HIST 4950: Historiography and Research Writing

Find Books with Quick Search

Quick Search will find both ebooks and books available through the University Library.

Searches using the box above are filtered to show only books but there are more filters you can apply to narrow down your results on the right side of the page.

Getting books in the library

Finding it yourself

Once you've identified a library item you want to use, there are a few steps to follow to get your hands on it.

1. Check the item's status to make sure it's available.
2. Verify which collection the item is in (General Collection, Audiovisual, Storage, etc). This tells you where in Parks (or out of Parks) you'll find the item.
3. Make note of the item's call number (e.g. PN6727.A94 S87x 1996). You'll need this to find your book on the shelf.
4. Click Map It to view a map of where the item is in the building.

Then just go to the indicated floor (or tier) and find your book on the shelf. Just follow the signs on the shelves until you find the range that includes your item's call number, then skim the shelves in that row until you arrive at the one you want.

Call numbers group items by topic, so it may be worth taking time to skim through other items shelved near the one you were first interested in. There may be other relevant books nearby!

Request it

If time isn't a pressing issue, you can opt to have Library staff locate the item and hold it for you at the Main Desk. For items that can be requested, when you open the item record in Quick Search, you'll see a box where you can sign in to request materials, save searches, etc.

Use the link in this box to sign in with your net ID (first part of your @iastate.edu email) and password. Once you've done that, you can request the item using the link that appears on the page.

The last step is to choose your pickup location (this is most likely to be Parks) and click request. You'll be notified when the item is ready for pickup, and all you have to do is stop at the Main Desk with your ISU Card to check it out.

Need a book the library doesn't have? 

Use InterLibrary Loan (ILL) to order a book from another library. It's free but it does take a couple of days for the book to arrive.

1. Log into Illiad (ISU Library’s ILL system) with your net-ID and password.
2. In the left menu, click Book (or article, or book chapter, depending on what you want) under the New Request menu.
3. Fill out as much of the form as possible. If you're working from a citation, you should be able to input most of the information we'll need to find the book for you. 
4. Click Submit Request to complete the process. You'll get an email when the book is ready for pickup, usually within a week.