English Language & Literature

Book reviews for creative works (fiction, poetry, short stories) are often written by journalists or fellow authors and are a good measure of contemporary reaction to a work. They often appear in newspapers, magazines, or online (blogs and review websites) and can be as brief as one paragraph or several thousand words. Book reviews generally do not contain the kind of in-depth analysis found in literary criticism written by scholars. 

When and Why You Should Use Book Reviews:

• You need to know how/whether readers reacted to a work when it was initially published 
• You need examples of other contemporaneous works that were compared or mentioned in conjunction with the work in question

Remember: Creative works are generally reviewed near the date of publication or within the first few years after publication, so target your searches. Also, for older works, look for book reviews that may have appeared for subsequent special editions or reprints in later years.

For reviews of more scholarly works (e.g. NOT prose or poetry), try these:

Want to know if the library has a specific newspaper or magazine (e.g. The New York Times, Time, Philadelphia Inquirer)? Use the search box to search for specific titles of newspapers or magazines available in print or online: