LibGuides: Book & Film Reviews: Book Reviews: Online Resources

Off Campus Access

As a student or faculty member of U of I you can access all of the library's databases, e-journals, and e-books from anywhere in the world. But, you need to first "prove" that you are affiliated with University of Illinois by either logging in with your NetID and password or by using a VPN (Virtual Private Networking).

Reviews of Scholarly Books

If you are looking for a review of a scholarly monograph in your field, it may be best to search in a subject specific database. Most databases will have an option to limit your search to reviews.

If you want to find a database related to your subject area, take a look at this list of databases by subject.

Book Recommendations

NoveList This link opens in a new window
This database, aimed at readers and librarians who provide readers’ advisory services, includes reviews (mostly from standard sources) and supporting materials, such as book discussion guides, for both adults and young readers.

Search tips: Do a quick search for an author or title, then click the tab for "Lists and Articles" to find reviews. The advanced search feature allows you to limit a search in some interesting ways, including reading level, Dewey range, and also Document Type (which includes Award Winners, Recommended reads etc).
Alternate Access Link

Want to find another novel similar to the one you just read? In addition to providing reviews, readers' advisory resources can suggest books for further reading and offer additional materials, such as discussion guides, to enhance your experience of a text.

Reader Reviews

Another source for book reviews are websites that allow users to submit reviews. You may not find published reviews or professional criticism in these sources, but they can be good sources for book recommendations, or for finding some information about a lesser-known item. These sites also offer additional functionality, such as the ability to build personal collections and connect with other readers.

Amazon

Goodreads

LibraryThing

Book Review Databases

Perhaps the easiest way to find book reviews online is to consult a database specifically dedicated to the topic. Below is a list of the book review databases that the Library subscribes to, which cover broad range of years and subject matter. Many of these resources offer full-text reviews within the database, while others provide detailed citations for further research. You can check to see if the Library has full-text (online or in print) for the review by clicking on the blue Discover button within a database.

Book Review Digest Retrospective This link opens in a new window
This database covers excerpts from and citations to reviews of adult and juvenile fiction and non-fiction for most of the twentieth century. Includes mostly citations and excerpts but has some full-text reviews. Search Tips: Using the dropdown menu, you can search by a number of ways including by author, title, publisher, journal and review author.
Alternate Access Link
Book Review Index Online This link opens in a new window
The electronic version of the print Book Review Index includes citations to reviews of books, periodicals and books-on-tape appearing in over 500 publications from the U.S., Canada, Australia and Europe. They have a wide subject area covering popular, academic and professional interest publications. Most publications, except for poetry and children's books, must be 50 pages long to be included. Like the print version, the electronic source is comprehensive and a very good starting point for finding reviews of all types of books.
Children's Literature Comprehensive Database This link opens in a new window
This database includes bibliographic records for over a million children's and YA books, enhanced with full-text book reviews and other information. Search Tips: Select the box for Review under the "Search Specific Fields" menu. Searches can also be limited by age or reading level.
Choice Reviews This link opens in a new window
This is the online version of the print magazine CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, a publication of the Association of College and Research Libraries. It provides reviews of significant books and electronic resources of interest to those in higher education. This resource accesses the entire database of CHOICE reviews published since September 1988.
Literature Criticism Online This link opens in a new window
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Provides information on well-known authors, including reviews and critical responses to their works. Includes collections such as Children's Literature Review, Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism and Poetry Criticism. Search Tips: Click on "Advanced Search" and use the dropdown menu to restrict your search to a particular series. You can also browse content by author, title or topic.

Book Reviews in Other Databases

Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new window
A scholarly, multidisciplinary database providing indexing and abstracts for over 10,000 publications, including monographs, reports, conference proceedings, and others. Also includes full-text access to over 5,000 journals. Offers coverage of many areas of academic study including: archaeology, area studies, astronomy, biology, chemistry, civil engineering, electrical engineering, ethnic & multicultural studies, food science & technology, general science, geography, geology, law, mathematics, mechanical engineering, music, physics, psychology, religion & theology, women's studies, and other fields.

To search for book reviews, select “Review” under “Publication Type“ in the Search Options
Alternate Access Link

Many of the databases that the Library subscribes to include book reviews alongside journal articles and other documents. Below is the list of some of the most useful databases for finding book reviews.

Books in Print This link opens in a new window
An index of books currently available from North American publishers. Search by author, title, subject, ISBN, keyword, publisher, etc. Entries include links to full text book reviews from selected sources, other books by the same author, and related books.
Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Nexis Uni contains a variety of resources to search for book reviews in newspapers and popular magazines. Search Tips: Click on the tab that says “All Nexis Uni” directly left of the search bar. From there, click "News," then click "Reviews" under “Article Type" Search for the name of a book or author. Option to filter your results further will be available in the left-hand toolbar on the search results page.
Literature Resource Center This link opens in a new window
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This database searches across multiple reference sources and journals related to literature, including literature for youth from the 19th century to the present. Includes full text of reviews, author biographies, and much more. Search tips: You can limit a search to “reviews & news,” “literature criticism,” and/or other kinds of information.
Periodicals Archive Online This link opens in a new window
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This database is useful for identifying reviews of older books in humanities and social science journals as well as popular periodicals covering the years 1802-2000. Search tips: You can limit to “book reviews,” but you’ll retrieve more reviews if you don’t.

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