A literature review provides the readers with an account of what has been published on a specific topic or subject by accredited experts, scholars and researchers in the field. You maybe asked to write a literature review as a separate assignment , but in most case it will be part of the introduction to an essay, research report or thesis.
When writing a literature review, your aim is to inform the reader about what knowledge and ideas have been established on a topic or subject and what their strengths and weaknesses are. The literature review must be defined by a guiding concept (e.g., your research objective, the problem or issue you are discussing, or your argumentative thesis).
It is NOT just a descriptive list of the resources available, or a set of summaries.