An English Research Guide
Very Short Introduction Ebooks from Oxford
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Very Short Introductions This link opens in a new windowBrief ebooks written by experts across the board - on physics, art, communism, beat poetry - almost anything!
CLA Librarian
Brett Bodemer
Subjects: Anthropology, Art and Design, Art History, Asian Studies, Child Development, Communications, Country Information, English, Ethnic Studies, Feminism, Geography, Government Information, Graphic Communication, History, Interdisciplinary Studies, Journalism, Linguistics, Music, News, Performing Arts, Philosophy and Religious Studies, Political Science, Primary Sources, Psychology, Queer Studies, Science, Technology and Society, Social Sciences, Sociology and Social Work, Theater and Dance, Women's and Gender Studies, World Languages and Cultures
Purpose of this Guide and Research Help Options
This guide gives you great pointers on the best databases and resources for your field. Don't forget that you can find help on 24/7 live chat at any time of day or night. You can also email the CLA librarian, Brett Bodemer, at bbodemer@calpoly.edu.
- Chat and other Research HelpIf you want live help now, click on the chat icon at the lower right corner of this page! For further options click on "Chat and Other Research Help" link above.
English Library Research Video
- English Library Research VideoThis brief video demos how to sign in, search, find peer-review articles, primary texts, and other materials. You can even speed it up!
Articles - Search Many Databases at Once
- Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new windowIN THE UPPER LEFT CORNER, WHERE IT SAYS 'CHOOSE DATABASES' CLICK AND SELECT 'ALL DATABASES' - this will let you search ALL the EBSCO databases at once.
- ABI/INFORM Complete This link opens in a new windowIN THE UPPER LEFT HAND CORNER, CLICK ON the "three line" icon, select CHANGE DATABASES, check the box for SELECT ALL, then scroll to bottom and click on USE SELECTED DATABASES. You will now be searching all Proquest databases at once.
- Google Scholar This link opens in a new windowBy going via the Kennedy Library Link you can link out to full text in a variety places. If you don't see "Find It at Cal Poly" on the results, click the "More" dropdown and it should be there.
Search Ebrary, SpringerLink and Project Muse for ebooks
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Ebook Central150,000 ebooks, most are keyword searchable!
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SpringerLinkBook chapters, books, journal articles.
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JSTORScholarly books and articles, with some current content and lots going way back.
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Project MUSEScholarly books and articles. To get books click Books on left column.
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Wiley Online LibraryBooks and Articles. To get books, after first keyword search, click BOOKS in right column.
JSTOR
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowLots of great content here, going way back, very strong in English and the Humanities. Good trick: if you are getting TOO many results, take one of the pull down menus to Title and put one of your keywords in that field. If you still get too many results, try putting both keywords in a Title field.
MLA (Modern Language Association)
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new windowMLA International Bibliography indexes journals covering literature, language and linguistics, folklore, film, literary theory & criticism, dramatic arts, and the historical aspects of printing and publishing, as well as rhetoric and composition and the history, theory and practice of teaching language. Also included: MLA Directory of Periodicals.
Cambridge Shakespeare Online
- Cambridge Shakespeare This link opens in a new windowCambridge Shakespeare is a comprehensive collection of reference materials related to Shakespeare, including his complete works, historical and contextual information, guides and annotated editions, and multimedia resources.
More Books
- OneSearchUse relevant keywords then use filters on left. For immediately available electronic results, use the filter on the left: "Available Online at Kennedy' and then filter for ebooks if you want online ebooks. For tangible items held in Kennedy click on the filter: Robert E. Kennedy Library. You can also filter a second time for books. But remember, If you are signed into OneSearch any record for an item not immediately available will give you clear options for getting articles, chapters, or whole books.
- WorldCat This link opens in a new window100s of libraries in North America - and we share most print materials!
Asian American, Latino, Native American Literary Text Databases
- Asian American Drama (Alexander Street Press) This link opens in a new windowAsian American Drama contains 252 plays by 42 playwrights, together with detailed, fielded information on related productions, theaters, production companies, and more. The collection begins with the works of Sadakichi Hartmann in the late 19th century and progresses to the writings of contemporary playwrights, such as Philip Kan Gotanda, Elizabeth Wong, and Jeannie Barroga.
- Latino Literature: Poetry, Drama, and Fiction (ProQuest) This link opens in a new windowLatino Literature: Poetry, Drama, and Fiction includes poetry, short fiction, novels, and plays; some items are long out of print or have never before been published.
- North American Indian Drama: Second Edition (Alexander Street Press) This link opens in a new windowNorth American Indian Drama contains 244 plays by 48 playwrights of the twentieth century. More than half of the works are previously unpublished, representing groups such as Cherokee, Mtis, Creek, Choctaw, Pembina Chippewa, Ojibway, Lenape, Comanche, Cree, Navajo, Rappahannock, Hawaiian/Samoan, and others. Together, the plays demonstrate Native theater’s diversity of tribal traditions and approaches to drama.
- Latin American Women Writers (ProQuest) This link opens in a new windowThis collection contains literary works, memoirs, and essays in their original language by Latin American women from the colonial period in the 17th century to the present.
If you know the article you want and want to find the full text
Google Scholar: Try the author's last name and a good chunk of the title in " " and then use the Find it At Cal Poly link, often found hidden beneath the "more" under the result. Be sure that you are logged into MyCalPoly Portal AND signed into OneSearch.
- Google Scholar******
If Google Scholar doesn't work, fill out a form at the ILL link below with all the required fields (and more if you have patience) and ILL will seek the item from another library.
Find historic Book Reviews/Play Reviews/Movie Reviews
In many databases you can limit by date, type in title of book, play or film (use quote marks " "), the author/director's last name and also the word review.
Example 1: "The Sun Also Rises" Hemingway review
Example 2 "A Raisin in the Sun" Wright play review
This trick works well in the following:
- ProQuest Historical Newspapers This link opens in a new window
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window
- Academic Search Premier This link opens in a new windowBe sure and choose all the EBSCO databases once land on the interface.
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new window
- Academic OneFile This link opens in a new windowLike Academic Search Elite - a range of news, magazines, and scholarly journals.