This guide is designed to help you use the Book Review Index ( Ref Z1035.B61 ). This useful source lists reviews of books (which have appeared in over 500 periodicals) on all subjects including works of literature.
The index begins in 1965 with the first ten volumes listing reviews of books published from 1965 through 1984. Since 1984 coverage is in one volume per year and lists reviews of books published during that year. This source may be effectively used if you know either the author or the title of the book and the year in which the book was published. Use the following procedure to search Book Review Index :
- Consult the back of the title page of the book for which you want a review in order to determine that book's publication or copyright date. A review of a book is most likely to appear within a few months of its publication.
- Find the volume of the Book Review Index that corresponds to your book's publication date. If, for example, the title page of your book indicates that it appeared in 1992, the 1992 Cumulation of Book Review Index is the most likely to list reviews.
- If none are found in that volume then the previous or next volumes (in our example the 1991 or 1993 Cumulations ) may list reviews.
- If you still don't find any reviews return to the title page of your book to find whether any earlier editions of the book were published. If so you would consult the index for the year that the earliest edition appeared.
- Look in the appropriate volume of Book Review Index by your book's author (Last Name, First Name). Under each author's name are all of his or her books that have been reviewed during that year.
SEARCH EXAMPLE:
You are looking for a review of Strangle Hold by Jerome Doolittle, published in late 1991. The 1992 Cumulation of Book Review Index has the following entry:
Doolittle, Jerome - Bear Hug
PW - v239 - S21 '92 - p77[51-250]
Body Scissors
PW - v238 - O25 '91 -p60
Strangle Hold
BL - v88 - N15 '91 - p604
LJ - v116 - N1 '91 - p.135
- Check the inside of the front cover of Book Review Index for an alphabetical list of the publications indexed. You will find entries under BL for Booklist and under LJ for Library Journal .
- The main entry informs you that Jerome Doolittle has written three books that were reviewed from late 1991 through 1992. Strangle Hold was reviewed in the November 15, 1991 Booklist and in the November 1, 1991 Library Journal .
- Consult the locate periodicals database to determine if the VC/UHV library owns the publication in which the review appears. The locate periodicals database (TD NET) is available on the library's home page by clicking Locate Periodicals and then, on the ensuing screen, clicking on the box labeled TD NET . Clicking on TD NET opens a new window that contains a search box. Enter the title of the publication you are seeking and TD NET will display, by issue date, what the library owns in print or microfilm or in an electronic database.
HINT
- If you do not know a book's author (or if you're unsure of the spelling of the author's name)
each volume of Book Review Index has a list by title of all books reviewed.
The title entry will provide you with the name of the author. You then need to consult the main
index under that author's last name to find the full information on when and where that book was
reviewed.
- Books which have no author credited are listed by title in the main index and are also in found the title index.