Finding Book Reviews
General Sources for Current Reviews
Resources to Try First:
- ProQuest. Dates of coverage vary.
Contains recent full-text of numerous magazines, journals, and newspapers. To limit your search to Book Reviews, select the "Guided Search" under Search Methods, then choose the Article Type "Book Review".
- Book Review Digest. 1905-present.
Indexes reviews of English-language books. Includes brief excerpts from reviews. Access is by author, title, or subject.
Z1219.C96 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- Book Review Index. 1965-present
Indexes reviews in over 200 English-language journals. Includes fiction, non-fiction, and children's books. Does not include abstracts, but covers more sources than Book Review Digest.
Z1035.A1B6 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, 2nd Floor - Abstracts & Indexes)
- New York Review of Books
The New York Review of Books provides lengthy reviews by and about major authors, including contributions from Susan Sontag, Norman Mailer, Gore Vidal, John Berryman, Robert Lowell, Adrienne Rich, and William Styron. The online archive provides the full text of articles since 1963, searchable by date, author, keyword, and other fields.
- Academic Universe. Dates of coverage vary.
Full-text of newspapers and magazines. Select "News" then "Arts and Sports" to look for book, movie, and performance reviews.
Additional General Sources
- Alternative Press Index. 1969-1972, 1974-present.
Includes reviews in non-traditional, left-leaning publications.
HN1.A49 (Social Sciences, 2nd Floor Paterno - Reference Collection)
- Ethnic NewsWatch. Dates of coverage vary.
Full-text database with magazines, newspapers and other publications from ethnic, minority, or native presses. To narrow your search to reviews select "Advanced Search", and then choose the Article Type "Book Review".
- Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature. 1900-present.
An index to articles and reviews appearing in over 200 general interest publications. Since 1976 "Book Reviews" can be found in a separate section at the end of each volume. Most reviews prior to 1976 appear in the Book Review Digest, published by the same company.
AI3.R4 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, 2nd Floor - Abstracts & Indexes)
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Current Reviews in the Arts & Humanities
- Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature. Online: 1920-present;
Print: Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature (
1920-date).
Primarily covers critical, scholarly studies of works of literature, with the occasional book review included. Entries are by subject, with an author index at the end of each volume.
Z2011.M69 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- Art Index. Online: 1984-present; Print: Art Index (1929-present).
Reviews are entered under the authors of the books reviews as well as under appropriate subjects.
Z5937.A78 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, 2nd Floor - Abstracts & Indexes)
- Art Index Retrospective Online: 1929-1984; Print: Art Index (1929-present). Z5937.A78 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, 2nd Floor - Abstracts & Indexes)
- Arts and Humanities Citations Index. 1986-present
Indexes over 1,000 journals in the arts and humanities. You can limit general searches to the Article Type, "Book Review"
- British Humanities Index . 1915-present
A subject index to British periodicals in the humanities. Short reviews are not included but longer review essays can be found under the subject of the book being reviewed.
AI3.A721 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- ChoiceReviews Online
Provides electronic access to the text of all reviews published in Choice since September 1988. The database is updated monthly.
- FRANCIS covers scholarship in the international humanities and social sciences with particular emphasis on European (especially French) scholarship. It indexes multilingual, multidisciplinary information published in over 4,300 journals. Strong in religion, the history of art, psychology, and literature.
- Internationale Bibliographie der Rezensionen Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaftlicher Literatur = International Bibliography of Book Reviews of Scholarly Literature on the Humanities and Social Sciences. 1971-present.
Indexes reviews, primarily in German language publications, with some coverage of other languages.
AI9.I52 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- JSTOR. Dates of coverage vary.
Full-text of selected scholarly journals. Coverage begins with the first issue, and excludes the most recent years.
- NoveList is a readers' advisory service that lists over 100,000 titles, and contains 75,000 full text reviews of works of fiction. The product's "Find a Favorite Author" or "Find a Favorite Title" feature permits users to locate lists of books in their favorite fiction areas. NoveList adds about 10,000 new fiction records to the database per year, along with reviews and descriptions, when they are available.
- Project Muse. Dates of coverage vary.
Recent full-text of scholarly journals in various disciplines.
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Sources for Older Reviews
- TLS Centenary Archiv ( Times Literary Supplement)
Fully indexed page images of the TLS (Times Literary Supplement) from 1902 until 1990. Identifies authors of anonymously published articles previous to 1974.
- New York Review of Books
The New York Review of Books provides lengthy reviews by and about major authors, including contributions from Susan Sontag, Norman Mailer, Gore Vidal, John Berryman, Robert Lowell, Adrienne Rich, and William Styron. The online archive provides the full text of articles since 1963, searchable by date, author, keyword, and other fields.
- Literary Reviews in British Periodicals: A Bibliography. (3 volumes cover 1789-1826).
Lists reviews published in early British periodicals. Reviews are listed by the author's names, with anonymous works listed separately.
Z2013.W36 1979 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection) covers 1789-1797
Z2013.W36 v.1-v.2 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection) covers 1798-1820
Z2013.W36 1977 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection) covers 1821-1826
- Combined Retrospective Index Set to Book Reviews in Scholarly Journals, 1886 -1974.
Book reviews appear under the author of the book being reviewed. Covers over 400 journals in history, political science, and sociology.
Z1035.A1C6 v.1-v.15 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- Combined Retrospective Index Set to Book Reviews in Humanities Journals, 1802-1974.
Index by author name to reviews appearing in 157 early humanities periodicals.
Z1035.A1C57 1982 v.1-v.10 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- American Periodicals Series Online, 1740-1900 -- Full-text of American magazines and journals that originated between 1741 and 1900.
- Early American Periodicals Index to 1850. (Microprint)
A recreation in microopaque format of the card index created by the W.P.A. Includes periodicals where the first issue appeared prior to 1850, some indexing extends into the 20th Century. Box D contains the index to book reviews.
Microprint .Ea97 (Microforms, Ground Floor West Pattee)
- Poole's Index to Periodical Literature, 1802-1900
A subject index to 470 British and American periodicals. Reviews typically appear under the subject of the book. Fiction, drama, and poetry can be found by author.
AI3.P7 1963 v.1-v.6 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, 2nd Floor - Abstracts & Indexes)
- Social Sciences & Humanities Index. 1907-1974 (1907-1952, title is International Index to Periodicals. Splits into separate Social Science Index, and Humanities Index in 1975.)
An author/subject index to 189 scholarly English language journals. Book reviews can be found under the author and/or the subject of the book.
AI3.R49 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- Bibliographie der Rezensionen. 1900-1943 (paper index)
Index to reviews in German and other languages from 1900-1943 (excluding 1916-1924). Includes some English-language titles.
AI9.B6 1962 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
- Literary Writings in America: A Bibliography
Provides sources of reviews for American literature written between 1850 and 1940. Can search by the names of the reviewers, as well as the authors of the books being reviewed.
Z1225.L58 v.1-v.8 (Pattee - Stacks 2)
- Guide to Critical Reviews of U.S. Fiction, 1870-1910
Arranged by author, with a separate title index. Lists reviews of American books published in U.S., Canadian, and British periodicals.
Z1225.E35 v.1-v.2 (Arts & Humanities, Pattee, Stacks 2 - Reference Collection)
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