Why use books? Isn't everything online?
No! Most historians rely on detailed monographs to get in-depth information. (Pro-tip: A monograph is a book about a single topic, as opposed to a textbook or encyclopedia.)
There are some great reasons to use books and also reasons not to use them.
1. Books can give detailed information about the topic. Because they are longer than an article, they have more time to prove their main claim or thesis and give more in-depth information and research.
2. Some books are edited collections, which can give you a lot of different points of view about a single topic.
3. Some books represent seminal knowledge. In other words, we know certain things and accept them as fact because someone wrote a book (or many books) about it.
So when shouldn't you use books? Books take a long time to write and can age quickly, so if you need the most current, up-to-date information, books aren't usually the best place for this.
Search for books that have been digitized by Google. If the book is out of copyright, or the publisher has given permission, you'll be able to see a preview of the book, and in some cases the entire text. If it's in the public domain, you're free to download a PDF copy.
Find print and ebooks, other types of sources including DVDs, online videos, eJournals, print journals, and more found in the libraries (not journal articles)
Tip! When it launches into the full GIL-Find catalog, use the "Full Access Online" limiter on the side to retrieve materials available electronically.
Each enrolled student at Augusta University has an account in our catalog system. Use it to track books that you've checked out (and keep up with the due dates!) and items that you've requested from other libraries.
We can't collect every book ever written, but we have services to help connect you with books we don't have here. One is called GIL-Express, which allows you to request books to be sent from other University System of Georgia libraries to you here at AU at no cost.
Another service is called Interlibrary Loan, which allows you to request books and articles from anywhere in the world. Watch the two videos below to find out more.