Describe a book that influenced you.
A strong long turn names the subject in the first sentence, spends most of the two minutes on the last bullet — the why — and arrives at a prepared final line rather than trailing off.
The question, as the examiner gives it
Describe a book that influenced you.
You should say
- what the book was
- when you read it
- what it was about
- and explain how it influenced you
60 seconds to prepare, up to 2 minutes to speak
A band 7 to 8 answer
About 192 words at a natural pace — roughly what 120 seconds holds.
Answer it yourself first
Record your own answer first. A model you have read three times comes out with a flattened rhythm, and examiners are trained to hear exactly that. Read it afterwards for the vocabulary and the shape, not to memorise the sentences.The book I would talk about is a short work of non-fiction about the history of the shipping container, which sounds like the least promising subject imaginable and is the most interesting thing I have read in years. I read it about four years ago on somebody's recommendation, expecting to abandon it. It is essentially the story of how a simple steel box, standardised in the nineteen fifties, reorganised the entire world economy, moved factories between continents, emptied ports that had employed whole cities for generations, and made it cheaper to manufacture something eight thousand miles from where it is sold. How it influenced me is that it changed what I find interesting. Before that, I read about people. Now I am much more inclined to ask what the boring underlying system is, because the container is a perfect example of something nobody notices that explains a great deal. I have bored a considerable number of friends about it since, which I accept is the real influence. I have given away three copies since and got two of them back with the observation that it was not as boring as it sounded.
The words that earn marks
Each one links to how it is pronounced.
- container
the subject noun, stressed on the second syllable
- promising
used ironically, with a clean ng ending
- standardised
British spelling, four syllables
- reorganised
prefixed verb, five syllables
- continents
three syllables with the stress on the first
- manufacture
four syllables with the stress on the third
- inclined
the right verb for a changed disposition
How a strong answer is built
- 1Name the book and flag the unlikely subject.
- 2Say when and why you read it.
- 3Summarise the argument, not the plot.
- 4Explain the influence as a change in you.
Sounds to watch
The ones this answer leans on most.
Straight answers
How long should my answer to “Describe a book that influenced you.” be?
You get 60 seconds to make notes and then speak for up to two minutes without interruption. Aim to still be talking at ninety seconds: finishing at forty is the commonest way to lose marks on this part.
Should I memorise the model answer?
No. Record your own version first, then read the model for the shape and the vocabulary. A memorised answer changes rhythm and pace noticeably, and examiners are trained to hear it — it usually costs more than the better wording gains.
Does sayit score this answer?
It scores what a microphone can observe: an estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.
What the band on your result means
An estimate from fluency and pronunciation only — not an official band, and not a mark for vocabulary or grammar.One question a day until your test
A free account remembers every take, so you watch a trend instead of a single answer, and it picks tomorrow's question for you.