Quick Links

How to Find Reviews

To locate a review, it would help to have:

  • author's name
  • title
  • year of publication or production

(For non-book reviews, go to EBSCO'S Academic Search Premier and the LexisNexis databases.)

Print Sources

Book Review Digest (1905-1983)

  • BRD indexes mainly popular magazines rather than scholarly ones.

Book Review Index (1965- )

  • BRI is a very clear cut and easily accessible print source that indexes reviews in humanities and social sciences.

Booklist (1969- ) This library journal is indexed in Academic Search Premier (ASP) since 8/93; full text since 1/2002. Before that it is indexed in Book Review Digest.

  • You can search all Booklist indexes by title or author from 2000 on at the top of the online web page .
  • Annual indexes cite page numbers for reviews (1997-present) at the bottom of the online web page.

New York Times Book Review

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Online Sources

EBSCO

  • Go to Advanced Search.
  • Type book title in quotation marks.
  • (Limiting your results under Document Type to "Book review"--in RILM "Review of book"--paradoxically may not get all of the reviews. However, if the title is very common, you may need to do this.)

    Academic Search Premier
    --ASP indexes New York Times Book Review and New York Review of Books since 1989, neither full text. (For NYTBR full text, see above; for NYTRoB, find microfiche or print in library.)
    --ASP indexes Booklist since 8/93; full text since 1/2002.

  • You can limit in ASP for the Document Type "Literary criticism," though, as with book reviews, all articles of literary criticism may not be coded as such.

SocINDEX With Full Text
This sociology research database contains full text for 708 journals, with many more indexed.

Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA)
LISTA indexes more than 600 periodicals, including Choice (the American Library Association review journal) back to 2003. The library has print back issues for Choice.

ATLA Religion Database American Theological Library Association) (1949- , some earlier indexing; some full text)

Business Source Premier (1922- , full text)

RILM Abstracts of Music Literature (1967- ; abstracts)

Peace Research Abstracts (PRA) (app. 1970- ; abstracts)

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FirstSearch Databases

Other Online Sources

For PJCS titles relevant to the new online Journal of Religion, Conflict, and Peace (first issue, Fall 2007, Joe Liechty ed.), search that journal directly since it is too new to be in the major indexes.

RCLWeb
Core list of 65,000 titles recommended for college libraries by the Association of College and Rearch Libraries and Bowker.
(Username: goshencollege; Password: reference0207)

  • Search your title in "Keyword (Title)." (You may also limit to subject or format.) Reviews for titles are included.

H-Net Reviews. Enter title or search terms, year, and click "Go."

Historical New York Times (For most recent 3 years, see ASP and find print issue--see above).
Before 3 years ago, go to Historical New York Times database.

  • Type in title of book using quotes around the title.
  • Click on "More Search Options."
  • Select "review" as Article Type.

JSTOR (dates vary by title; earliest dates from 1884; most recent few years not included)

  • Go to "advanced search" link.
  • After "These Types", check Review.
  • Select appropriate discipline(s) or journals(s)--or nothing.
  • Enter book title in box after "All of these words" or The exact phrase."

LexisNexis (dates vary by title)

  • Select "News" category in upper left.
  • Specify dates to search (bottom box): from date of publication to several years after.
  • Type title of book/movie in first box.
  • Select "Headlines, Lead Paragraphs & Indexing" from menu in second box down.
  • Click on upper-right hand red search box.

Project MUSE (dates vary by title)

  • Go to the "Advanced Search."
  • Under "Additional Search Options," check "Reviews Only" and "Include JSTOR back issues."
  • Type your title in the first search box at the top and put it in quotes.
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For further assistance, ask a Reference Librarian.


Updated 30-Jul-2009 AMB