The Library has a growing collection of current and historical e-books in many disciplines. Many books are available both in print and online and some are available only in e-book format.

We do our best to keep this guide updated, but it is not an exhaustive list. If you are looking for a specific title and cannot find it here or in the online catalog, please contact the library for help.

How can I tell if an item is an e-book?

The University library has a large (and growing!) collection of e-books available for you to use. 

When browsing through a list of results, look for the book icon with the red "e", which indicates the item is an e-book.

Most commonly, e-books belong to either the UIUC Online Collection or HathiTrust eResources. Both mean that the title is available for you to read online.

How do I search for specific e-books?

 To find e-books in the Library Catalog, start at the Advanced Search page:

• Enter as much information as you know about the book, such as title or author
• Select the red "e" to find only books available online
• Select the book icon to find only physical copies of books

A search for an online copy of Moby Dick by Herman Melville might look like this:

Enter as much information as you can about the book.

Select the red "e" to search for only books available online.

Select the book icon to limit your search to books.