This book looks into major issues and challenges in the research area of ESL/EFL academic writing. The introductory chapter by the editor, Ramona Tang, sketches the research background and identifies challenges faced by nonnative English-speaking academics.

The ten studies are organized around three themes. Part 1, “Learning to write for academic purposes,” consists of four chapters. Ch. 2, by Margaret Cargill & Patrick O'Connor, reports an effective application of the Collaborative Interdisciplinary Publication Skills Education approach in helping Chinese scientists prepare for publication in international journals. Ch. 3, by Giuliana Diani, introduces a teaching module that integrates discourse analysis with corpus linguistics, exploring its value in facilitating EFL academic writing. Ch. 4, by Guangwei Hu & Hongwei Ren, examines students' preferences for different sources of feedback in EFL writing, highlighting the relations between feedback preferences and previous experience and beliefs. Ch. 5, by Brian Paltridge & Lindy Woodrow, discusses issues emerging from students' reflections on thesis/dissertation writing. Challenges such as time management bring to the fore the supplementary roles of cultural and social knowledge in ESL/EFL academic writing.

Part 2, “Features of ESL/EFL learner discourses,” starts with Ch. 6 by Jo Lewkowicz, which presents a study of the conclusions of twelve Polish Ph.D. theses in English. It provides implications that address the tension between providing a formulaic pattern and allowing for a freedom to express the writer's own voice. Ch. 7, by Hilary Nesi & Emma Moreton, examines the use of “shell nouns” such as fact and approach by native and nonnative English speakers, shedding light on pedagogical practices beneficial to advanced writing. Ch. 8, by Maria Leedham, compares the use of visuals and lists by native and nonnative English-speaking students, uncovering more frequent use by the latter group in tackling the challenges in EFL writing.

Part 3, “Identity work and professional opportunities in academic writing,” includes three chapters. Ch. 9, by Hanako Okada & Christine Pearson Casanave, questions labels like “native” and “nonnative” for English speakers, drawing upon their own experiences as a bilingual researcher and an academic advisor and demonstrating that common labels and categories may not adequately reflect complex identities. Ch. 10, by Suganthi John, examines writer identity by analyzing the use of citations without the first person pronoun in EFL postgraduate dissertations, arguing for awareness of the choices of citations in developing an appropriately visible academic identity. Ch. 11, by Ramona Tang, investigates the lived experiences of eight EFL postgraduates and academics to illustrate the challenges and opportunities for EFL scholars, exploring the ways in which EFL researchers may enrich the disciplinary conversation. A reflective chapter by Theresa Lillis concludes the volume by sketching the research landscape of academic writing in relation to the preceding chapters. It points out the accepting route and the challenging route running through the chapters.

This collection is an excellent resource for researchers in the field of ESL/EFL academic writing, and it provides practical advice to nonnative English-speaking scholars who intend to publish in English.