To learn more about accessing books (borrowing, delivery, returning, fines) during this time we are closed, see the box on the homepage of this guide. Or, send me an email (erin.hvizdak@wsu.edu).
Tips for finding books in Search It, the WSU Libraries' catalog.
Use BOOLEAN operators to refine your searches.
Further:
Subject Headings:
Once you find one or two great books for using your keywords, begin to look at the subject headings that were applied to that book. These can be found by clicking on the book's title in Search It and scrolling down the full record. NOTE: Not every book will have subject headings, and some may be more extensive than others (so, do not rely on subject headings, but use it in combination with keywords). Clicking on that subject heading will bring you to a list of all of the results that also have that subject heading applied. For example:
You can also add keywords to your subject headings, in advanced search. So, if you search United States--Territorial Expansion as a subject heading, you could add racism, gender, medicine, Utah (or any state/region) as your keywords - whatever keywords fit your more specific topic.
For more information on monographs versus edited volumes versus other types of resources, see pages 51-54 in The Information Literate Historian.
Some things to look for when determining if a book is a history monograph:
You will also want to look for the following:
If you see the following statement underneath a book in the catalog rather than "Holland/Terrell Stacks," this means that the book is available electronically via our HathiTrust Emergency Temporary Access system. This program is in effect while the library is closed and provides immediate electronic access to a number of books in our catalog. For information on how to "check out" this type of electronic book, click on the link below.