English Resources

English Databases

Passwords available from Media Center staff or online (authorized users only). Gale databases use geolocation and do not require a password.

• • Literature Resource Center (Gale)

  • Authors and their works, literary movements, genres, criticism, and more.

  • Biography In Context (Gale)

  • Great place to start for author research.

  • Books and Authors (Gale)

  • Advice for finding the next great book to read.

  • Academic OneFile (Gale)

  • Your database for peer-reviewed, scholarly articles (great for literary criticism) and other periodical content, including magazines and newspapers (great for published book reviews). See tips below for advanced searching.

  • JSTOR (requires a BPL eCard number)

  • Scholarly journals from JSTOR can be a great source for literary criticism. Note that most journals do not have access for the past three to five years.

Finding Books Online

If you are looking for older books, they may be in the public domain, and available to you for free online. Works that are not available in the public domain may still be available online through the Minuteman (Robbins Library) or Boston Public Library electronic resources.

• • Project Gutenberg (for public domain works)

  • The first and largest online library of free e-books. These books are free because their copyright has expired. Download to your computer, e-reader, or mobile device.

  • Internet Archive (for public domain works)

  • The Internet Archive was founded to provide "permanent access ... to historical collections that exist in digital format." In addition to public domain e-books and archived websites, the Internet Archive has expanded to include audio, video, and software.

  • Boston Public Library Electronic Resources (requires a BPL eCard number)

  • Download e-books and audiobooks directly to your computer or mobile device.

  • Minuteman Library Electronic Resources (requires a Robbins Library account)

  • Download e-books and audiobooks directly to your computer or mobile device.

Finding Poetry Online

• • Poetry Foundation

  • The Poetry Foundation is committed to "a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture." Search by author (name, school or period, region, or birthdate), or browse by subject. Includes biographies of major poets, some of them very detailed.

  • Poets.org

  • Sponsored by the Academy of American Poets, with the mission "to support American poets at all stages of their careers and to foster the appreciation of contemporary poetry." Advanced search options include keyword, movement, theme, and form. Includes brief biographies, focus on American poets.

  • Bartleby.com: Verse

  • Several public-domain poetry anthologies and collections, including The Oxford Book of English Verse, Modern American Poetry, and more. Search all of Bartleby or just the verse collection. Useful for historic poetry.

  • Favorite Poem Project

  • Selected poems read aloud through the Favorite Poem Project.

Finding Literary Criticism Online: Tips and Tricks

• Real literary criticism is a discourse between professionals, published in books and, often, scholarly journals. Start with Literature Resource Center but don't forget Academic OneFile and JSTOR (requires a BPL eCard number) for more coverage.

• Place quotation marks around the title of a work to limit search results to that exact phrase. Search engines often ignore minor words such as articles and prepositions. This also really helps when your title has common words. For example searching "Tale of Two Cities" will only retrieve articles with the phrase "Tale of Two Cities" as opposed to "tale," "two," and "cities," in some order, somewhere.

• Combine search terms to get more targeted results. Are you interested in every article published on The Great Gatsby, or one specific theme, character, or symbol in particular? Test out different combinations of terms to see what works best.

• Use the advanced search features in databases and specialized websites. One extra click upfront can save hours sifting through results. A simple but powerful search feature often available in academic databases is "article type," which may allow you to specifically search for literary criticism or book reviews. Many specialized literature websites even allow users to search by period, theme, form, and more.

• Remember the online catalog to see what print books the Media Center might have. We have a very nice (and frankly, underutilized) collection of literature resources and nothing would make the librarian happier than to help you use them!

• The Boston Public Library has a large collection of electronic reference books that you can access from home through their Gale Virtual Reference Library (requires a BPL eCard number). Under Subjects, click on Literature. Then use the search box at the top right of the screen to search only within literature to get focused results, or browse the available titles. For example, the 35 volumes of Novels for Students offers detailed articles on dozens of frequently taught works, including a critical overview, historical context, and discussion of the novel's themes and significance. Don't miss this!

Words, Words, Words