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Professor
Jeanne Cavelos
Library Liaison
Nancy "Sam" Urtz
Contents
Introduction
Research Basics
Selected Reference Books
Find Additional Books and
Book Chapters
Find Journal Articles
Selected Internet Resources
How to Cite Your Sources
Need More Help?
Subject Guide
English
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This is a guide to selected sources of information related to "Literature of the Fantastic" in Geisel Library. It is meant as a starting point for your research. For further research assistance, please take advantage of the reference services available to you in the Geisel Library. Stop by the Reference Desk in person or online at Ask a Librarian.
The reference librarians have created a group of Web pages named Research Help, and a tutorial called Searchpath, designed to help teach you the basics of library research and to introduce you to Geisel Library. On the Research Help pages, you will find a guide on Research Basics and a helpful guide about evaluating your Web sources, Judging What You Find. Please take advantage of these resources.
Reference books are shelved by call number in the reference stacks near the reference desk. They may not be checked out, but photocopiers are available on the lower level of the Library. Online reference books can be found in the library catalog or listed on the
E-Reference Resources page.
Use reference books to find background information on authors and literary works, as well as the themes being addressed in this course. Here are some examples of Reference Books which may offer assistance:
Encyclopedias, Handbooks, Glossaries, etc.
Classics of Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature
Ref PN3433.4 .C565 (2 vols.)
Critical Survey of Short Fiction
Ref PN3373 .C7 (7 vols.)
Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins .and other Supernatural Creatures
Ref GR549 .B74
Encyclopedia of Fantasy
Ref PN56 .F34 E53
Glossary of Contemporary Literary Theory
Ref PN44.5 .H37
Guide to Supernatural Fiction
Ref PN56.S8B57
J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia
Ref PR6039 .O32Z664 2007
Latin American Science Fiction Writers
Ref PQ7082.S34 L38
Literary Criticism Series
Contemporary Literary Criticism
Ref PN94 .C65
Nineteenth Century Literary Criticism
Ref PN761 .N56
Please note: See Vol. 24 pp 241–306 for an excellent overview of Science Fiction
literature
Twentieth Century Literary Criticism
Ref PN94 .T83
Science Fiction Encyclopedia
Ref PN3448.S45S29
St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost & Gothic Writers
Ref PN3448.S45 S246 1998
Spirits, Fairies, Gnomes and Goblins: an Encyclopedia of the Little People
Ref GR549 .R65 1996
Supernatural Fiction Writers : Contemporary Fantasy and Horror
Ref PN3435 .S96 2003 (2 vols.)
Supernatural Fiction Writers: Fantasy and Horror
Ref PN3435.S96 1985 (2 vols.)
Supernatural Literature of the World: an Encyclopedia
Ref PN56 .S8 S86 2005 (3 vols.)
Literary Criticism
American Short-Fiction Criticism and Scholarship 1959–1977
Ref PS374 .S5 W4
Anatomy of Wonder: A Critical Guide to Science Fiction
Ref PN3433.5 .A5
Critical Survey of Long Fiction
Ref PN3451 .C7 (8 vols.)
Short Fiction Criticism
Ref PR829 .T58
Science Fiction Writers: Critical Studies
Ref PS374.S35 S36 1999
Science Fiction and Fantasy Reference Index
Ref PN3433.5 .S34 (4 vols.)
Please note: For online access, consult Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Database.
Twentieth-Century Short Story Explication
Ref PN3374 .W33
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Some of the best material for your research will be found in books and book chapters from the General Collection of the Geisel Library. Access is available through the Catalog. It is usually not necessary to read a whole book for the information you are looking for. A chapter or two is probably all you'll need!
Subject Headings (Library of Congress) are very helpful for research in the area of literary genres. Use these headings as SUBJECT searches in the Catalog:
- Fairies — Fiction
- Fairy Tales
- Fantasy Fiction
- Fantasy Literature
- Folklore
- Horror Tales
- LeGuin, Ursula — Criticism (or use any author as a subject; last name first)
- Myth in Literature
- Science Fiction
- Science Fiction Films
- Supernatural in Literature
Try Keyword Searching in both the library Catalog (for Books) and the journal article databases listed below. Keyword searching can return very effective results if you employ the following search tips:
- Connect your search words and phrases with Boolean operators. Example: journey AND science fiction
- When combining Boolean operators in one search statement, use parentheses to show the order in which relationships should be considered. Example: (journey OR epic OR odyssey) AND (science fiction OR fantasy fiction)
- Use truncation symbols (usually an asterisk) to search for stem words and their variants. For example, fantas* will return results with the words fantasy and fantastic.
- Here are some additional examples:
- (journey OR epic OR odyssey) AND (science fiction OR fantas* fiction)
- (fiction or literature) and "other world*"
- "perilous realm"
- "other worlds" and "science fiction"
- (insanity or madness) and horror and (literature or fiction)
Here are some examples of books found by using Subject and Keyword searches; there are many others:
- Asimov On Science Fiction PN3433.5 .A8
- Fantastic Odysseys: Selected Essays PN56 .F34 I58 2003
- Focus on the Science Fiction Film PN1995.9 .S26J6
- Science Fiction: a Collection of Critical Essays PN3433.8 .S27 1976
- Science Fiction:History, Science, Vision PN3433.8 .S266 1977
- Science Fiction Today and Tomorrow PN3433.5 .B74 1974
- Supernatural Horror in Literature PN3435 .L64 1973
- Uses of Enchantment: the Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales GR550 .B47
- Wand in the Word: Conversations with Writers of Fantasy PS 374 .F27 W36 2006
When you locate a useful book or book chapter, look to the right and left of it on the book shelves and scan the Tables of Contents. You may find other helpful books or chapters.
To broaden your search, use a database called WorldCat. WorldCat allows you to identify relevant books owned by all other colleges and have them delivered to Geisel Library for your use. Use the subject and keyword searches as explained above.
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Below is a selection of library databases that may yield useful journal articles for your research. They are arranged in alphabetical order by title.
Try using the same keywords that you used in the book catalog as noted above. Remember to use Boolean operators and wildcards (the asterisk symbol) to improve your search.
Many of the databases on the list do not supply full-text versions of a needed article. In the results screen, if there is no full-text link readily available, click on the  icon to determine whether the journal is available in the Geisel Library or in full-text via another electronic database. If the article is not available, consider clicking on the Interlibrary Loan (ILL) link to request a copy of the article from another library. Articles requested via ILL will be delivered to your email inbox within about a week. WebBridge User Guide
Academic Search Premier
This multidisciplinary database includes articles which discuss the literature of the fantastic. Many are full-text.
JSTOR
A large collection of back issues of major journals in the both the humanities and social sciences. Coverage is generally from the beginning of publication to within 5 years of the current issue.
LexisNexis
Find Book reviews, articles and interviews. Search under General News, World News, Transcripts, and Arts.
Literature Resource Center (LRC)
The Literature Resource Center provides selected online content to literary criticism from several multi-volume print titles available in the reference area of the Geisel Library, such as Contemporary Literary Criticism, Contemporary Authors, and Twentieth Century Literary Criticism. These reference resources provide extensive author biographies and bibliographies for further reading. Please note: for an author-title index to the complete content of the 'Literary Criticism' series, please use the Gale Literary Index. User Guide.
MLA – Modern Language Association International Bibliography
Use this database for locating literary criticism of novels, poetry, plays and film. User Guide
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Searching the Internet can yield a vast amount of information, but in terms of quality and reliability, your results may be uneven at best. The ease and speed with which individuals can publish information on the web, regardless of accuracy or quality makes it imperative that when doing research on the web you know how to evaluate the information you find.
To learn more, see Judging What You Find.
If you locate books or articles on the Internet that you would like to view please check with a reference librarian to see if the items can be located in Geisel Library's print or electronic collection or through Interlibrary Loan.
Fantastic Fiction
Use Fantastic Fiction to browse titles and authors of gothic, supernatural, science fiction, and horror novels.
Literature of the Fantastic
This site offers original full text literature and a link to the Fantasy and SF Writers Workshop.
Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Database
Search Hal W. Hall's archive of more than 55,000 citations to articles, books, news items, etc., dating back to 1878. There are both quick and advanced search options.
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MLA is the citation style required in this class. The library has both print and electronic versions of MLA citation guides; or ask a Librarian for assistance.
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Ask a Librarian
WebBridge Video Tutorial (3.5 mins.; includes audio)
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