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ECON 150: Find Books

What are books good for?

Every book has its time and place; when it comes to non-fiction works, here a couple varieties you may encounter:

  • Reference: Provide topic overviews, guidelines, summaries, or definitions. These could be formatted like a textbook, or they might be similar to a dictionary or encyclopedia. 
  • Research: May be written in normal chapters, or they may resemble a thematic collection of research published by different authors. The authors may be presenting empirical research they conducted themselves (hint: you'll see methods, results, conclusions...), or they may have gathered others' research to explain and analyze in bulk, similar to a literature review.

Reference texts are great choices for getting a better feel for a topic (similar to using Google or Wikipedia to get started), but they won't be as effective as research texts when it comes to writing a paper and supporting your claim, argument, statement, etc.

Note: Just because a text is not in the "Reference Collection" of the library does not mean it isn't a "reference text". Some are labeled as such (with a REF sticker), but something closer to a textbook will not likely carry this label.

Find Books and eBooks

Refer to the General Search Strategies page for brainstorming search terms. Keep your search broad to begin with (1-3 words that describe your topic). Use the SU Libraries Quick Search below (also located on the SU Libraries home page).

Print Books

Refer to the Print Book Locations details further down this page to determine where certain collections (Reference, Ready Reference, Folio Books, etc.) are located in the library.

eBooks

Most eBooks are searchable through the SU Libraries All Types or Books & eBooks search boxes, just as with our print collection. Filter results to only eBooks (on results screen, look to the left side to find Format -> Book -> eBook) on the left side of the results page to only see eBooks.

Once you find a title, click on the View eBook link and follow the prompts to view or download the eBook.

If you need help accessing/downloading an eBook, refer to this page or contact your librarian.

To find even MORE eBooks, try searching within the following two databases:

If you would prefer to browse for books on a shelf, here are some recommended call number ranges for you.

H - Social Sciences

  • HA Statistics
  • HB Economic Theory
  • HC Economic History and Conditions
  • HD Industries. Land Use. Labor
  • HE Transportation and Communications
  • HF Commerce
  • HG Finance
  • HJ Public Finance

K - Law in General

  • KF Law of the United States

T - Technology

Search for Books/eBooks

Locations of Print Books in SU Libraries

The location of books should be listed in the item record under "Find a copy in the library". Location information is listed in the first column of each table, as shown in this screenshot. Below are possible Locations associated with Salisbury University Libraries.

SU Guerrieri Academic Commons...

  • Stacks 
    • 3rd Floor. This is our general collection. Follow link to Call Number Locator Map to find exact location of a book.
  • Folio Books
    • 3rd Floor. Folio refers to oversized books that don't fit on normal shelves. Follow link to Call Number Locator Map.
  • Juvenile Books 
    • 3rd Floor. This collection contains most of our children and young adult books. Follow link to Call Number Locator Map.
  • Reference Collection (linked to library maps)
    • 1st Floor, long shelf between the IT Help Desk and the Circulation and Research Help Desks. Collection carries over into the Pit. Reference books are generally topic overviews or materials like dictionaries and encyclopedias -- something you might need to refer to but don't need to read cover-to-cover.
    • In-library use only. Please leave reference books on a table or cart when you are finished using them so we can track how often they are used.
  • Stacks Reference
    • 3rd Floor. While these books are housed in our stacks, they are reference books and are also in-library use only. Please leave them on a table or cart when you are finished using one so we can track how often they are used. Locate these books using the Call Number Locator Map just as you would a book in the General Stacks.
  • Ready Reference
    • Kept behind the Research Help Desk. Ask the person staffing the desk to borrow the item you need.
    • In-library use only. Please return to Research Help Desk when finished using.
  • Course Reserves
    • These are items set aside by faculty for a class or particular purpose. Ask for print reserves at the Circulation Desk or access e-reserves via the link above.

SU Curriculum Resource Center...

  • General
  • Items in the CRC are located in Conway Hall (TET) 226, on the northeast side of campus.

SU Nabb Research Center...

  • Main Collection
  • Maryland Special Collections
  • SU Faculty Authors Collection
  • Visit the Nabb Center on the 4th floor of GAC to access any items located in these collections. 

Borrow Books from Other Libraries

If a book is not available in SU Libraries, we can check to see if it is available through other libraries in the University System of Maryland. If not we can request it through Interlibrary Loan. You can access your account belows.