How do you revise a whole novel for a closed book exam?

By breaking it down.It’s important to know the plot of the novel, and can be really useful to make a timeline of the key events in the novel. This will mean that when you’re given an extract, you’ll be able to place it in the story and know what has already happened or not yet happened. You can expand your timeline by connecting contextual pieces of information where relevant to the novel. One of the other key things examiners look at is ‘characterisation’. Work out who the key characters are in a novel. For example, if you’re studying Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, you would want to start looking more carefully at Jane Eyre, Mr Rochester, Helen Burns and so on. Look at each character individually, and describe them. Then find quotes or sections which you feel either back up this description or complicate it. This will allow you to discuss the novel as a whole in the exam and not just the extract in front of you. Another key thing examiners look at are ‘themes.’ I would recommend doing something similar. Establish major themes within the novel, again for example with Jane Eyre you would want to think about inequality (both social and gender), independence, how it can be considered a Bildungsroman. Identify moments in the novel and key quotes which back them up and also complicate the themes. By building profiles and isolating sections of the novel, it will make it easier to recall them during the exam.I would also recommend isolating extracts from the novel and practising close analysis of these and seeing how you might link it to the sections you’ve revised above. Finally, if you’re in desperate need of a break from the revision and the reading, but still want to be interacting with the novel, I would suggest watching the film. It is always interesting to see how someone else has interpreted the novel, and how they have visualised aspects of the novel. You might not be able to use it when it comes to your exam but it keeps your mind on the topic as well as helping you to keep enjoying a subject during a stressful time.