ENG 342: American Girls Fiction: Finding Books

•  Subject Search: To find materials written ABOUT your subject. 
  • When viewing items, change Sort to “Reverse Year” to see newest items at top.
  • Search by last name first, then first name.
• Author Search: To find materials written BY your subject.
  • Search by last name first, then first name.
• Keyword (or Word) Search
  •  Will provide mix of materials, some by and some about your subject.
  • Will reveal materials that would not have appeared through author or subject search (e.g., if your subject was listed in the Table of Contents). 
  •  Use additional search terms such as "criticism" (in addition to your subject's name or the book's title) to help narrow your results.

HOW:

• Keywords: don't forget to try broader/narrower terms, synonyms, and related terms (examples: property, aristocracy, upper-class)
• Click on each title to get the full information (catalog record)
• Use Subject links at the bottom of the catalog record to find similar items
• Try a Boolean Operator: AND, NOT, OR
• How about a wildcard? Invent* will give you: Invent, Invents, Inventor, Invention

SUBJECT TERMS:

• When you find a book that looks good, scroll down and look at the subject terms.  This can lead you to other good sources and help you generate keywords. Here are a few subject terms that may be useful for this class:

Girls in Literature

Girls -- Books and Reading

Children's stories, American -- History and criticism

Teenage Girls in Literature

Girls in Literature

Girls -- Books and Reading

Children's stories, American -- History and criticism

Teenage Girls in Fiction