LibGuides: HIS301 A New Nation Research Guide: Encyclopedias / Dictionaries

How are encyclopedias and dictionaries useful?

They are great places to locate:

Credo Reference This link opens in a new window
Contains 270+ reference titles on virtually every subject. Includes such titles as: Chambers Dictionary of World History, Encyclopedia of African History, Encyclopedia of American Cultural and Intellectual History, Encyclopedia of Mexico: History, Society & Culture, Encyclopedia of the American Civil War, Encyclopedia of Women Social Reformers, Late Antiquity: A Guide to the Postclassical World, New Encyclopedia of the American West, and Reader's Companion to American History

Gale Virtual Reference Library This link opens in a new window
Provides access to a number of online, subject specific encyclopedias such as: American Decades, Ancient Greece and Rome, Encyclopedia of American Immigration, Encyclopedia of India, and Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture

Oxford Reference Online This link opens in a new window
Published by Oxford University Press. A fully-indexed, cross-searchable database of about 100 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works. Includes such titles as: Dictionary of World History, Encyclopedia of the Enlightenment, Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages, Oxford Companion to United States History, Oxford Companion to World War II, Oxford Dictionary of the Middle Ages, Oxford Dictionary of the Renaissance, Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas in the United States, and Oxford Encyclopedia of the Reformation

Britannica Online This link opens in a new window
Online version of the well-known and respected encyclopedia. Browse by categories such as "Subjects", "Biographies", or "Quotations"; or search by keyword.

American Women Writers
Call Number: BU Library Reference Collection 803.9735 A512w Vol. 1-5
American Writers Classics
Call Number: BU Library Reference Collection 809.073A51294 2003 Vol. 1
Oxford Companion to American Literature
Call Number: BU Library Reference Collection 810.2 H325 6th

African-American Writers: A Dictionary
A timely survey of an important sector of American letters, African American Writers examines a multitude of black cultural leaders from the 18th century to the present.
American Civil War Writings (In Encyclopedia of Life Writing: Autobiographical and Biographical Forms)

American Poets
Profiles major American poets, including analyses of their significant individual poems or collections
American Women Writers: A Critical Reference Guide from Colonial Times to the Present
Provides coverage on the best-known American women writers spanning from colonial days to the present, including biography, criticism, and bibliography for each; also includes lesser-known writers whose work is found in journals, letters, stories, and even hymns
Chronology of American Literature
An authoritative reference and an ideal browser's guide, this book outlines the indispensable information in America's rich literary past - from major publications to lesser-known gems - while also identifying larger trends along the literary timeline.
Encyclopedia of African-American Writing
Covers the role and influence of African-American cultural leaders, from all walks of life, from the 17th century to the present.

Oxford Companion to American Literature
Lists over 2,000 biographical profiles of important American authors (with information regarding their style, subjects, and major works) and influential foreign writers as well as other figures who have been important in the nation's social and cultural history. There are more than 1,100 full summaries of important American novels, stories, essays, poems (with verse form noted), plays, biographies and autobiographies, tracts, narratives, and histories.

Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms (3rd ed.)
Use for "poetry", "novel", "autobiography", etc.

Oxford Encyclopedia of American Literature
This award-winning Encyclopedia surveys the vibrant terrain of American literature in 350 essays from leading scholars, encompassing the range and depth of American literary history from the 1600s to the present day. The Encyclopedia includes essays on poets, playwrights, essayists, and novelists, as well as major works and essays on literary movements, periods, and themes.

New Literary History of America
Provides a chronological approach to significant literary pieces
Scribner Writers Online Series
Bio-critical essays on the lives and works of more than 1,400 important authors from around the world. Entries include concise essays, citations, and biographical information that places the author's work in personal and historical context.
Slave Narratives (In Africa and the Americas: Culture, Politics, and History)
Slave Narratives (In African-American Writers: A Dictionary)
Twayne's Authors Series
Devoted to literary critical interpretation and discussion. It offers in-depth critical introductions to the lives and works of major writers of the world, including close analysis of key works. It provides insightful and original commentary on the history and influence of literary movements.
United States: 19th-Century Auto/biography (In Encyclopedia of Life Writing: Autobiographical and Biographical Forms)