How to write a bibliography

A bibliography is a list of books and other sources that have been used in your research. There are many different ways to write a bibliography. For instance:

Book Citations

l A book with one author

Lavender, David. Snowbound:The Tragic Story of the Donner Party. New York:Holiday House, 1996.

The author is listed, last name first. The title is underlined. The city where the book is published is listed followed by a colon and the name of the publisher is followed by a comma.  The year the book was published (copyright date) is then followed by a period.  Be sure to indent five spaces if citation is longer than one line.

l A book with two authors

Lurie, Jon and Jimmy Clark. Fundamental Snowboarding. New York:Lerner, 1996.

l A book that only has an editor

Ehrlich, Amy, ed. When I Was Your Age:Stories About Growing Up.Cambridge, Mass.: Candlewick Press, 1996.

If the city of publication is unfamiliar, the name of the state or country is listed as well.

l A book without an author or editor

Mobil Travel Guide, Northeast. New York:Fodor’s Travel Publications, 1997.

Encyclopedias and Other Reference Books

An encyclopedia article may or may not have an author. The author’s name can be found at the end of the article. An article that has an author is called a “signed article.”

l Signed articles

Ribera, Feliciano.“Chavez, Cesar.” World Book Encyclopedia. 2002. Volume 2.

The article title is placed after the author’s name and in quotation marks.

l Unsigned articles

“Confucious.” New Book of Knowledge. 2001. Volume 3.

If there is no author, the article title is listed first in quotation marks.  

Magazines and Newspapers

Magazines and newspapers are good sources for locating current information.  When citing magazines and newspapers (sometimes called periodicals), use the following formats.  Periodicals may or may not have an author.

l Signed articles

Taylor, Phil. “Center of the Storm.” Sports Illustrated. 15 December 1997. 62-67.

The author’s name is listed first, the name of article next (in quotations), then the title of the magazine or newspaper, the date of publication and the page numbers.

l Unsigned articles

“Iraq Not Cooperating With Inspectors.” New York Times. 29 January 2003. Section 1, page 4.
  

CD-ROM Programs

 “Maya Angelou.”  Encarta 2003.  Microsoft Corp.  Washington, D.C.

Internet Sources

Internet articles may or may not have an author. 

l Signed Internet article

Smith, Joe. The Amazing world of Animals. 22 February 2004. [http://www.amazinganimals.com].

l Unsigned Internet article

The Animal Kingdom. 22 February 2004. [http://www.kidport.com].  

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