Research Guides
FindIt:

Book Review Sources - Research Guide

Book reviews offer critical reaction to a work, usually within a year or two of its publication. Reviews vary in length and authority but can occasionally be long scholarly essays on a work, an author, or a subject. More often, book reviews supply a summary of the book's content and the reviewer's reactions to it. This is a selective bibliography of sources for reviews of works in the social sciences and humanities, including some major book reviewing periodicals in various disciplines. Search Franklin under the subject books reviews periodicals to identify additional book review sources To find a book review it is useful to know the title, the author, and the date of publication of the book. Franklin, RLIN or OCLC/WorldCat can provide this information.

Book review sources by area of interest:

General

EBSCO Megafile.
A combined index of EBSCO's Academic Search Premier and Masterfile Premier. Indexes both scholarly journals and popular periodicals. Strong from 1990s forward, although many titles are indexed back further. To limit to book reviews, click on the Refine Search table and select the publication type Book Reviews. When in the Megafile, you will need to do this for both indexes.

LexisNexis Academic
Full text of many newspapers and magazines. Choose News then Arts & Sports News. For new source: Book, movie, music, & play reviews.

Book Review Digest. 1905- . N.Y.: Wilson, 1905.
Indexes reviews of English-language books published or distributed in the U.S. which appear in at least 2 [4 for fiction] of 75 journals. Excerpts from reviews are frequently reprinted and the number of words in the full review is indicated. Published 10 times a year with annual cumulative volumes. Author arrangement with title and subject indexes.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1219 .C96]

Book Review Index, 1965-. Detroit: Gale, 1966-.
Indexes all reviews in about 215 English-language journals, including reviews of fiction, non-fiction and children's books. Monthly with quarterly and annual cumulations. Comprehensive index.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1035 .A1 B6]

Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in Scholarly Journals, 1886-1974. Arlington, Va.: Carrollton, 1979-1982. 15 volumes.
Index by author name to book reviews in 459 scholarly journals in history, political science, and sociology. Short notices as well as full-length reviews included. Reviewers' names not given. See also Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in Humanities Journals (below).
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1035 .A1 C64]

Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature. V. 1-93 1900/04- . N.Y.: Wilson. Annual cumulations.
Since 1976 separate "Book Reviews" section at end of volume. Arranged by author or title main entry.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: AI3 .R48], 1900-1993.

Readers' Guide Retrospective.
Online version of the index Readers' Guide covers 1890 to 1983.

ISI Citation Databases.
The ISI Citation Databases include the Science, Social Science and Arts & Humanities Citation Indexes. The database covers over 5,300 science , 1,700 social science, and 1,140 arts & humanities journals. To find book reviews, limit your search to document type "Book Review."

Periodicals Contents Index.
Indexes hundreds of periodicals in the humanities and social sciences, from their first issues to about 1995. The scope is international, including journals in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and other Western languages. To locate book reviews in PCI, select the "Book reviews only" option on the search screen.

19th Century Masterfile
Provides indexing to nineteenth century periodicals, books, newspapers, and government documents. The main index is Poole's Index to Periodical Literature (1802-1906), which includes date and title information not available in the print version. Poole's Plus also includes Stead's Index to Periodicals (1890-1902).

Bibliographie der Rezensionen. 77 vols., 1900-1943. Leipzig: Dietrich, 1901-1944.
Index to reviews in 3000+ German-language serials from 1901 until 1911 and from 1911 to 1943 [except 1916-1924]. German and non-German serials. By 1943, 5000 German and 4000 other titles were indexed, including 50 newspapers. Indexes some English-language titles not included in Book Review Digest.
[Van Pelt Library: AI9 .B6]

Internationale Bibliographie der Rezensionen Wissenschaftlicher Literatur. Osnabruck: Dietrich, 1971-.
Published in four sections: A - index of periodicals consulted [4000+]; B - classified subject index [in German, with references from English and French equivalents] of book reviews; C - index of book reviews by reviewed authors; D - index of book reviews by reviewer. International; major western language journals; all subjects, including scientific ones.
[Van Pelt Library: AI9 .I495], latest five years in Reference
Also in CD-ROM [Van Pelt Library Reference Moelis Area: AI9 .I4951], 1995 - .

Current Book Review Citations. 1976-82. N.Y.: Wilson. Annual. In 2 parts: Part 1 cites book reviews by author; Part 2 by title.
Covers non-fiction [including science and law], fiction, foreign-language titles, and new editions. Citations include name of reviewer.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1035 .A1 C86]

National Library Service Cumulative Book Review Index, 1905-1974. Princeton, NJ: 1975.
Six-volume [3 alphabetically by author, 3 by title] cumulative index to reviews cited in Book Review Digest plus those published in Saturday Review [192-1974], Library Journal [1907-1974], and Choice [1969-1974].
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1035 .A1 N38]

Review of Reviews and World's Work. V. 1-96, 1890-July 1937. N.Y.: Review of Reviews Corp. Monthly.
Each issue includes article devoted to book reviews. No index. Indexed in Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: AP2 .R4]

New York Review of Books, 1963-

Times Literary Supplement, 1902-1990
A weekly book review journal of international stature that has been published in London since 1902. Though it focuses on current British publications, its coverage is worldwide.

Times Literary Supplement, 1994-

Humanities - General

Arts and Humanities Citation Index (ISI Citation Databases) Philadelphia: Institute for Scientific Information, 1975 - .
The printed form indicates book reviews with the letter "B" under the name of the author in the Citation Index, or under the name of the reviewer in the Source Index.
In print form: [Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: AI3 .A63]

Combined Retrospective Index to Book Reviews in Humanities Journals, 1802-1974. Woodbridge, Ct.: Research Publications, 1982-84. 10 volumes.
Index by author name to reviews from 157 journals.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1035 .A1 C62]

Humanities Index. V. 1-17, 1974-91. N.Y.: Wilson.
Separate "Book Reviews" section at end of volume. Arranged alphabetically by author.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: AI3 .H852]

Index to Book Reviews in the Humanities. V. 1-31, 1960-90. Detroit: P. Thomson.
Arranged alphabetically by author. Cites popular and scholarly books in English and foreign languages; covers art and architecture, biography, personal narratives, drama, dance, folklore, music, philosophy, etc. Citations given by means of code number which refers to list at beginning of volume.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z1035 A1 I63]

Social Sciences - General

International Bibliography of the Social Sciences.
Bibliographic citations and subject indexing for the international journal article and book literature in anthropology, economics, political science, and sociology. Roughly one-third of covered journal s are from outside North America and western Europe, drawing upon publications from over 105 countries and 95 different languages. For book reviews, click on "Limit Your Search," choose "reviews" from the PT-publication type menu, and click on "Set limits". Current limits (and PT=reviews) will now display on the search screen.

Social Sciences Index. V. 1-19, April 1974-93. N.Y.: Wilson.
Separate "Book Review" section at end of volume. Arranged alphabetically by author.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: AI3 .S624], 1974-1993

Social Sciences Citation Index (ISI Citation Databases).
1969- . Philadelphia: Institute for Scientific Information.
To find book reviews, limit your search to document type "Book Review."
Print form [Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: H1. S616], 1956 - . Print form indicates book reviews with the letter "B" under the name of an author in the Citation Index, or under the name of the reviewer in the Source Index.

Bulletin Signaletique 521: Sociologie, Ethnologie. V. 23-47, 1969-93. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
Book reviews are not listed separately but are indicated by the abbreviation "C.r." [comte rendu] following the bibliographic citation. Names of authors and their reviewers are listed in the Author Index. International in scope. Author and subject indexes cumulated annually.
[Van Pelt Library: H1 .A122, Vols 40-44, vot 24-39 at Z1007 .B95]
Continued by FRANCIS

Book Review Index to Social Science Periodicals. V. 1-4. Ann Arbor, Mich. :Perian, 1978-81.
Covers reviews from 1964-74 in 4 volumes. Indexes all book reviews from approximately 250 journals. Arranged alphabetically by author. Includes archaeology, history, economics, education, political science, sociology, geography, area studies, international relations, consumer affairs, etc. Includes foreign-language titles.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: Z7161 .B7]

Anthropology

Annual Review of Anthropology. V.1-22, 1972-93. Palo Alto, Calif.: Annual Reviews.
Describes and evaluates recent publications. International in coverage. Author and subject indexes.
[1972-93 at GN1 .A558 in Van Pelt Library; 1972-present at Museum Library Reference]

Bulletin Signaletique 525: Prehistoire et Protohistoire. V. 24-47, 1970-93. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
See above.
Continued by FRANCIS

Bulletin Signaletique 521: Sociologie, Ethnologie. v. 23-47, 1969-93. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
See above.

Reviews in Anthropology. V. 1- , February 1974- . Westport, Conn.: Redgrave, Information Resources.
Long, detailed reviews of new books.
[Museum Library Reference: Z5111 .R47]

Art

Art Index
From November 1973 separate "Book Review" section at end of volume. Arranged alphabetically by author. When searching online, use "book review.pt." to specify book reviews as a publication type. Other types of reviews (movie reviews, drama reviews, etc.) are also included.
Also in print [Fine Arts Library Reference: Z5937 .A78 (1929-1992) & Museum Reference (1929-1988)]

Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals
The Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals indexes periodicals published worldwide on archaeology, city planning, interior design, and historic preservation, as well as architecture. Updated daily, Covers 1977 to the present. When searching online, use the Advanced Search mode with "review" as a keyword.
Also in print: [Fine Arts Library Reference: Z5945 .C649 1973]

Bibliography of the History of Art. Palo Alto, Calif.: Research Libraries Information Network.
Covering European and American art from late antiquity to the present, the Bibliography of the History of Art indexes and abstracts art-related books, conference proceedings and dissertations, exhibition and dealer's catalogs, and articles from more than 2,500 periodicals from 1973 to the present. When searching online, use the Advanced Search mode with "review" as a keyword.
Continues Repertoire d'art et d'archeologie. Paris : Bibliotheque d'art et d'archeologie, 1910-1989.
Also in print - [Fine Arts Library Reference: N2 .R363]

Bulletin Signaletique 526: Art et Archeologie-Proche-Orient, Asie, Amerique. V. 24- , 1970-94. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
Book reviews are not listed separately but are indicated by the abbreviation "C.r." [compte rendu] following the bibliographic citation. Names of authors and their reviewers are listed in the Author Index. International in scope. Author and subject indexes cumulated annually. Supercedes in part Bulletin Signaletique 521: Sociologie, ethnologie, prehistoire, et archeologie.
[Museum Reference: Z5132 .B85]
Continued by FRANCIS.

Education

Bulletin Signaletique 520: Sciences de l'Education. v. 23-47, 1969-. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
Book reviews are not listed separately but are indicated by the abbreviation "C.r." [compte rendu] following the bibliographic citation. Names of authors and their reviewers may be found in the Author Index. International in scope. Author and subject indexes cumulated annually.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: Z5813 .B84]
Continued by FRANCIS.

Education Index. V. 1- , 1929- . N.Y.: Wilson.
From July 1975 separate "Book Reviews" section at end of volume. Arranged alphabetically by author. Before 1959 use the subject heading, "Book Reviews."
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: L11 .E384]

Education Index
Online access to Education Index (above) from 1983 forwward. Includes references to books reviews in the journals indexed. Allows for a publication type limit to book reviews via a pull-down menu.

Film Studies

Film Literature Index. V. 1- , 1973- . Albany: Filmdex.
See under "Book Reviews."
[Annenberg Library: Film Indexes]

History

America: History and Life.
Since 1974, Section "B" of the print version cites book reviews in scholarly journals. Arranged alphabetically by author. General subject and author indexes may also be used to identify entries in section B. To find reviews on the web version, enter r* in the Document Type field.
Also in print [Van Pelt Library Reference: E171 .A44], 1964 - present.

JSTOR.
JSTOR specializes in making available the back issues of journals in a wide variety of humanities and social science disciplines. Issues are available both as images and as text, making searching possible both within each title and across the whole database.

Periodicals Contents Index.
Indexes hundreds of periodicals in the humanities and social sciences, from their first issues to about 1995. The scope is international, including journals in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and other Western languages. To locate book reviews in PCI, select the "Book reviews only" option on the search screen.

19th Century Masterfile
Provides indexing to nineteenth century periodicals, books, newspapers, and government documents. The main index is Poole's Index to Periodical Literature (1802-1906), which includes date and title information not available in the print version. Poole's Plus also includes Stead's Index to Periodicals (1890-1902).

EBSCO Megafile.
A combined index of EBSCO's Academic Search Premier and Masterfile Premier. Indexes both scholarly journals and popular periodicals. Strong from 1990s forward, although many titles are indexed back further. To limit to book reviews, click on the Refine Search table and select the publication type Book Reviews. When in the Megafile, you will need to do this for both indexes.

C.R.I.S. : The Combined Retrospective Index Set to Journals in History, 1838-1974. Executive editor, Annadel N. Wile, assistant editor, Deborah Purcell ; with an introd. and user's guide by Evan I. Farber. Washington : Carrollton Press, 1977-1978.
Indexes over 500 journals in history, political science, and sociology. Arranged by topic, keyword and author indexes.
[Van Pelt Library Reference: D1 .C18]

Brewster, John W. Index to Book Reviews in Historical Periodicals. 1973-77. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow.
Arranged alphabetically by author with title index. Cites reviews in nearly 100 scholarly journals. Includes some foreign-language books if reviews are in English.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: D1 .B74]

Reviews in American History. V. 1- , March 1973- . Westport, Conn.: Redgrave Information Resources.
Annual author, title, reviewer index. Critical essays review texts, teaching materials, and reports.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: Z1236 .R47]
Reviews in American History from Project Muse. Reviews in American History from JSTOR.

History of Science

Bulletin Signaletique 522: Histoire des Sciences et des Techniques. V. 23-47,1969-93. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
Books reviewed are not listed separately but are indicated by the abbreviation "C.r." [compte rendu] following the bibliographic citation. Names of authors and their reviewers are listed in the Author Index. International in scope. Subject and author indexes cumulated annually.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: Q124.6 .B855]
Continued by FRANCIS.

ISIS Cumulative Bibliography: A Bibliography of the History of Science Formed from ISIS Critical Bibliographies 1-90, 1913-1965. London: Mansell, 1971.
ISIS Cumulative Bibliography: A Bibliography of the History of Science Formed from ISIS Critical Bibliographies 91-100, 1965 through 1975. London: Mansell, 1980.
ISIS Cumulative Bibliography: A Bibliography of the History of Science Formed from ISIS Critical Bibliographies 101-110, 1976 through 1985. Boston, 1989.
Frequently notes book reviews.
[Van Pelt Library Reference: Q125 .I85]
Also available: RLIN History of Science, Technology, and Medicine (HST) file.

History of Science,Technology, and Medicine (HST).
Bibliography for the history of science and technology. HST includes citations to journal articles from over 600 journals, conference proceedings, books, book reviews, and dissertations.

Language and Literature

Bulletin Signaletique 523: Histoire et Science de la Litterature, Arts du Spectacle. v. 23-47, 1969-93. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
Book reviews are not listed separately but are indicated by the abbreviation "C.r." [compte rendu] following the bibliographic citation. Names of authors and their reviewers are listed in the Author Index. International in scope. Subject and author indexes cumulated annually.
[Van Pelt Library Stacvks: Z6513 .B82]
Continued by: FRANCIS

Bulletin Signaletique 524: Sciences du Language V. 23-46, 1969-92. Paris: Centre du documentation du CNRS.
See above.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: P2 .B84]

Eichelberger, Clayton L. A Guide to Critical Reviews of United States Fiction, 1870-1910. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow, 1971- . Library has volumes 1-2.
Arranged alphabetically by author. Separate title index. Lists reviews of American books in U.S., Canadian, and British periodicals.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: Z1225 .E35]

Hall, Herbert W. Science Fiction Book Review Index, 1923-1973. Detroit: Gale, 1975.
Hall, Herbert W. Science Fiction Book Review Index, 1974-1979. Detroit: Gale, 1981.
Hall, Herbert W. Science Fiction Book Review Index, 1980-1984. Detroit: Gale, 1985.
Provides access to science fiction and fantasy book reviews published in over 230 science fiction periodicals. Arranged alphabetically by author, with books listed alphabetically by title under author's name. Codes used for magazines indexed. Includes title index.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: PN3433.8 .H35]

Linguistic Bibliography = Bibliographie Linguistique. 1939-. The Hague, Boston: M. Nijhoff.
Review references follow entries for books reviewed and are indicated by vertical slash. Includes author index.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: P121 .B425]

Literary Writings in America: A Bibliography. Millwood, NY : KTO Press, 1977. 8 volumes.
Covers American literature written between 1850 and 1940. Sources include over 2000 volumes of magazines, over 500 volumes of literary history and criticism, and more than 100 bibliographies. "All book reviews have been listed under the name of the reviewers ... and under the name of the author of the book reviewed." This is an excellent source for 19th-century book reviews.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: PS88 .L53]

Language and Language Behavior Abstracts La Jolla, Calif.
Citations of book reviews from 2,000+ serials.
Also in print [Van Pelt Library Stacks: P1 L15], 1967-1984.

LLBA (Linguistics and Language Behavior Abstracts). Norwood, Mass.
Covers 1973-. Select Index button, choose Document Type, select Book-Review to separate out all book review. You may also add "dt=brv" to a search statement. For example:
Arabic and (dt="brv")

Reiman, Donald H. The Romantics Reviewed: Contemporary Reviews of British Romantic Writers. New York : Garland, 1972. 3 v. in 9.
Contains the texts of all contemporary British periodical reviews of the first editions [from 1793 -1824] of the works by Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley, and Keats. Also included are reviews of other important writers such as Leigh Hunt, Robert Southey, and William Godwin. Although this index primarily covers reviews of poetry, reviews of books such as Mary Wollenstonecraft Shelley's Frankenstein are included.
[Van Pelt Library: PR590 .R43]

Ward, William Smith. Literary Reviews in British Periodicals, 1789-1797: A Bibliography. New York : Garland, 1979.
Reviews are listed by the author of the work reviewed, with anonymous works entered by title under the heading "Anonymous." Supplements the above.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: PR442 .W34]

Ward, William Smith. Literary Reviews in British Periodicals, 1798-1820: A Bibliography. New York : Garland, 1972. 2 vols.
Indexes reviews to literary works from British periodicals and two newspapers. Arranged alphabetically by author, then chronologically by publication date of work under review.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: PR442 .W343]

Ward, William Smith. Literary Reviews in British Periodicals, 1821-1826: A Bibliography. New York : Garland, 1977.
Continues the above.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: PR453 .W37]

Music

Music Index Online.
Online covers 1979 to the present. Add book review to search.

Music Index. 1949-. Detroit: Information Service.
Use subject heading "Book Reviews."
[Van Pelt Library Marian Anderson Music Study Center: ML118 .M84], 1949-present.

RILM Abstracts of Music Literature.
Abbreviations appear below abstract number to indicate reviews [e.g. rb=review of book, rc=review of a volume of collected essays]. These same abbreviations are also shown following abstract numbers in the annual author-subject index. Book reviews may be listed under the subject heading, "Criticism," names of authors, and names of reviewers. When searching online, use "review" in your keyword search, e.g. "mozart and review."
Also in print - [Van Pelt Library Marian Anderson Music Study Center: ML1 .M22] v.1 (1967)-31 (1997). Flushing, N.Y. Quarterly.

Philosophy

Philosopher's Index.
Covers 1940 - present. The words review and book review appear inconsistently in these records; search under book author and keywords in the book title. The print version of Philosopher's Index has a separate "Book Reviews Section" at end of each volume since 1970.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: B1 .P456]

Bulletin Signaletique 519: Philosophie. V. 10-47, 1956-93. Paris: Centre de documentation du CNRS.
Book reviews are not listed separately but are indicated by the abbreviation "C.r." [compte rendu] following the bibliographic citation. Names of authors and their reviewers are listed in the Author Index. International in scope. Author and subject indexes cumulated annually. Supercedes in part Bulletin Signaletique 519: Philosophie, sciences religieuses.
[Van Pelt Library: B2 .B855]
Continued by FRANCIS.

Political Science

ABC POL SCI: Advanced Bibliography of Contents: Political Science and Government. V.1-27, March 1969-95. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio.
Since 1979, use heading, "Book Review," in subject index. To find reviews on the CD-ROM, enter "book review" in the Descriptor field.
[Van Pelt Library: Z7161 .A214], 1969-1995
[Van Pelt Library Reference: Moelis Area: JA1 .A223], v.16/31 (1984/1999:fall).

Review of Politics. v. 1- , 1939- . Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame.
Each issue includes a section of book reviews. No index. Indexed in Social Sciences Citation Index, Social Sciences Index, and ABC Pol Sci.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: JA1 .R4]

C.R.I.S. : The Combined Retrospective Index Set to Journals in History, 1838-1974. Executive editor, Annadel N. Wile, assistant editor, Deborah Purcell ; with an introduction and user's guide by Evan I. Farber. Washington : Carrollton Press, 1977-1978.
Indexes over 500 journals in history, political science, and sociology. Arranged by topic, keyword and author indexes.
[Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: D1 .C18]

Psychology

Contemporary Psychology. V. 1-, January 1956-. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.
Annual author and reviewer index.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: BF1 .C53 & Current Periodicals]

Mental Health Book Review Index. V. 1-17, 1956-1972. N.Y.
Arranged alphabetically by author. Indexes book reviews in English language journals. Includes psychology, social work, criminology and education. Continued by Chicorel Index to Mental Health Book Reviews.
[Vna Pelt Library Stacks: Z6664 .N5 M49]

Chicorel Index to Mental Health Book Reviews. 1976-78. N.Y.: Chicorel.
Arranged by title, with author, editor and subject indexes. Cites reviews in professional journals. Continues Mental Health Book Review Index.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: RA790 .A1 C454]

Sociology

Contemporary Sociology. V. 1- , January 1972. Albany, N.Y.: American Sociological Association.
Annual author index of books reviews.
[Van Pelt Library Stacks: HM1 .C65 & Current Periodicals]

Sociological Abstracts.
Covers 1963 to the present. To find book reviews on the online version of Sociological Abstracts, use the publication type "book review" and the title of the book, e.g. book review.pt. and keyword.ti.
Also in print - [Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks: HM1 .S67], 1952 - present.
Since 1979 each volume includes "International Review of Publications in Sociology."

Send mail concerning this page to Patty Lynn at: lynn@pobox.upenn.edu

*