How do I search for a book from the library homepage?
Answer
There are several ways to accomplish this from the Library homepage, and which method you choose depends upon what information you already know.
Known author and title of book:
- One option is to search the Library Catalog, which can be found under the main searchbox at the top of the main Library page. On the resulting page, enter the book information in the spaces provided. If desired, select the appropriate designation from the drop down menu next to the search boxes, e.g. title, author and select "search keywords." If the item is not in the results try the next option.
- Another option is to use ScholarSearch to search Library holdings by entering the book information in the search boxes there. You can also use the Advanced Search options and include author and title in separate search boxes (and select each designation from drop down), increasing the chance of getting good results--otherwise the results will include book reviews instead of the actual book. Use the "Source type" filter on the left of the webpage to select "books" or "e-books." This should filter out book reviews.
Subject-related book search:
- Another option is to use the Library Catalog, which can be found under the main search box at the top of the main Library page, to search for books on a certain subject. On the resulting page, select "Advanced Search" in the middle of the top of the webpage. Enter the subject you wish to search in the search box, select "left to right" to the left of the search box, and click search. The result page(s) provides resources organized by subject.
- Use ScholarSearch to find books related to a specific subject. Click the Advanced Search link under the search box, enter the subject, select "Subject Terms - SU" from the drop down menu, and click "Search." On the resulting page, filter the results by entering the desired date range, selecting "books" and/or "e-books" under "source type," filtering by additional subjects of interest, and so on. Some results could be book reviews, but those could still lead you to a useful book about the subject you are researching!
Please contact the Library at email reference@drew.edu if assistance is needed.