Finding Resources: Finding Books

It is rarely necessary to read the whole book from start to finish and this may be an inefficient use of your time.

Instead:

• Use the contents page, at the start of the book, to find a chapter or section relevant to your topic. 
• Refer to the index, at the end of the book, to find a particular theory, author or specific topic.
• Use the search function in an e-book to find a specific topic, theory, author etc.

To find the Essential and Recommended reading for your module, go to your Reading List and search for your specific module by the course title or module code.

Ebooks that are essential reading for your course are available from library databases. These can be accessed from the Library website. Most of these titles are also accessible from the library catalogue.

In addition, a wide range of ebooks are also available from library catalogue. To search for ebooks, enter the author's last name and one or two keywords from the title or search for your topic in the search bar on Locate. Select Electronic books (online only) from the drop-down menu to exclude print books. 

You will be presented with differing access options when you select an ebook title on library catalogue. This varies from publication to publication. Some publishers will allow you to download the full text, others will limit access to 24 hours. This may involve downloading an extra piece of software, or an app if you want to read the book on a mobile device.

Note some publishers limit access to a defined number of users at any one time. In the example below, the same ebook is available from IPR and Ebook Central, though only 5 users can have simultaneous access from Ebook Central.

The library uses a classification scheme called Library Congress Classification (LCC) to organise the physical collection. This ensures books written about the same subject are located at the same shelf number.

You will find the LCC number on the label on the spine of a book.

LCC is a hierarchical system includes the 21 main classes areas from A to Z.

These broad areas sub-divide giving specific classification numbers for all discipline areas. The result is that all books with have at least one letter and often sub-divided by further digits separated by a decimal point. For example, books about price control will have a LC classification of HF 5415 .G67 1939. As an explanation of that number:

• HF 5415    Commerce Business → Marketing → General works
• .G67 1939 Cutter number for Grether Year of publication