arrow back icon Top Answers

Describe a book you read that you found useful: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • What it is
  • When you read it
  • Why you think it is useful
  • And explain how you felt about it
Show all 97 answers

Cue 1:What it is

  • Begin by naming the book and its author clearly.
  • Provide a brief summary of the book's main theme or subject.

Example

The book I found particularly useful is 'The Power of Now' by Eckhart Tolle. It focuses on mindfulness and living in the present moment, which I believe is essential in today’s fast-paced world.

Cue 2:When you read it

  • Mention the time period when you read the book, such as during a specific year or season.
  • Share any relevant context about your life at that time that influenced your reading.

Example

I read this book last year during the summer while I was on a break from college. I was feeling quite stressed about my future and needed some guidance on how to manage my thoughts.

Cue 3:Why you think it is useful

  • Explain the key lessons or insights you gained from the book.
  • Discuss how these lessons have impacted your daily life or mindset.

Example

I found it useful because it taught me the importance of being present and not getting lost in worries about the past or future. This perspective has helped me reduce my anxiety and focus more on my studies and relationships.

Cue 4:And explain how you felt about it

  • Share your emotional response to the book, such as whether it inspired or motivated you.
  • Mention any changes in your behavior or attitude after reading it.

Example

After reading 'The Power of Now', I felt a sense of relief and clarity. It inspired me to practice mindfulness daily, and I noticed a positive change in my overall well-being and happiness.

Conclusion

    Example

    In conclusion, 'The Power of Now' has been a transformative read for me. It not only provided practical advice but also changed my outlook on life, making me more present and appreciative of each moment.

    Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.

    Tips to answer this Cue Card

    1: Vague Descriptions

    Using vague language can make your answer unclear and unengaging. It's important to provide specific details about the book to make your response more interesting.

    bulb icon

    Tip

    Include specific examples from the book, such as key themes or memorable quotes, to illustrate your points clearly.

    2: Ignoring Personal Feelings

    Failing to express your personal feelings about the book can make your answer less relatable. Sharing your emotions helps the examiner connect with your response.

    bulb icon

    Tip

    Discuss how the book impacted you personally, mentioning any changes in your perspective or feelings after reading it.

    Rushing Through Points

    Rushing through your points can lead to a lack of clarity and depth in your answer. It's important to take your time to explain each cue thoroughly.

    bulb icon

    Tip

    Practice pacing your speech by elaborating on each cue, ensuring you cover all aspects without feeling rushed.

    calendar icon

    IELTS Cue Cards asked last week

    Reported by Leap students who gave IELTS

    Describe your favourite food at a traditional festival or a special event in your country
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

    location icon

    Pitampura Test Centre, New Delhi

    Answer

    I like to taste different types of cuisine. Here I would like to talk about my favorite dish at my traditional festival of Onam which is Sadya. Sadya is popular in my city. We are experimenting these cuisines on Onam festival day. Onam is a famous festival in my city. All family members get together in my home and we make a delicious Sadya. There are many ingredients includes that Sadya. Moreover, we make a big feast that day as well as we create a lot of memories together and we wear that day the traditional dress called Sari and men wear the Dhotis. That festival is really important to us because the whole day we are conducting different kinds of games at our homes and all the family members came together. It's a memorable day in my life. This is the festival. We are making the Sambar and Aviyal. These all the kinds of foods are making with the vegetables.
    Talk about a toy you liked in your childhood
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 8

    location icon

    Sector 34 Test Centre, Chandigarh

    Answer

    The toy which I liked in my childhood was a panda doll, which makes me pleasant and makes me more blush. The pandas are the most beautiful creatures of the world, which looks gigantic and has pooshy cheeks and they are like stars in the clouds and they dream in me. Furthermore, these have been given by my father. My father is a very very beautiful artistic person, who makes me think of that. Every day you will face every difficulties and make you suffer and move forward. Pandas are always seen in Japanese countries. It is my lifelong dream to visit a Japanese country and click a photo with the original pandas, which makes sounds better.
    Describe a time you were in a place where you didn't know the local language
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 6.5

    location icon

    Whitefield Test Center, Bengaluru

    Answer

    As India is a very large country full of diversity, so there are many places which have their own language and speak their native language. The place which I visited and I didn't know about their language was Leladakh, which is about 300 km away from my hometown and it is a very good place as it consists of different kind of trees, animals and have many scenic views and I visited over there last year in summers as it was the best time to visit because it has many, it was cold over there and we had summers in our area so it was the best time to visit over there and I went over there with my whole family.
    Describe a time when your friend damaged something you owned
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7

    location icon

    Begumpet Test Centre, Hyderabad

    Answer

    When I was a kid, I had a little pencil box which had these four buttons which gave the pencil box an operative use. When you press the button, the box would open up. When you press the second button, a little part of it would slide out. Basically it was just a little electronical and a fun thing to have and I owned it when I was in 6th. One day after break, I was standing and talking there with one of my friends and another friend of mine was running through the hallway and accidentally she pushed my shoulder and my pencil box hit the ground and it broke into multiple pieces to the point that it was not functional anymore.
    Describe a book you recently read
    anonymous person icon

    Reported by

    Anonymous student Band 7.5

    location icon

    CBD Belapur Test Centre, Navi Mumbai

    Answer

    It Ends With Us is a book I read recently. It's by the author Colleen Hoare. It's mainly a story about two teenagers, Atlas and Lily, and how they just handle their life going through high school, adolescence, and just domestic violence at home. Both of them come from very, very different families. However, they have one common determining factor between them, which is domestic violence. The abuse that they've seen their moms go through is just insane, and they connect through that on a different level. They're actually in the same high school, but they never speak to each other until Atlas actually crashes into an empty house next to Lily's villa. When Atlas is homeless and he doesn't have anywhere to go, he just comes and breaks into the house next to Lily's, and Lily helps him with all the daily necessities like clothes and food, medicines and stuff. Furthermore, their friendship blossoms into love, but it doesn't really fructify as Atlas has to leave. This book really gave me a lot of knowledge about domestic abuse and how to deal with it.

    All Answers

    Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

    Band 6-7

    Well, I am a good reader. I enjoy to read books whenever I got free time. The main book that found me useful that the autobiography of Mahatma Gandhi, the fighting for truth. I read it from my childhood onwards because my teacher used to give me that book as a gift. From that days onwards, I tried to read every aspects and every pages of the book very clearly and it made me more courageous because Mahatma Gandhi and our renovers tried to make try to their best for the independence of our nation. That's why I mostly like the book and moreover that Mahatma Gandhi and the followers

    Band 6-7

    I really like the book rich dad and poor dad because it was really amazing and interesting concept as it teached me about how to control myself and how to like how to like spend my money right and like be humble as well as down to earth and I read it for the first time when I was 15 years old and it was really great experience for me at that age because it was really really really cool book for me and I would like to say it was life-changing kind of because as a middle-class family I learned many things by myself and had no one to teach me stuff about stuff about like saving my money and how to spend my money right too so it was really kind of helpful and I really enjoyed reading it

    Band 6-7

    One of my favorite books that I always relay upon is Paolo Coelho's One of my favorite books which I always relay upon is The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho. It is a very useful and informative story about a traveler who travels around the world and the book describes his experiences and the lessons he learnt Moreover it helps us to learn how little things are mattered and how we should be grateful or happy for the little things that happen in our life I read it two years back during my semester end vacations It was a very worthfull read and I felt so happy and condensed after reading that Furthermore it described the situation of a normal man who tries to travel around the world and faces lot of challenges but how to overcome it It was very worthy read and then I recommended it to my friends and family They also find it very moral and good to read

    Band 6-7

    Well, reading is one of the greatest habits that not only improves our knowledge but also teaches us to remain patient. Today I would like to talk about a book that I found very useful. It was none other than the book named Atomic Habits by James Clear. One of my friends recommended me this book when I was struggling to manage my time with work or personal life. I am unable to do the both at the same time so it was much needed for me to get anything that helps me. This book proves me very useful because it not only teaches us how to manage the work but also teaches us that.

    Band 6-7

    A book that I had recently read and found useful was a fictional book on which the movie has been made by Rohit Val, the author of that book. The book name was Half Girlfriend. I read that book when I was in college. I got to know about that book from my class fellows as the book contains romantic fictional stories which attracts the girls. The story shows about the characters where earlier they used to be friends but later they fell in love and start dating together but on the other hand the girl refused to be in a relationship as she felt no it's just a friendship not more than that. So the half girlfriend title has been termed because a friend, a girlfriend who is not actually a girlfriend like who is not in your relationship that can be termed as half girlfriend means only friend with no benefits that is half girlfriend. I went to that movie also that engages

    Band 6-7

    In this, the book I read is The Secret. This book is very powerful and very important. Every person should read this book because this book is very strong message to every person who become success in their life and who work hard for something in their lives. So, I would like to say that The Secret is very powerful mindset thinking book which is all about the man or the human's nature or human's thinking power. What they have to think or what they think actually. It is totally the nature or the thinking power. So, it is very powerful book and every person must read this book carefully. Because you should prepare already your mind because the words in this book are very strong and their meaning is very deep. So, you should prepare your mind and motivate your mind like a successful person.

    Band 6-7

    Hi, one of the best books that I have ever read in my life is Love is a Dog from Hell by Charles Bukowski. He is one of the greatest American poet in recent generation. Why I loved this book and enjoyed each and every page and rather to say each and every sentences is basically it talks about love from a very alternate point of view. In movies, in novels, mostly we see happy ending, but in real life, it doesn't happen always or all the time. During COVID in 2019, I was stuck inside my house. I was walking from home. I had some time to explore different types of alternate books and novels. That's where I came across to this book. I purchased it online and the moment I touched and started reading it, my life has started changing. After completing the book, now my perspective about romantic love, relationship, especially relationship and love from the point of view of giving and taking in a transactional way and also in the era of nihilism or maybe let's say individualistic ideas where we all are standing right now as a society gives a different narrative about love. And I think that's something which will stay with me for quite some time. Whenever I read the book, I was in a journey of retrospection and reflection. I kind of realized that I am someone who needs to work on expressing and maybe writing his own thoughts on paper because that's going to help. And apparently that's the way Charles Bukowski also started writing these poems. So these are all scribbles on napkins where he was having some whiskey in a bar. So I think I would love to explore the same.

    Band 6-7

    Recently, I read a book about Nelson Mandela's biography. I found it useful because it was written in a detailed manner. Every instance of his life was written in much detail, often offering insights on his life's important events which made him a great person and a national figure for his country. I found it useful because it was in my curriculum in my university and we read it for our political science class. So it was useful for me and I personally think that it was a very good book and I learnt many things from it as to how to be resilient and how to be persistent in your efforts. So yeah, that's what I think about that book. It was very useful, insightful, and a very well written and detailed account of Nelson Mandela's life. I don't remember the title of the book though. That was the thing. So yeah, I don't remember the title, but yes, it was a very insightful biography and a very useful. Anyone who wants to know more about Nelson Mandela's life, please contact me.

    Band 6-7

    I read a book called 10 judgments that changed India. This book is written by Zia Modi who is the daughter of ex-Solicitor General of India and she is also the founder and managing partner of EZB law firm in India. I read that book when I was in law school and I found it really interesting. In those 10 judgments which she included, she has explained it so beautifully and it clearly defines and describes how those 10 judgments has an impact on the growth of India, on the development of India and it has literally changed the fundamental rights, the constitution of India. So, one of the judgments that she mentioned was of Keshav Nanda Bharti and it's a landmark judgment and it was in 1973 it happened. So, through this judgment, one of the fundamental rights of India was established. Additionally, she has mentioned 9 other landmark judgments as well. One of the judgments was of the Menka Gandhi's case which is about right to freedom of speech and expression. So, she put the facts of the case and then she mentioned the judgments which was delivered by judges and then she mentioned her own opinion, how those judgments has an impact.

    Band 6-7

    The book I found useful is that Atomic Habit and I have read that book during the last summer and now it makes much more changes in my life. And after reading that book I developed much more better habits than my previous self and in addition I developed a habit of checklisting which makes my life much more simpler and productive and I got much greater scores in my examination due to the development of these new habits. And these habits helped me to overcome my laziness and my phone addiction. So this Atomic Habit helps me a lot. After reading this Atomic Habit I felt much more delightful and good and after overcoming my laziness, dizziness and my phone addiction I felt much more energetic and overwhelming confidence in my speech and in my... exam so it boosts our confidence by developing a new habit.
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
    ielts logo

    Get the IELTS Prep App

    Star rating icon

    4.2

    1M+ Installs

     app download banner image

    Get the app link on your phone

    +91

    Or download app from

    google play storeapp store
    master ielts speaking ad