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Identifying & Engaging with Sources

How is information presented in different types of sources? Why will knowing this help me choose the best sources for my research?

Reading a Scholarly Book or Ebook

Reading scholarly books & ebooks in the context of research can be different than how you approach reading an assigned text for class or a book for pleasure. It is unlikely that you will need to, or even have time to, read the book from start to finish. The guide will help you learn how to develop a plan for reading scholarly books & ebooks, which can be improved upon with practice.

Common Components of Scholarly Books & Ebooks

Note: Not all books or ebooks contain all components.

Title Offers clues to the book's topic.
Author

Describes who is responsible for the work.
Publisher

Gives additional information on who is responsible for the work.
Summary

Summarizes the content of the book, may also contain snippets from reviews of the book.
Table of Contents List of sections/chapters in the book.
Introduction A roadmap for what will be covered in the book. Typically gives background on why the book was written and how the author plans to cover the content. Sometimes will offer chapter-level summaries.
Images or Figures Some scholarly books will present data through graphs and charts and others will include select images or photographs. It is rare for a scholarly book to be fully illustrated. These images can be both spread throughout the book or concentrated in one or two sections of images which are often on glossier pages than the rest of the book. 
Conclusion A synthesis of what was discovered in writing the book and possible directions for further research. 
Index A listing of important concepts, people, & places covered in the book and the pages on which they are covered. 

 

While You Read

Using scholarly books & ebooks for research is identifying which parts of the book will be useful for your research question. Scanning and evaluating some of the common components mentioned above will help you determine if a book will be helpful for your research question and which sections in the book will be most helpful. . 

When you first look at a search result for a book or ebook, use the title, summary, table of contents, & publisher to help give you a general idea of what the book is about.

  •  Summary - Most books have a summary available. For print books it can often be found on the back cover or inside the flap of the front cover. For ebooks, the summary is typically available on the landing page for the book before you actually click in to the content. 
  • Table of Contents - Scan this for more section and chapter titles.
  • Publisher - More and more people can publish books now that desktop publishing programs and the internet made creation and distribution channels more easily available. Checking to see who published a book may help you determine whether a source will be useful. Scholarly books tend to be published by University Presses (ex: University of Pittsburgh Press or Oxford University Press). However, some popular presses can publish scholarly works (ex: Rowman & Littlefield or Random House). It is worth googling the publisher to find out if they are a credible press or a self-publishing venue. 

Once you've determined that a book or ebook is likely to have valuable content, then it's time to dig a little deeper. You can try reading the introduction and either searching for keywords within an ebook or using the index to find them in a print book. 

  • Introduction - The introduction to a scholarly book is usually an expansion of the summary. The author will often share why they felt they needed to write the book, how it's organized - sometimes giving a chapter-by-chapter summary, and what the limitations of the work may be. This can be really valuable for pointing you to relevant sections of the book.
  • Keyword Search/Index Search - Most ebooks have a search functionality built in or you could try using Ctrl/Cmnd+F to open a search box in your browser to look for your keywords. In ebooks and print books, you'll likely find an index at the back of the book. This tool can point you to the pages where coverage of certain topics, people, or places occur within the book. 

Once you find the sections that are most relevant to your research question they you will need to sit down and read through them. Scholarly books will have a works cited or reference section either as footnotes, notes at the end of the chapter or aggregated at the end of the book. Make sure to scan through the sources to see if they can point you to additional information on your topic. 

If you need help navigating a print or ebook, ask a librarian for help.