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Home-->Virtual Research Guides-->Literature & Reading Virtual Research Guide: Resources in this research guide include databases, digital reference books, and Internet sites covering the following areas: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, short stories, literary criticism, reading, writing, and publishing. The materials included in this guide would be generally classified in the 800s of the Dewey Decimal System.
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FEATURED DATABASES
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Literature Resource Center: LRC is a comprehensive literary resource containing author biographical information and critical materials from Contemporary Authors, the Dictionary of Literary Biography, and a variety of other titles from the GALE literary criticism series. Many of these author entries also include portraits. This database also includes full-text journal articles from more than 300 literary journals, nearly 70,000 selected critical essays, and nearly 5,000 links to authoritative related Web sites. The database is a global, interdisciplinary, and balanced collection of literary materials. It is updated daily. |
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LitFinder: This resource is a primary-source database that includes over 125,000 full-text poems and 10,000 plays, short stories, essays, and speeches. It also includes 850,000 poem citations and excerpts, along with explanations and analysis of the included literature. LitFinder covers all eras of history and is constantly updated with coverage of contemporary and emerging authors. Spanish-language poems with English translations are also included. The content is easily accessible using a variety of search capabilities. |
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NoveList: An online reader's advisory service that contains a listing of over 120,000 fiction titles categorized by subject and genre. Also includes over 90,000 book reviews. |
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What Do I Read Next?: A reader's advisory database with over 100,000 fiction titles. Searchable by subject, genre, time period, geographic location, series, character, and more. Includes plot summaries and designates literary award winners. |
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WorldCat: A union list of the books and other materials available at most of the major public and academic libraries of the United States. WorldCat (in-Library link) WorldCat (outside Library link) |
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NetLibrary: Contains the full text of more than 27,000 books in digital format. |
DIGITAL REFERENCE BOOKS
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Contemporary Novelists. Neil Schlager and Josh Lauer, Eds. 7th ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 2001. 1166 pp. Contains biographical/critical essays on the most important living novelists writing in English worldwide. |
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Contemporary Poets. Thomas Riggs, Ed. 7th ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 2001. 1443 pp. Provides biographical and bibliographical information on 789 of the world's most important contemporary English-language poets, including 120 new to this edition. Entries include personal and career information, addresses, a detailed bibliography, a list of further reading sources, and more. Each entry also includes a signed critical essay covering each poet's career and works, written by an expert in the field. |
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Nonfiction Classics for Students. Elizabeth Thomason, Ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 1997 pp. 5 vols. Provides in-depth literary and historical background on the most commonly studied nonfiction essays, books, biographies, and memoirs in a streamlined, easy-to-use format. Covering 15-20 works per volume, this reference series gives high-school and undergraduate students an ideal starting point for class assignments, term papers, and special projects. |
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Reference Guide to World Literature. Sara Pendergast and Tom Pendergast, Eds. 3rd ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 2003. 1730 pp. 2 vols. Contains biographical and critical essays on authors from throughout the world, as well as essays covering specific work or works of an author, with criticism and analysis of those works. |
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Writers Directory 2008. Michelle Kazensky, Ed. 23rd ed. Detroit: St. James Press, 2007. 2501 pp. 2 vols. Features bibliographical, biographical and contact information for living authors worldwide who have at least one English publication. Entries include name, pseudonyms, addresses, citizenship, birth date, specialization, career information and a bibliography. |
SELECTED INTERNET SITES
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About.com: Contemporary Literature |
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