Library Guides: ENLS 5010: Death at the Party (Zumhagen-Yekplé): Books and Databases

Everything Search

When you compose a search query on the library website's search box and leave the scope setting set to "Everything" (the default setting), you will be searching print books, ebooks, and most of our databases, among other things. (This can be changed using the dropdown on the main page or radio buttons on the Advanced Search page.)

If the number of results you get is overwhelming, look at the filtering tools to the left of your list of results to see which databases contribute the greatest number of items to your results list. (You'll need to scroll down to find this list of databases in the different filters in the library website's search interface.) Searching individual databases may make it easier to sort through a large set of results.

The same panel of filtering tools can also help you find important search terms to add to your list of keywords for searching. Look for the "Subjects" filter and see what terms are used to describe subtopics that appear within your search.

Remember: You can't "talk" to the library search box in the same way that you can Google or another search engine. Instead, you must focus on finding the most relevant keywords to bring back useful results.

MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new window
- This link opens in a new window
The leading international index of journals, books, dissertations, and more on literature, language and linguistics, folklore, literary theory and criticism, and dramatic arts, as well as the historical aspects of printing and publishing.
Project MUSE This link opens in a new window
Access full-text, high-quality scholarly content (journals and books) in the humanities and social sciences as published by select leading university presses and scholarly societies.
JSTOR Advanced Search This link opens in a new window
A trusted archive of scholarly journals, primary sources, and books. Content spans many disciplines, primarily in the humanities and social sciences. The most recent 3-5 years of journals are generally not available; this is known as a "moving wall."
Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
Our broadest, most general full-text database that includes both popular and scholarly periodicals. It covers virtually all academic areas of study, including social sciences, sciences, and humanities.

The databases above contain only materials that focus on literary studies. If you are doing interdisciplinary work, consider our other subject guides to find databases that focus on other academic subjects.

Of this list, MLA and Project Muse are focused more exclusively on literature and culture. JSTOR and Academic Search Complete have a much broader scope, but provide significant coverage of humanities topics. They can also be very useful for interdisciplinary work.

Books and eBooks

To search for ebooks, books, and other physical items available for access or checkout from the library, set your search scope to "Library Catalog." Books differ from scholarly articles in terms of length and breadth, so they can cover a wider set of topics at greater length. Neither type of resource is inherently better, but it's good to be aware of the difference between the two.

The detailed record for print books includes a virtual browse carousel at the very bottom of the page that lets users see what other print books are shelved next to it. Because our print books are arranged by subject, books on the same topic will usually "live" next to each other on the shelves.