Introduction to Literary Context: American Short Fiction by For additional book titles not owned by NSU Libraries search the WorldCat databases. The WorldCat databases will locate items (books, dvds, and articles) from other libraries as well as items owned by the NSU Libraries.
Many systems, like databases, library catalogs online, and Google, default to the "Keyword" search, which uses "natural language" or words. This term or set of terms can appear anywhere or any field in a record, such as title, author, subject, note, etc. The meaning of the words are not considered. For example, the terms "heavy metal" could pull results related to music or related to soil content. Here are some basic tips on how to use the Keyword search.
Tip: Used the Keyword search to combine an author and keywords in a title of his or her work. For example, for information about the poem, "Mending Wall", by Robert Frost, or the fiction novel, House of the Spirits, by Isabel Allende, combine the author's last name and a keyword of the title of the work. Note: The names are not case sensitive.
Tip: Combine or group terms by enclosing them within quotation marks.
Grouping: Keyword search results are usually grouped by relevance to bring the most likely titles to the top of the list. Each group represents a similar level of relevance and results are sorted within the group by date or title. To get an ungrouped result set, use boolean operators to form a complex query.
The "Author" search locates all items written or co-authored by that author in the library's collections. From the Library home page (see the link below), click on the "Books & Media" tab at the top of the main library page and select "Author" from the drop down menu.
Tip: Enter the author's last name/family name in the search box followed by the author's first name/given name. Examples:
Tip: If the author's name is similar to another author's name, provide the middle name initial.
Tip: Some author's names and middle initials are the same. If the middle name is given use it, if not generally a quick review of the book titles will determine which author is correct.
Tip: When searching for Latin names using the Library Catalog at NSU Libraries, they can differ in the way they are searched. However, when searching through the database WorldCat (OCLC), it will search for words and will return results. Examples:
The "Subject" search uses a "controlled vocabulary" and focuses on subject terms or subject headings to define or to describe the information within the system. This type of search is targeted using specific terms or phrases that are highly relevant to the topic. It will locate all records on this subject and does not consider other fields, like the title or note fields as part of the search. This ensures the results are related and focused on the subject searched or the desired topic, which saves the user time.
Examples:
English Poetry
American Poetry
American Poetry 19th Century History and Criticism
Dickinson, Emily 1830-1886
American Literature Encyclopedias
American Literature Bio-bibliography
Short Stories American
Fiction short stories
English fiction short stories
Spanish poetry
Spanish poetry 20th century History and criticism
Short stories Spanish
dramatists, American
dramatists, English
American drama - 20th century
O'Neill, Eugene playwright
For additional information and to locate the Library of Congress subject authority headings and more, see the Library of Congress Authorities link below.
Critical Survey of Shakespeare's Sonnets by 
A Companion to American Fiction, 1865-1914 by 
The Best American Short Stories of the Century by 
The Oxford Handbook of American Drama by For a study about an author try searching for theses or dissertations that can provide in depth studies about the author, his or her life, particular bodies of work (poetry, drama, short stories, etc.).These studies provide excellent reference materials and bibliographies, which are beneficial in deepening ones search. Consider using the database WorldCat Dissertations and Theses (link below). Additionally, one can search for theses/dissertations through the worldwide web search (see the Google Scholar link below). Most of these items will not be owned by NSU Libraries and will need to be requested through Interlibrary Loan. For further information about Interlibrary Loan, see the Library Services tab in this guide.
