Book review indexes will give either the full text or the citation of the review appearing in a periodical (magazine, journal, or newspaper). This guide provides a selective list of indexes for identifying book reviews. The list is not exhaustive, as many subject disciplines have indexes that can be used to locate book reviews.
Distinguishing Between Book Reviews and Literary Criticism
Book reviews are frequently published around the time of the book's publication. They tend to be short notices or discussions in magazines, journals and newspapers. Longer, more scholarly evaluations may be published in subject-specific journals. The book reviews may state whether the work is recommended by the critic, why, and for what level of reader. Reviews often provide price and purchase information.
Literary criticism, especially recent criticism, usually provides a more in-depth analysis and interpretation of the book as well as evaluative comments. The writer may choose to examine one work or the author's works as a whole.
Indexes to Book Reviews
Online Indexes
Academic OneFile (1980 to present)
LOCATION: Library Databases [restricted to UD]
Academic OneFile provides indexing for magazines and journals in a broad range of subject areas. The full text of many articles can be viewed and printed. When searching for book reviews, add the words "and review" to the keyword search.
Coverage includes a wide range of interdisciplinary fields covered in a broad array of humanities and social sciences journals. Citations from H.W. Wilson’s International Index is also included. This database can be searched simultaneously with Readers' Guide Retrospective.
JSTOR (coverage varies by title)
LOCATION: Library Databases [restricted to UD]
JSTOR is a full-text database of core journals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Searches can be limited to reviews.
LexisNexis Academic (coverage varies by title, may be current 10 years)
LOCATION: Library Databases [restricted to UD]
LexisNexis Academic provides full-text information from newspapers, the legal literature, and other sources on a variety of topics. If looking for reviews published in the New York Times, use the Guided News Search mode. Choose Arts & Sports News in Step One, select Book, Movie, Music & Play Reviews in Step Two, and type New York Times in Step Five.
The online archives of The New York Review of Books may be searched by date, keyword, and specific fields (author of article, title of article, reviewed author, reviewed work, type of article, and year).
New York Times (1851 to present year minus five)
LOCATION: Library Databases [restricted to UD]
Offers full page and article images with searchable full text of the New York Times back to the first issue.
An electronic index to the contents of many journals and magazines in the humanities and social sciences. The scope is international. There may be links to the full text of some reviews via connections to JSTOR. When full text is available, a "View full text on JSTOR" icon appears following a citation. Click on the icon to access the full text. Searches can be limited to book reviews.
Project MUSE (variable: 1993 or later to the present)
LOCATION: Library Databases [restricted to UD]
Provides indexing and access to the full text of journals in the humanities, social sciences, and mathematics published by The Johns Hopkins University Press and other publishers. Searches can be limited to reviews as document type in the Advanced Search mode.
Readers' Guide Retrospective provides indexing to popular periodicals. When searching for book reviews, add the words "and review" to the keyword search. This database can be searched simultaneously with Humanities and Social Sciences Index Retrospective.
The TLS Centenary Archive offers the full text of reviews from TLS. All are fully indexed and searchable by author and/or contributor.
Web of Science (mid-1990s to present, varies by index)
LOCATION: Library Databases [restricted to UD]
Web of Science includes the Arts and Humanities Citation Index (1975 to present), the Social Sciences Citation Index (1956 to present), and the Science Citation Index (1945 to present). Searches can be limited to book reviews by choosing the Advanced Search mode and selecting "book reviews" as document type.
Printed Indexes
The American Humanities Index (1975-1991)
Troy, NY: Whitston
LOCATION: Morris Library - Reference (Ref AI3 .A278)
Book Review Digest (1905 to present)
Bronx, NY: H. W. Wilson
LOCATION: Morris Library - Reference (Ref Z1035 .A1 B65)
Book Review Index (1965 to present)
Detroit: Gale
LOCATION: Morris Library - Reference (Ref Z1035 .A1 B66)
Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in Humanities Journals (1802-1974)
Woodbridge, CT: Research Publications.
LOCATION: Morris Library - Reference (Ref AZ221 .C63x 1982)
Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in Scholarly Journals (1886-1974)
Arlington, VA: Carrollton Press
LOCATION: Morris Library - Reference (Ref Z1035 .A1 C64)
An Index to Book Reviews in the Humanities (1960-1990)
Williamston, MI: P. Thomson
LOCATION: Morris Library - Reference (Ref Z1035.A1 I63)
Locating Magazines, Journals, and Newspapers in the Library
Consult DELCAT to see if the University of Delaware Library has the magazine, journal, or newspaper you need. Note the call number location. Current issues of periodicals are kept in the Periodicals Room on the first level of the Library. Older, bound issues of print periodicals are shelved by their call numbers in the book stacks on the second, third, and lower levels. Microfilm periodicals are stored on the lower level of the Library in the Microforms and Copy Services Department.
Some periodicals duplicated by electronic versions (ex. JSTOR journals) are housed in the Library Annex. Library staff retrieve annex items Monday through Friday. Items requested by 2:00 p.m. will be available by 4:00 p.m. the same day at the Circulation Desk. Use the electronic Library Annex Request Form to request materials.
Interlibrary Loan Services
If the University of Delaware Library does not own the magazine, journal or newspaper, please use the Interlibrary Loan Request Form to request a copy of the review.
