness of the text. This book really does a great job in touching on concepts like attention span or stages of listening that I have not seen in other public speaking books or developed out like this text.

Content Accuracy rating: 3

I would have liked to see a reference or works cited page included. In this age of information I strongly encourage my students to cite all their sources. I think it should be important for a text book, especially open textbooks to include a reference page. In addition, this would help the students understand how to prepare a reference page. More importantly, also if a student wanted to look at another (s)more in-depth they would have a detailed list to refer to.

Otherwise, overall the information is accurate and students will get a wealth of information on public speaking from this text.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

This book is update. In a topic like public speaking, the key concepts and methods do not change all that often, or at all. I like the various references to more current speeches (Obama) with more classic speeches (MLK's "I Have a Dream"). Often texts will update and remove "older" references, this text has found the perfect balance.

Clarity rating: 5

I loved that this text took the terminology of public speaking and made it understandable and easy to read at the same time. I actually found reading this text incredibly enjoyable. There isn't an overload of technical terminology without an easy to understand description to follow. Students will find this text more enjoyable to read than the "guidebooks" that are on the market.

Consistency rating: 5

Everything in the text flows consistently from section to section and chapter to chapter. Concepts clearly build off each other. The writing is consistent as are the use of examples and sources throughout.

Modularity rating: 5

I really liked the book is divided. When I teach my courses, I don't start at page one and work all the way through, I like to jump around, so the way this text is divided is perfect! More

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

I thought the text was consistent in organization with other texts. However, I would maybe put speaker apprehension before the chapter on ethics. Ethics is certainly important, most students coming into a public speaking class are going to be nervous and really dreading it, so I think focusing on speaking apprehension in the first or second chapter makes the most sense. This way too, the ethics chapter can lead off developing speeches.

I would also suggest a table of content be included in the PDF version that way a student can quickly find the start of a chapter or section and go directly to it.

Interface rating: 5

I found no issues with the interface. Everything appeared properly and even printed clean if a student needed to print a page or pages. All the images were clean without issue.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I found a few places where spaces were missed between, but nothing else of major significance.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The text does a good job of incorporating cultural relevance into the content (e.g. Chapter 5) and provides clear examples of some words to use or not use.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book to my university and others teaching public speaking. It is by far the most comprehensive book that I personally have seen. It is easy to read, students will not get bored reading this text and it provides great examples and resources for the students and any instructor.

I would only suggest inclusion of a reference page, a glossary, and a table of contents.