Subject Guide
General searching tips
- Fine-tune your search terms. Most databases have filters or facets that allow you to narrow your results by subject, date range, etc. You can combine search terms using AND (race AND migration) and OR (black OR african american). In many databases, the asterisk is a truncation or "wildcard" symbol that will match all possible endings for a word stem; i.e. migra* will match migrants, migration, migrated, etc.
- When you find a good source, use it to find other good sources. Use the subject terms and keywords associated with an item to find other items on the same topic. Scholarly books and articles will have bibliographies and footnotes that you can mine for additional resources.
- Know the difference between academic and non-academic sources, and when it's appropriate to use them. Most databases allow you to limit results to academic (aka scholarly or peer reviewed) sources. Be mindful of the assignment and what you're being asked to provide.
- If you're not finding what you need, ask a librarian for help. The library staff may be able to suggest additional sources that are directly related to your paper topic.
Finding books & other library materials
Virgo, the U.Va. Library’s primary search tool, contains catalog records for books, print journals, DVDs, maps, and digitized materials, as well as links to online articles from our rich array of subscription journals. You can search catalog materials and articles together, or view those results separately, using the facets provided to limit your results by author, format, publication period, and more.
Sample searches:
- Choose "Catalog only" search
- Search for Gwendolyn Brooks; and
- Select Brooks, Gwendolyn from the Author facet to find books written by the author; OR
- Select Criticism and Interpretation from the Subject facet to find books written about the author; OR
- Select Ebook from the Format facet to limit to books are available online; OR
- Select Special Collections from the Library facet to find rare and archival materials related to the author
Helpful reference books
The Cambridge Companion to African American Women's Literature by ISBN: 9780521858885Publication Date: 2009-04-30The Cambridge Companion to African American Women's Literature covers a period dating back to the eighteenth century. These specially commissioned essays highlight the artistry, complexity and diversity of a literary tradition that ranges from Lucy Terry to Toni Morrison. A wide range of topics are addressed, from the Harlem Renaissance to the Black Arts Movement, and from the performing arts to popular fiction. Together, the essays provide an invaluable guide to a rich, complex tradition of women writers in conversation with each other as they critique American society and influence American letters.
The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African American Literature by ISBN: 0313329737Publication Date: 2005-09-01Designed to meet the needs of high school students, undergraduates, and general readers, this encyclopedia is the most comprehensive reference available on African American literature from its origins to the present.
A Companion to African American Literature by ISBN: 9781405188623Publication Date: 2010-05-10Through a series of essays that explore the forms, themes, genres, historical contexts, major authors, and latest critical approaches, A Companion to African American Literature presents a comprehensive chronological overview of African American literature from the eighteenth century to the modern day.
A New Handbook of Literary Terms by ISBN: 9780300106367Publication Date: 2007-06-01A New Handbook of Literary Terms offers a lively, informative guide to words and concepts that every student of literature needs to know. Mikics’s definitions are essayistic, witty, learned, and always a pleasure to read. They sketch the derivation and history of each term, including especially lucid explanations of verse forms and providing a firm sense of literary periods and movements from classicism to postmodernism.
Finding biographies
Literature Resource Center (LRC) includes full text articles from the Dictionary of Literary Biography and Contemporary Authors – terrific sources for author biographies.
Finding book reviews
Newspapers and popular magazines are a great place to find reviews of contemporary fiction. In addition to Literature Resource Center and Academic Search Complete (listed below), you can use LexisNexis or Factiva, our two large newspaper databases, to find recent reviews.
Finding peer-reviewed articles about contemporary black women writers
- MLA BibliographyBest online index to scholarly articles in the literature of modern languages. Journal articles and multi-author works are listed. Coverage from 1920 to the present.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new windowJSTOR contains back issues (usually 3-5 years old or older) of significant scholarly journals in many subjects, including language and literature. Like Project Muse, JSTOR is not as comprehensive as the MLAIB, but offers the advantages of full-text searching and instant access to PDFs.
- Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new windowA huge general database covering all subjects. It contains scholarly articles from a wide range of sources. It also includes articles from popular magazines and newspapers, which can be helpful for finding reviews, author profiles and interviews, and articles about current events depicted in the fiction you're reading.