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English Literature

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  • Pratt logoAvailable at E.J. Pratt Library
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This list is highly selective. For more subject-specific, genre-specific, title-specific, or author-specific resources, see a staff member at the reference desk for assistance. In many cases, reference works with similar topics are shelved in the same area and this list can be used as a guide to orient yourself to the arrangement of English literature reference sources in the collection. Moreover, several reference works will often exist for a particular topic (e.g., American literature) where only one is listed here.

See also:

show titles only

Guides to Reference Sources

A Research Guide for Undergraduate Students: English and American Literature Baker, Nancy L. & Nancy Huling. 5th ed. New York: Modern Language Association of America. A guide to introduce undergraduate English literature students to library research. Explains the use of various library tools, including indexes, dictionaries, bibliographies, concordances, and literary encyclopedias.
PR 56 .B34 2000 Reference
A Reference Guide for English Studies Marcuse, Michael J. Berkeley: U of California Press. Current through 1985, this selective guide provides lists of reference works useful to particular areas of English studies. Individual sections, such as medieval literature, restoration literature, nineteenth century literature, etc., list guides and reviews of research, bibliographies, and other reference works. Most entries are annotated. Person, title and subject indexes provide access.
PR 56 .M37 1990 Reference
Reference Works in British and American Literature Bracken, James K. 2nd ed. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited. Focuses on reference resources devoted to individual writers. Lists major bibliographies, dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks, concordances and journals devoted to individual writers.
Z 2011 .B74 1998 Reference
Literary Research Guide: an annotated listing of reference sources in English literary studies Harner, James L. 4th ed. New York: Modern Language Association of America. A selective and annotated guide to reference sources for the study of English literature (all regions). Dealing with different genres of literature, it provides listings for important bibliographies, abstracts, surveys of research, indexes, databases, catalogues, general histories, annals, chronologies, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and handbooks. The resource does not list extremely basic reference sources and is geared towards more advanced studies of English literature.
Z 2011 .H34 2002 Reference

Guides, Encyclopedias & Bibliographies

Dictionary of Literary BiographyUofT logo An extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. It is largely focused on British literature, although French and American writers are also included. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for dictionary of literary biography in the U of T catalogue.
Also available online: Literature Resource Centre
The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory & CriticismUofT logo Wonderfully cross–referenced, this online guide provides alphabetically–arranged entries to key figures, topics, concepts, and schools of thought in literary theory and criticism. All entries are signed and contain bibliographies outlining key works for further study.
Available Online
Literature Resource CenterUofT logo The foundation of the Literature Resource Center is built on the Gale Group's three hallmark author databases: Contemporary Authors Online, offering biographical coverage of more than 100,000 writers; Contemporary Literary Criticism Select, featuring entries on all authors appearing in CLC since vol. 95 of the print series and complete profiles of 266 most studied authors from editions prior to vol. 95; and Dictionary of Literary Biography Online, containing more than 10,000 biocritical essays on authors and their works written by academic scholars.
Available Online
MagillonLiterature Plus Source for reviewed critical analyses and brief plot summaries of the most studied works in the history of literature. Includes the complete contents of 31 sets of reference books, including Masterplots and Masterplots II titles; the Cyclopedia of World Authors; the Cyclopedia of Literary Characters; and 10 years of Magill's Literary Annuals and Magill Book Reviews.
Available Online
Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary TermsUofT logo A online resource that allows quick look–ups of commonly used literary terms.
Available Online
Twayne's Authors Series UofT logo The Twayne Authors Series offers criticism by scholars on hundreds of years of literature—from Aristophanes to Bharati Mukherjee. It provides critical introductions to the lives and works of writers, to the history and influence of literary movements, or the development of literary genres. Primarily devoted to critical interpretation and discussion of authors' works, these studies take account of major literary trends and important contributions to scholarship and criticism, and provide new critical insights and original points of view. Each treatment of an author averages from 175 to 200 pages in length.
Available Online
A Dictionary of Literary Symbols Ferber, Michael. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press. Explains symbols frequently appearing in Western literature, giving a history of their use and the contexts in which they frequently appear. Also offers guidance on how to research symbols not included in this dictionary.
PN 56 .S9 F47 1999 Reference
Encyclopedia of World Literature in the 20th Century 3rd ed. Ed. Steven R. Serafin. Farmington Hills, MI: St. James Press. Entries on authors containing biographical information, critical assessment, a listing of their works and a bibliography of works for further reading. Entries for national literatures provide information on different genres within these traditions as well as suggested further readings. Note that this work also contains references to non–English literatures.
PN 771 .E5 1999 Vols. 1–4 Reference
The Continuum Encyclopedia of British Literature Ed. Steven R. Serafin and Valerie Grosvenor Myer. New York: Continuum. Short entries on major figures, genres and concepts. Some entries contain bibliographies.
PR 19 .C66 2003 Reference
British and Irish Literature and Its Times: Celtic Migrations to the Reform Bill (Beginnings–1830s) Ed. Joyce Moss. Detroit: Gale Group. These reference works cover key literary works written during their time periods, placing them within their historical, social, psychological and economic contexts in order to draw comparisons between literary and historical realities. Entries are lengthy and bibliographies for further reading are provided.
PR 25 .B75 2001 Reference
British and Irish Literature and Its Times: the Victoria Era to the Present (1837–) Ed. Joyce Moss. Detroit: Gale Group. These reference works cover key literary works written during their time periods, placing them within their historical, social, psychological and economic contexts in order to draw comparisons between literary and historical realities. Entries are lengthy and bibliographies for further reading are provided.
PR 25 .B76 2001 Reference
British Writers Ed. Ian Scott–Kilvert. New York: Scribner. Chronologically covers writers from the 14th century to the present day. Short essay–length entries provide a short biography of the subject, survey of subject's principle writings, assessment of work as a whole and bibliographies of suggested further reading.
PR 85 .B688 Vols. 1–8 + Supplements Reference
Encyclopedia of Literature and Criticism Eds. Martin Coyle et al. Detroit: Gale Research. Essay–length entries covering the structure of critical debate surrounding texts. Work is divided into major sections (each containing several essays) addressing issues such as various periods in English literature (e.g., medieval, renaissance, postmodernism), poetry (e.g. epic & romance, Victorian, lyric, contemporary American), drama (e.g. tragedy, comedy, theories of modern drama, feminist theatre), the novel (e.g., historical, feminine fictions, realism, formalism), critical traditions (e.g., biblical hermeneutics, neo–classical, Marxist, new historicism), various aspects relating to production and reception of literature, contexts (e.g., literature and the Bible, literature and music, aestheticism), and perspectives (e.g. African literature in English, African–American tradition, Indian literature in English). Each essay contains works cited and a list of suggestions for further reading.
PR 85 .E49 1991 Reference
Reader's Guide to Literature in English Ed. Mark Hawkins–Dady. London; Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. Provides descriptions and evaluations of critical writings on a range of topics and writers in the literature of the British Isles, the United States, and other major English–speaking traditions. Covers national traditions and periods (e.g., Canadian Literature, Australian Literature), genres and idioms (e.g., Travel Literature, The Sonnet), literary theory (e.g., Deconstruction), cultural contexts (e.g., Film and Literature), writing by minorities (e.g. Native American Literature), artistic schools and movements (e.g. Beat Generation) and entries on individual writers.
PR 85 .R42 1996 Reference
The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English New ed Ed. Ian Ousby. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press. Approximately 4500 entries providing information on American, British, Canadian, Irish, Australian, New Zealand, African, Caribbean and Indian literature. Includes biographical information, concepts, genres and movements.
PR 85 .C29 1993 Reference
Reference Guide to English Literature Ed. D.L. Kirkpatrick. Chicago: St. James Press. Short entries on writers from Britain, Ireland, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and from English–speaking Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. Each entry contains a complete list of writer's published works, a selected list of bibliographies and critical studies on the writers, and a short signed critical essay.
PR 106 .S28 1991 Reference
Nineteenth–Century British Women Writers: A Bio–Bibliographical Critical Sourcebook Ed. Abigail Burnham Bloom. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. Entries, varying substantially in length, contain biographical information, an overview of major works by, and themes of, the author, their critical reception, a bibliography of selected published works by the author, and a bibliography containing suggestions for further reading.
PR 115 .N54 2000 Reference
Modern British Women Writers: An A–Z Guide Ed. Vicki K. Janik and Del Ivan Janik. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press. More of an A–Y guide (the last entry is for E.H. Young), this work provides essay–length entries on British women writers working in the 20th century. All entries provide background biographical information, a survey of critical analysis of the writer, and a bibliography of works cited and consulted, which provide clues for further reading.
PR 116 .M63 2002 Reference
Encyclopedia of British Writers, 19th and 20th Centuries Eds. Christine L. Krueger and George Stade. New York: Facts on File. The two volumes in this work provide short entries on major figures in 19th and 20th century British literature. Most entries contain bibliographies citing major critical works on the entry's subject.
PR 451 .E55 2003 Reference
Guide to British Prose Fiction Explication: Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Beene, Lynndianne. New York : G.K. Hall; London: Prentice Hall International. Lists resources that explicate British prose writing. The resources provided include sections of books and journal articles.
PR 861 .B38 1997 Reference
Encyclopedia of Post–Colonial Literatures in English Ed. Eugene Benson and L.W. Conolly. London; New York: Routledge. 1600 entries encompass genres, major subjects (e.g., writing of the Canadian north) and critical biographies of writers. An entry is also provided on each region covered to provide context. Suggested futher reading included for many entries.
PR 9080 .A52 E6 1994 Reference
Reference Guide to American Literature 4th ed Ed. Thomas Riggs. Detroit: St. James Press. Entries on individual authors include biographical data, a bibliography including all the entrant's separately published works and a list of critical studies, and a signed critical essay on the entrant's work. Second part of the work contains short essays on key works by different entrants.
PS 21 .R43 2000 Reference
One Hundred Years of American Women Writing, 1948–1948: An Annotated Bio Bibliography Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press; Pasadena, CA: Salem Press. Entries for American women writers working between 1848 and 1948. Particularly useful for the annotated bibliographies of key critical materials published on the authors' work.
PS 151 .B37 1997 Reference
Nineteenth–Century American Women Writers: A Bio–Biographical Critical Sourcebook Ed. Denise D. Knight. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. Entries, varying substantially in length, contain biographical information, an overview of major works by, and themes of, the author, their critical reception, a bibliography of selected published works by the author, and a bibliography containing suggestions for further reading.
PS 217 .W64 N56 1997 Reference
The Facts on File Companion to the American Novel Eds. Abby H. P. Werlock and James P. Werlock. Original essays on 500 novels and biographical overviews of 450 authors who have won critical acclaim and major literary awards iterary.
PS371 .F33 2006 Reference (3 volumes)
Annual Bibliography of English Language and LiteratureUofT logo Cambridge. An annual bibliography listing books and articles published on various aspects of English language and literature in a particular year. For literature, more recent volumes contain sections for particular time periods (e.g., nineteenth century), within which appear subsections dealing with various literary forms and works about particular authors.
Z 2011 .M69 Vols. 1 (1921)– Reference
This bibliography is also searchable online
The New Cambridge Bibliogaphy of English Literature 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge UP.
Vol. 1: 600–1660 (Ed. George Watson)
Vol. 2: 1660–1800 (Ed. George Watson)
Vol. 3: 1800–1900 (Ed. George Watson); also have 3rd ed. (Z 2011N45 1999 v.4; Ed. Joanne Shattock)
Vol. 4: 1900–1950 (Ed. I.R. Willison)
Vol. 5: Index Although a bit dated (published between 1969 and 1975), this work is a good guide to literature published by and about authors within the field of English studies. The bibliography is restricted to the literature of the British Isles. For volume 3, see the 3rd ed. (1999) for more contemporary coverage. Access to the series is provided by excellent tables of contents for each volume and a detailed index (volume 5).
Z 2011 .N45 Vols. 1–5 Reference

Literary Theory & Terminology

A Handbook to Literature Harmon, William & C. Hugh Holman. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Entries provided for a broad number of concepts, terms, movements and genres in English literature. Entries are cross–referenced and include citations to important works on the topic.
PN 41 .H6 1996 Reference
Critical Survey of Literary Theory Ed. Frank N. Magill. Pasadena, CA; Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Salem Press. Covers major literary theorists, providing lists of their principal works of criticism, short essays providing overviews of their work, and bibliographies of works that address their theories.
PN 45 .C74 1987 vols. 1–4 Reference
Critical Terms for Literary Study 2nd ed. Eds. Frank Lentricchia & Thomas McLaughlin. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Twenty–eight essays providing an introduction to the work of literary theory covering common literary concepts.
PN 81 .C6 1995 Stacks
Encyclopedia of Literary Critics and Criticism Ed. Chris Murray. London; Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn. Essay–length entries (374) providing information on major theorists' lives, their influence, and their major works. Major movements and concepts also have entires. Further reading lists accompany entries.
PN 86 .E63 1999 vols. 1–2 Reference
Dictionary of Literary Devices Dupriez, Bernard. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Approximately 2000 entries providing definitions and descriptions for terminology frequently used in literary discourse. The entries are frequently enhanced by the use of numerous examples to further clarify the meaning of the term.
PN 172 .D813 1991 Reference

Biographical Sources

See also the works listed above in General Resources, many of which contain biographical information

Dictionary of Canadian Biography A comprehensive, historical, biographical dictionary, it contains the 14 published volumes in English and French of the print version. Includes the accounts of the lives and times of the individuals who contributed to Canada's development including business people, artists, politicians, nurses, judges, doctors, soldiers, athletes and poets. The dictionary currently contains entries only for individuals who died before December 31, 1920.
Available Online
Dictionary of Literary BiographyAn extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. It is largely focused on British literature, although French and American writers are also included. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for dictionary of literary biography in the U of T catalogue.
Also available online in the Literature Resource CentreUofT logo
Oxford Dictionary of National BiographyUofT logo An illustrated biographical dictionary of people of distinction in the British Isles and its colonies from the 4th century to the year 2000. This is an entirely new edition of what was known as the DNB. It is especially strong in its inclusion of those who shaped history in the British Isles and beyond; people in public life (politics and government, the law, the church, the army and the navy), but it also offers thorough coverage of scholarship, literature, art and architecture, music, science and medicine, education and philanthropy. It includes more women than appeared in the earlier edition. The database can be searched by personal name, occupation, contributor or within the full–text of entries and the references included. The earlier edition continues to be available on CD–ROM and accessible through the public workstations at Pratt Library.
Available Online

Fiction

General

See also Useful Series

Dictionary of Literary Biography An extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. It is largely focused on British literature, although French and American writers are also included. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for dictionary of literary biography in the U of T catalogue.
Also available online in the Literature Resource Centre UofT logo
Encyclopedia of the Novel EdPaul Shellinger. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn.
PN 41 .E53 1998 Reference
Guide to British Prose Fiction Explication: Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries New York: G.KHall.
PR 861 .B38 1997 Reference
Contemporary Novelists 7th ed. Eds. Neil Schlager and Josh Lauer. Detroit: St. James Press. Entries include a biography, a complete list of separately published books, and a signed essay. In many cases, a brief personal essay by the entrant commenting on his/her work is included. Critical works on the entrant are also listed.
PN 883 .C76 2001 Reference
The Facts on File Companion to the World Novel: 1900 to the Present Michael D. Sollars ed. “(C)ollection of writings on almost 600 novelists and novels that emerged during arguably the most deamatic and transformative period in world literature.”
PN3503 .F33 2008 (2 vols.) Reference
Themes and Settings in Fiction: A Bibliography of Bibliographies Comps. Donald K. Hartman & Jerome Drost. Bibliographies and Indexes in World Literature 14. New York: Greenwood.
Z 5916 .H28 1988 Reference

Gothic, Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Encyclopedia of Science Fiction New ed. Eds. John Clute & Peter Nicholls. New York: St. Martins Press.
PN 3433.4 .E53 1993 Reference
The Encyclopedia of Fantasy Eds. John Clute & John Grant. London: Orbit.
PN 3435 .E53 1997 Reference
Gothic Literature: a Gale Critical Companion Jessica Bomarito, project editor. Detroit : Thomson/Gale, 2006.
PR408 .G68 G675 2006
Reference Guide to Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Burgess, Michael & Lisa R. Bartle. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited.
Z 5917 .S36 B87 2002 Reference
The First Gothics: Critical Guide to the English Gothic Frank, Frederick S. New York: Garland.
Z 2014 .H67 F7 1987 Reference
Through the Pale Door: A Guide to and through the American Gothic Frank, Frederick S. New York: Greenwood.
Z 1231 .G66 F7 1990 Reference
Guide to the Gothic: An Annotated Bibliography of Criticism Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press.
Z 5917 .G66 F7 1984 Reference

Mystery & Detective Fiction

See Mystery & Detective Fiction Subject Bibliography

Short Story

Reference Guide to Short Fiction 2nd ed. Ed. Thomas Riggs. Detroit: St. James Press.
PN 3373 .R36 1999 Reference
Short Story Index: Collections Indexed, 1900–1978 New York: H.W. Wilson.
Z 5917 .S5 C63 Reference
Index to Short Stories Firkins, Ina Ten EyckNew York: Wilson.
Z 5917 .S5 F5 + Supplement Reference

Drama & Theatre

See also Useful Series

Dictionary of Literary Biography An extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. It is largely focused on British literature, although French and American writers are also included. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for dictionary of literary biography in the U of T catalogue.
Also available online: Literature Resource Centre UofT logo
McGraw–Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama 2nd ed. Ed. Stanley Hochman. New York: McGraw–Hill.
PN 1625 .M3 1984 Vols. 1–5 Reference
The Cambridge Guide to Theatre Ed. Martin Banham. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press.
PN 2035 .C27 1995 Reference
The Continuum Companion to Twentieth Century Theatre Ed. Colin Chambers. London; New York: Continuum.
PN 2035 .C65 2002 Reference
The Oxford Companion to the Theatre Ed. Phyllis Hartnoll. Oxford; Toronto: Oxford University Press.
PN 2035 .O9 1983 Reference
The Encyclopedia of World Theater Ed. Martin Esslin. New York: Scribner.
PN 2035 .E52 1977 Reference
The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre Don Rubin. New York: Routledge.
PN 2189W6 1994 Reference
Ottemiller's Index to Plays in Collections: An Author and Title index to plays appearing in collections published between 1900 and 1985 Connor, Billie M. & Helene G. Mochedlover. 7th ed, rev. and enl. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press.
Z 5781 .O8 1988 Reference

Poetry

See also Useful Series

Dictionary of Literary Biography An extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. It is largely focused on British literature, although French and American writers are also included. To retrieve titles in the series in the U of T catalogue, click on the radio button “starting with“ and arrow down to series for dictionary of literary biography.
Also available online: Literature Resource CenterUofT logo
A Manual of English Meters Malof, Joseph. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
PE 1505 .M3 1970 Reference
Poetry Handbook: A Dictionary of Terms Deutsch, Babette. 4th ed. New York: Quill.
PN 44.5 .D4 2002 Stacks
The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics Eds. Alex Preminger and T.V.F. Brogan. Princeton: Princeton UP.
PN 1021 .E52 1993 Reference
The Columbia Granger's index to poetry 10th ed., completely revised, indexing anthologies published through June 3, 1993. Ed. Edith P. Hazen. New York: Columbia University Press.
PN1022 .C64 1994 Reference
Dictionary of Poetic Terms Meyers, Jack Elliot. Denton, Texas: University of North Texas Press.
PN 1042 .M93 2003 Reference
Patterns of Poetry: An Encyclopedia of Forms Williams, Miller. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press.
PN1042 .W514 1986 Reference
The Columbia History of British Poetry Ed. Carl Woodring. New York: Columbia UP.
PR 502 .C62 1994 Reference
Poetry Explication: A Checklist of Interpretation since 1925 of British and American Poems Past and Present Kuntz, Joseph M. & Nancy C. Martinez. Boston: G.K. Hall.
Z 2014 .P7 K8 1980 Reference
Guide to British Poetry Explication Boston: G.K. Hall. Vol. 1: Old–English – Medieval. (Nancy C. Martinez & Joseph G.R. Martinez) Vol. 2: Renaissance (Nancy C. Martinez & Joseph G.R. Martinez) Vol. 3: Restoration – Romantic (Nancy C. Martinez, Joseph G.R. Martinez & Erland Anderson) Vol. 4: Victorian – Contemporary (Nancy C. Martinez, Joseph G.R. Martinez & Erland Anderson)
Z 2014 .P7 M34 1991 Vols. 1–4 Reference
The Sonnet in England and America: A Bibliography of Criticism Comp. Herbert S. Donow. Westport, CT: Greenwood.
Z 2014 .S6 D66 Reference
Guide to American Poetry Explication Boston: G.K. Hall. Vol. 1: Colonial and Nineteenth–Century (James Ruppert) Vol. 2: Modern and Contemporary (John R. Leo).
Z 2131 .P7 G85 1989 Vols. 1–2 Reference
Epic and Romance Criticism: A Checklist of Interpretations Coleman, Arthur. New York: Watermill Publishers. Vol. 1: A Checklist of Interpretations, 1940–1972, of English and American Epics and Metrical Romances Vol. 2: A Checklist of Interpretations, 1940–1973, of Classical and Continental Epics and Metrical Romances.
Z 7156 .E6 C64 Vols. 1–2 Reference

Useful Series

Authors Series An extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for authors series in the U of T catalogue.
Bloom's Major Dramatists, Novelists, Poets Series cover a selection of major dramatists, novelists, and poets, with each book in series devoted to a single author. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for blooms major dramatists (or novelists or poets) in the U of T catalogue.
Cambridge Companion to... An extensive series published by Cambridge University Press. Covers a wide range of topics in single volumes (e.g., Modernism, Shakespeare Studies, British Romanticism, Renaissance Humanism, etc. as well as named authors such as Jane Austen, James Joyce or Jonathan Swift). To retrieve titles in the series, browse on title for cambridge companion to
Dictionary of Literary Biography An extensive series that provides bio–bibliographical information for authors in numerous genre–specific and time–specific categories. It is largely focused on British literature, although French and American writers are also included. To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for dictionary of literary biography in the U of T catalogue.
Also available online:
Literature Resource Centre UofT logo
MagillonLiterature Plus UofT logo Source for reviewed critical analyses and brief plot summaries of the most studied works in the history of literature. Includes the complete contents of 31 sets of reference books, including Masterplots and Masterplots II titles; the Cyclopedia of World Authors; the Cyclopedia of Literary Characters; and 10 years of Magill's Literary Annuals and Magill Book Reviews.
Available Online
New Critical Idiom Published by Routledge, this series covers literary terminology with individual volumes devoted to a particular topic (e.g., Literature, Romanticism, Gothic, Humanism, Ideology, Intertextuality, Myth, Historicism, etc.). To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for new critical idiom in the U of T catalogue.
The Oxford History of English Literature Individuals works in series cover specific genres (e.g., The Victorian Novel), specific time periodis (e.g., English literature, 1815–1832) or particular figures (e.g., Chaucer and the Fifteenth Century). To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for oxford history of english literature in the U of T catalogue.
Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms UofT logo A online resource that allows quick look–ups of commonly used literary terms..
Available Online
Reference Publication in Literature Individual volumes in series cover a number of topics from individual writers (e.g., T.S. Eliot) to different genres and national literatures (e.g., Guide to French Poetry Explication). To retrieve titles in the series, browse on series for reference publication in literature in the U of T catalogue.

Book Reviews

For more resources and guidance on finding criticism, see Find Criticism of an Author's Work and Find Journal Articles.

Book Review Digest PlusUofT logo This is a bibliographic database that cites and provides excerpts of reviews of English–language fiction and non–fiction books. An abstract of each book is provided. Journal coverage includes approximately 100 leading magazines from the United States, Canada and Great Britain. It covers 1983 to the present and the database is updated monthly. The printed volumes began in 1905.

The E.J. Pratt Library holds the print version (v. 79 (1983/84) - v. 93:n. 9 (12/1997)) of Book Review Digest. Locations are Z 1219 .B64 Reference (v. 93:n. 1 (03/1997) - v. 93:n. 9 (12/1997)) and Z1219 .B64 Storage (v. 79 (1983/84) - v. 93 (1997/98)).
Available Online
MagillOnLiterature Plus UofT logo Includes: Masterplots complete, Cyclopedia of world authors, Cyclopedia of literary characters, Magill's literary annual, Magill book reviews.
Available Online
Readers Guide to Periodical LiteratureUofT logo New York: H.W. Wilson. Primarily used as an index for finding journal articles (quickly being usurped by electronic indexes – see Periodical Indexes below), this guide can be a good source for finding reviews of books, especially where the reviews were published in the early– to mid–20th century.
AI 3 .R48 Vols. 1 (1900–04) – 21 (1957/59); vols. 30 (1970/71) – 56 (1996) Reference

Article Databases

Online Literature

Eighteenth Century Collections Online UofT logo This is a database of full–text books —150,000 English–language titles and editions — published in the eighteenth century. Eighteenth Century Collections Online includes every significant English–language and foreign–language title printed in Great Britain, along with thousands of important works from the Americas.
Available Online
Literature Online UofT logo Literature online is a fully searchable library of more than 260,000 works of English and American poetry, drama and prose plus biographies, bibliographies and key secondary sources.
Available Online

World Wide Web

Cambridge History of English and American Literature
Available Online
Literary Resources on the Net
Available Online
Mr. William Shakespeare on the Internet
Available Online
Shakespeare in Quarto The British Library has posted online 93 high-resolution copies of 21 of the earliest versions of Shakepeare's plays. The plays included were originally printed during the playwright's lifetime and include many lines and passages that are different from those found inthe First Folio editions, which were not printed until after Shakespeare's death. The copies available online permit easy access to works that are believed to be closer to the original text of the plays. The site includes background information, images, sound clips and tools to allow comparison of the earlier versions of the plays with the more common later versions, to see how the text has changed.
Available Online
Voice of the Shuttle: Web Page for English Literature
Available Online

compiled by: Adam taves, Lisa Sherlock | updated: September 2011