Understanding reading lists

Books

To find a book on your list in a library, search SOLO using the book's title and the name of the author or editor.  

Here is an example reference for a book:

Smith, R., Money & Power (London: Routledge, 2012)

The author's name is R. Smith. The book title is Money & Power. The book was published in London by the publisher Routledge in 2012.

Here is an example reference for a specific chapter in a book.

Jones, A. 'Chemistry' in R. Kay (ed.), Sciences (London: Routledge, 2010)

Journal articles

Here is an example reference for a journal article.

Baldwin, D., 'Power Analysis', World Politics, 31:2 (1979)

To search for a journal article, go to SOLO and choose ‘Articles’ from the dropdown list. Search using the article title and the author's surname.  

Sometimes journal titles on reading lists will be abbreviated. For example, Gen Pharmacol is the abbreviated title for the journal General Pharmacology. If you need help looking up the full title of a journal from the abbreviation, ask a librarian for assistance.

Other material

Some reading lists will have more complex references, such as law reports, music or maps. Library staff can help you find these items.

What do phrases like 'ibid' in my reading lists mean?

Reading lists, references and footnotes sometimes contain Latin phrases and/or their corresponding abbreviations. Some common abbreviations and phrases which might be unfamiliar to you are explained below.

 

An abbreviation for the Latin ‘et alii’ which means ‘and others’. This is often used when a book or article has several authors. The name of the first author is followed by ‘et al.’ so that all the other authors' names do not have to be listed.

 

 

An abbreviation for the Latin ‘ibidem’ which means ‘in the same place’. When you see the word ‘ibid.’ in a reading list, it is referring you to material in a source just mentioned. For example, it could be another chapter of a book that has just been referred to. The abbreviation ibid. always refers to the immediately preceding reference or source.

 

 

An abbreviation for the Latin ‘opere citato’ which means ‘in the work cited’. This abbreviation is often used in footnotes combined with an author name and, sometimes, a date. It is referring you to a source, the details of which have already been given in full or which you will find in the bibliography.  Whilst ibid refers to the reference that has just been mentioned, op. cit. usually refers to a reference earlier in the text or in the bibliography, not the one that has just been mentioned.  The author's name and date will help you to identify the correct source.

 

An abbreviation for the Latin ‘Loco citato’ which means ‘in the place cited’. It is used in a similar war to ibid., but refers you to the same work just cited and the same place in that work (e.g. a page number or paragraph number). If Loc. cit  is combined with an author name, it functions similarly to 'op. cit.' except that it is only used when referring to a full reference that states a specific place in a document such as a page number.

 

An abbreviation for the Latin 'sic erat scriptum' which means 'thus/such was it written'. This is often used after a quotation to show that the quotation is exact including reproducing any spelling or grammatical errors that occur in the original.