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Reading Writing Lab

MLA Citations: Books and Parts of Books

The Standard Order

1. Author's Name
2. Title of the Book.
3. Name of the editor, translator, or compiler.
4. Edition used.
5. Number(s) of the Volume(s) used.
6. Name of the Series.
7. Place of Publication (If more than once city is listed, list only the first)
8. Name of the Publishing Company
9. Date of Publication
10. Medium of Publication*

* Previously, within the Works Cited page, the medium of publication was not required as part of the citation. However, because of the broader scope of sources available to students now, it is important to include the medium. Most of the time, you will use "Print" or "Web", but there are many others to be aware of.(Television, Radio, CD, Audiocassette, LP, Film, Videocassette, Slide Program, DVD, Sound Filmstrip, Laser Disc, Performance, Vocal Scores, Private Collection, Reading, Address, E-Mail, CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, PDF File, MP3 File, etc.)

Examples

Book by One Author

Last Name, First Name. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Steinbeck, John. Of Mice and Men. New York: Penguin Books, 1993. Print.

Book by Two or Three Authors

List them in the same order on which they appear on the book's title page. Only the first listed name is written surname first. All others are written first name first. Even if the authors have the same last name, write out both full names.

Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name. Title City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Chow, David, and Richard Spangler. Kung Fu: History, Philosophy, and Technique. Hollywood: Unique Publications, 1980. Print.

Addo, Ping Ann, Hank Willis Thomas, and Almudena Ortiz. Pieces of Cloth, Pieces of Culture: Tapa from Tonga & The Pacific Islands. Oakland: California Academy of Sciences, 2004. Print.

Book by More than Three Authors

Instead of writing each of the authors' names individually, simply list the name of the first author followed by "et al."

Last Name, First Name, et al. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Wagner, Margaret E., et al. The Library of Congress World War II Companion. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2007. Print.

Book Authored by an Organization, Business or Government

Sometimes authors are not listed individually by name. Instead, the name of an entire organization is listed on the cover. This often happens with business or government publications. For more information citing government publications, see the section on "Miscellaneous Print Sources."

Organization Name. Title. City: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Smithsonian. The Official Guide to the Smithsonian. Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Books, 2002. Print.

Eyewitness Travel Guides. China. London: DK Travel, 2005. Print.

Two or More Books by the Same Author(s)

Only list the author's name with the first entry. Afterwards, use three hyphens (---) followed by a comma.

Tan, Amy. The Hundred Secret Senses. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1995. Print. ---, The Joy Luck Club/ New York: Putnam's, 1989. Print.

An Anthology or Compilation

Follow the name of the editor, compiler, or translater with a comma and either "ed.","trans.",or "comp." depending on the role he or she played. The following examples show to cite the book as a whole. To cite individual articles within an anthology, see the next entry:

Last Name, First Name, ed. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.Last Name, First Name, comp. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium. Last Name, First Name, trans. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Adiele, Faith, and Mary Frosch, ed. Coming of Age Around the World. New York: New Press, 2007. Print.

Calkhoven, Laurie, and Ryan Herndon, comp. Guinness World Records Top 10 Fantastic Flight Records. New York: Scholastic, 2005. Print.

Articles or Essays within an Anthology or Compilation (Cross Referencing)

This is one of the most useful, time-saving features of MLA citations. When using multiple articles, essays, stories, poems, and so forth from the same book, magazine, or collection, you do not need to do a full citation for each one. Instead, you do the full citation only for the parent source and then shortened citations for each article. The example below shows how to cite essays from a collection in a book on federalism. Cross-referencing can also be used in periodicals, such as a newspaper or magazine, and on websites.

Note that all sources are still cited alphabetically, even if this means the parent source is listed last (See the example below, where John Samples is the parent source). Also note that the titles are not underlined or italicized. They should be placed between quotation marks - unless the specific work was originally published independently (as autobiographies, plays, and novels usually are).

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Last Name(s) of Parent Source Author(s) page numbers.

Kozinski, Alex, and Steven A. Engel. "Recapturing Madison's Constitution: Federalism without the Blank Check." Samples 13-24.

Pilon, Roger. "Madison's Constitutional Vision: The Legacy of Enumerated Powers." Samples, 25-41. Samples, John, ed. James Madison and the Future of Limited Government. Washington: Cato, 2002. Print.

A Book that comes in more than one Edition or Translation

Some books, especially classic books written in foreign or archaic languages, come in different versions by different editors. List the original author first, and list the editor or translator after the title of the book. If you wish to indicate the original date of publication, place the year directly after the title.

Last Name, First Name. Title. Year. Ed. First Name Last Name. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Last Name, First Name. Title. Trans. First Name Last Name. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Kalakaua, David. The Legends and Myths of Hawaii; the Fables and Folk-Lore of a Strange People, by His Hawaiian Majesty King David Kalakaua. Ed. R. M. Dagget. Rutland: C.E. Tuttle Co., 1972. Print.

Shikibu, Murasaki. The Tale of Genji. 978. Trans. Royall Tyler. New York: Viking, 2001. Print.

A Book Published in a Second or Subsequent Edition

Identify the edition by number, by name, or by year. When citing by name, use "Rev. ed." for revised edition or "Abr. ed." for abridged edition.

Last Name, First Name. Title. 2nd ed. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Last Name, First Name. Title. Rev. ed. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Last Name, First Name. Title. 2008 ed. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Behr, Edward. The Complete Book of Les Miserables. 1st U.S. ed. New York: Arcade Pub, 1989. Print.

Shawcross, William. Sideshow: Kissinger, Nixon, and the Destruction of Cambodia. Rev. ed. New York: Cooper Square Press, 1987. Print.

Klein, Rachel, et. al, ed. Fodor's Hawai'i. 2008 ed. New York: Fodor's Travel, 2008. Print.

A Multivolume Work

If you are using two or more volumes of a multivolume work, cite the total number of volumes in the work (IE: "5 vols.") This information comes after the title-- or after any editor's name or identification of editon--and before the publication information. Specific references to volume and page numbers belong in the text.

Last Name, First Name. Title. # vols. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Hiroa, Te Rangi. Arts and Crafts of Hawaii. 13 vols. Honolulu: Bishop Museum Press, 1964. Print.

A Book in a Series

List the series, not underlined or in quotation marks, after the listing or the medium of publication.

Last Name, First Name. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium. Series Name and Number.

Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2007. Print. Harry Potter Year 7.

Simpson, S. Rowton, et. al. Land Tenure and Economic Development: Problems and Policies in Papua-New Guinea and Kenya. Australia: Australian National University, 1971. Print. New Guinea Research Bulletin 40.

A Book of Scripture

Title (including version information Trans (if applicable). First Name Last Name, ed (if applicable). City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

The Holy Bible: King James Version. Salt Lake: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1979. Print.

The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Trans. Joseph Smith, Jr., Salt Lake: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1981. Print.

Good News Bible. Hong Kong: Bible Societies, 1976. Print.

Holy Qur'an. Maulana Muhammad Ali, trans. Columbus: Ahmadiyyah Anjuman Isha'at Islam, 1991. Print.

A Pamphlet

The difference between a book and a pamphlet or booklet, is that books are bound (or stapled) whereas pages of a pamphlet are separated by folds. Either way, a pamphlet is cited just like a book. Sometimes the publication information can be hard to find; closely examine the edges and creases for fine print that might list it.

Last Name, First Name. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Name of Organization. Title. City of Publisher: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

United States. Dept. of the Interior. National Park Service. Mount Rainer Official Map and Guide. Washington: GPO, 1989. Print.

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. San Bruno, CA: Krames, 2002. Print.

A Poem, Essay, or Article in a Book

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Book. Ed. First Name Last Name (if applicable). City of Publication: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Ginsberg, Allen. "The Terms in Which I Think of Reality." American's Favorite Poems. Ed. Robert Pinsky and Maggie Dietz. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2000. Print.

Googe, Barnabe. "The oftener seen, the more I lust." 100 Poems By 100 Poets. Selected by Harold Pinter, Geoffrey Godbert, and Anthony Astbury. 1st Evergreen Ed. New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1992. Print.

If it is a work translated from another language, list the word "Trans." plus the translators first name and last name after the title. Remember to italicize foreign words.

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Trans. First Name Last Name. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publishing Company, year. Medium.

Emerson, Nathaniel B. "Ka'Olelo a ke Ali'i Kane i ke Ali'i Wahine (The Prince's Words to the Princess)." Trans. Mary K. Pukui and Alfons L. Korn. The Echo of Our Song: Chants & Poems of the Hawaiians. Honolulu: University Press of Hawaii, 1973. Print.

Lunalilo, William. "Mele (Song)." Trans. Nathaniel B. Emerson. Unwritten Literature of Hawaii: The Sacred Songs of the Hula. Washington: GPO, 1909. Print.

An Entry in a Reference Book (Dictionary, Encyclopedia, etc)

"Familiar" reference books from companies such as World Book, Britannica, Oxford, or Miriam Webster, who consistently publish new editions, do not require full publication information-- only the edition and the year. More obscure reference books do require full publication information. When in doubt, it is always safest to include the full information. If citing a specific definition, follow the term with the abbreviation "Def." and the definition number/letter.

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Ref. Book. Edition. Year. Medium.

"Term." Def. number and letter. "Title of Dictionary". Edition. Year. Medium.

Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Ref. Book. Edition. Year. Medium.

"London." The New Encyclopaedia Britannica. 15th ed. 2003. Print.

"Foreigner." Def. 1b. The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. Print.

"Journey." Def. 3b. Webster's Third New International Dictionary. 2002. Print.

McLintock, A. H. ed. "Coats of Arms." An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. 1st ed. 3 vols. Wellington, NZ: R.E.

Owen, 1966. Print.

The Foreward, Introduction, or Afterword of a Book

Follow the name of the author of the book with Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword. "If the writer of the piece is different from the author of the complete work, cite the author of the piece after its title, giving the full name, in normal order, preceded by the word By. If the writer of the piece is also the author of the complete work, use only the last name after By" (emphasis added). Also list the page numbers at the end of the reference.

Last Name, First Name of the author of the complete work. Foreword. Title. By First Name Last Name. City of Publication: Publishing Company, year. page number(s). Medium.

Bosch, Adriana. Foreword. Reagan An American Story. By David McCullough. New York: TV Books, 1998. 7-9. Print.

Schwarzenegger, Arnold. Foreward. The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding. By Schwarzenegger. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999. xxi-xxxii. Print.