How Do I Find Books?

Books are a great resource to use when searching for general information on a topic. They are useful for understanding a topic in its context and provide summaries of existing research as well as offer a historical perspective.

Books are best found using the Search feature in our Library Catalogue. 

A Library Catalogue...

• is an index to the contents of a library or group of libraries
• allows you to locate material by author, title, subject, etc.
• can include: books; journal, magazine & newspaper titles (not articles); government publications; archives; maps; databases; games; videos; other materials
• gives details (e.g., publisher, date of publication, etc.) required for bibliographies and endnotes
• may give the location, call number and status (e.g., checked out) of an item
• that is available online may be called an OPAC (Online Public Access Catalogue)
• that combines the contents of several library catalogues may be called a union catalogue
• can typically be searched by anyone, anywhere in the world, with no restrictions