Searching for Book Reviews:
Electronically and in Paper & Microfilm


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Electronic or Computer Searching for Reviews
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To find a review electronically or by searching the computer, go to the Paul Meek Library’s Home Page. Once there, click on Catalog (in the side bar at the left side of the screen). The Catalog screen will come up and it contains a series of buttons, click on the Full-Text Resources button. This will bring up a menu of databases. Four of our most important databases are represented by icons and all four contain many book reviews in full-text. The best and most up to date coverage of book reviews, however, will be found in the EBSCO Web and Tennessee Electronic Library databases. Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe and JSTOR also contain book reviews. For book reviews in scholarly, peer-reviewed, or refereed journals, see “Reviews in Research Journals” on the next page.

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Searching The Tennessee Electronic Library (InfoTrac)
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Click on the Tennessee Electronic Library logo or icon on the Full-Text Resources screen and the InfoTrac screen will come up, then click on the Proceed button. The Subject Guide Search screen will come up and in the Search window type in the title of the book for which reviews are sought followed by the word “and” and in parentheses type “book review”. Example: Pompeii and (book review). A general search can be done by typing in a book’s title followed by the words “and review” . But, as in an EBSCO search, this approach will bring up a lot of articles which may not be of use. Most of the book reviewing articles found in this database will be available in full-text on the computer. If a desired article is cited, but not available in full-text on the computer, save the citation for the reviewing article as it appears on the computer , then check the title of the journal or newspaper in which the review appears against the Periodicals Collection of the Paul Meek Library , it is possible that the library has that journal or newspaper in paper or on microfilm. If the Library does have the journal or newspaper in which the review appears, check the volume cited to see if the Library has that volume. To search the Periodicals Collection see “Searching for Book Reviews in Paper and Microfilm” below.
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Reviews in Research Journals
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Reviews in scholarly, peer-reviewed or refereed journals can be specified in the EBSCO and Tennessee Electronic Library by clicking the provided box which is near the full-text box on the search page. Reviews in scholarly journals can also be found in the ProQuest databases, which can be accessed by going to the alphabetical menu on the “Electronic Databases” page and clicking on the letter “P”. This will bring up all the ProQuest databases. The ProQuest databases allow you to specify book reviews by use of a drop down window which is activated by clicking on the “More Search Options” tab located in the lower left segment of the screen. There are 5 windows in the lower half of the “More Search Options” screen, select the “Document Type” window and click its button. A drop down menu will appear and a scroll down the menu will reveal “Book Review” among the other options. Also, note the window “Publication Type.” By dropping down this window’s menu you can select from a variety of publication types, among them “Scholarly Journals”.
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Reviews in Online Newspaper Databases
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The Paul Meek Library currently carries two newspaper databases online which provide book reviews as one of their features: The New York Times and the Washington Post. Both can be accessed by clicking on the “Electronic Databases” button on the Library’s Catalog Page. When the Electronic Databases page comes up, click “N” for the New York Times, or “W” for the Washington Post from the alphabetic menu to access either of these publications.

New York Times. Available online for the years: 1851 – 2001 inclusive.

Washington Post. Available online for the years: 1877 – 1988 inclusive.

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Searching for Book Reviews in Paper & Microfilm
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The Paul Meek Library has a large backfile of periodicals or magazines in paper and on microfilm in its Periodicals Collection. The Reference Collection contains a number of publications which index book reviews. Below is a list of printed indexes which reference book reviews.

Book Review Index. (REF. Z 1035 .A1 .B62). Coverage: 1965 to present.
Beginning with the 1969-1979 cumulation, reviews can be searched by author/title. A list of sources cited is printed inside the front and back covers of each volume.

Book Review Digest. (REF. Z 1219 .C96). Coverage: 1904 to present.
The arrangement of entries is by author, but a subject and title index is at the back of each volume. The Digest as its title says, provides digests of book reviews along with citations. It is a selective index.

Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature. (AI .R48). Coverage: 1900 to present.
The Readers’ Guide indexes book reviews in magazines. Beginning in 1976, book reviews are in a separate section at the back of each issue and yearly compilation.

New York Times Index. (REF. AI 21 .N452). Coverage: 1851 to present.
Reviews are indexed under the subject heading “Book Reviews”. The Index indexes reviews appearing in the New York Times newspaper and the yearly volumes of the Index only index the year indicated on the volume and there are no multi-year cumulations. So, it is important to at least know the approximate year of publication of the book for which a review is sought.

Humanities Index. (REF. AI 3 .H85X). Coverage: 1974 to present.

Social Science Index. (REF. AI 3 .S61X). Coverage: 1974 to present.
A separate index to book reviews is at the back of each issue and yearly compilation for both of the indexes above.

Social Science and Humanities Index. (REF. AI 3 .R49). Coverage: 1965 to 1974.
Reviews are indexed by author and subject.

International Index. (REF. AI 3 .R49). Coverage: 1907 to 1965.
Reviews are indexed by author and subject.

Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in Scholarly Journals, 1886 – 1974.
(REF. Z 1035 .A1 .C64). Coverage: 1886 to 1974.
For the period indicated, this 15 volume set contains more than a million references to book reviews appearing in scholarly journals in history, political science and sociology.

 

12/2004