LibGuides: Sociology and Politics: Books and eBooks

Finding books with Library Search

This short video shows you how to use Library Search to find a book.

Finding books on the Shelf

This is an image of a person looking on the library shelves for books.

Photo credit: Sheffield Hallam University

Most books relevant to Sociology and Politics can be found in Collegiate Library . However, you may need to use books based in Adsetts Library for some modules. These can also be requested to be transferred to Collegiate for your collection.

To find the books you need search in Library Gateway using Library Search. Search for either the title of the book you need, or put some keywords into the search box. When you have found the title you want, use the shelfmark number you find in the record to locate the book in the library.

Below are some key points to help you find the book you are interested in.

Information about print books on your reading list and in Library Search will include a shelfmark
Note down the numbers eg 371.30281 and the letters eg COT
Signs on the end of each row of shelves tell you the range of shelfmarks kept on that row
Numbers are decimal, so 370.01 is before 370.1
Books with the same shelfmark number are arranged in alphabetical order by the letters eg 371.30281/BAT is before 371.30281/COU
Journals do not have shelfmarks and are organised apphabetically/A-Z.

Please ask Library staff for help with finding books or other items on the shelves. Here are some useful shelfmarks for sociology and politics.

Some useful subject numbers

Sociology and anthropology	301
Sociology - theory	301.01
Social processes	303
Social problems and welfare	361
Politics - theory	320.01
British Politics	324.941
International relations	327

Using eBooks

Reading eBooks

The Library offers access to tens of thousands of eBooks on a variety of subjects .Whilst you might not be an immediate convert to the eBook and may be thinking, ‘I don’t like reading on a screen’, there are some advantages to reading texts in this format. The eBooks at SHU guide looks at the convenience, availability, accessibility and searchability of eBooks.

Ebooks SHU - online guide

How you can use an eBook depends on terms and conditions set by the publisher. In most cases you will be able to choose between reading online and downloading the eBook for a limited period to your own device. When downloaded eBooks expire you can download them again.

Most eBooks can be read by more than one reader at a time but sometimes you may have to wait if another reader is using the book. You can search within individual eBooks, add notes and print or copy a limited number of pages from most eBooks.

How to find eBooks

Go to the Library Gateway at: https://library.shu.ac.uk
Search for your keywords in Library Search e.g sport and mental health.
To the left of your search filter your results and click on Books / eBooks and Online.
Choose a book and follow the link(s) available under Find online. The links will either say View online at: or the name of an eBook provider.

How to find resources online - this YouTube video shows you how to use Library Search and select online materials only.

Further help

If you need further help please take a look at the Library Help guide: eBooks section or get in contact. You can find a link to the Library Help guide below.

Using eBooks

The Library aims to have both eBook and print versions of books as we know both formats are important especially when studying away from the University. Unfortunately publishers do not always offer an eBook in a format suitable for library use, or it is not available at the time we order the print version.

How to find eBooks

Go to the Library Gateway at: https://library.shu.ac.uk
Search for your keywords in Library Search e.g politics and Brexit.
To the left of your search results click on Books / eBooks and Online.
Choose a book and follow the link(s) available under Find online. The links will either say View online at: or the name of an eBook provider.

Reading eBooks

Most eBooks can be read by more than one reader at a time but sometimes you may have to wait if another reader is using the book.You can search within individual eBooks, add notes and print or copy a limited number of pages from most eBooks.

Further help

If you need further help please take a look at the Library Help guide: eBooks section or get in contact. You can find a link to the Library Help guide below.

Ebook Collections

Most of the eBooks we provide are discoverable by searching Library Search, but it is also possible to search some the eBook collections directly. Below are some individual collections that might be of interest.

Manchester University ebook collection This link opens in a new window
Access for the following collections only: Manchester Film studies ; Manchester Gothic ; Manchester Literature studies ; Manchester Shakespeare ; Manchester studies in Imperialism. Offers full-text searching for the titles in the collection.
SAGE Research Methods Books and Reference This link opens in a new window
Titles from SAGE’s book, journal, and reference content in Research Methods. The collection includes nearly 1,000 books and reference works.
It does NOT contain datasets.
ScienceDirect This link opens in a new window
ScienceDirect provides journal articles and eBooks on the physics, engineering, mathematics, life sciences, health, computing and social sciences. The default search includes both ebooks and journal articles. You can use filters in your results to select between them: alternatively, you can use the search tab. Search results for eBooks are at chapter level.
Alternative link via Shibboleth
Articles and eBooks can be downloaded, saved permanently and kept as PDFs that you can view offline.

Multidisciplinary eBook collections

The Library has a range of eBook collections. You can search Library Search to find eBooks about many different subjects and that approach may be quicker than searching individual collections. You can also browse or search with the collections directly.

eBook Central This link opens in a new window
Authoritative ebooks in a range of subjects from the world's top publishers.

Use Ebook Central to quickly and easily find relevant ebooks and chapters; read online; search within the ebook; and highlight, take notes and bookmark pages in your online copy, stored on your bookshelf for you. You can also share your research with others, download ebooks and chapters to your laptop or mobile device, and more.
EBSCOHost This link opens in a new window
Databases ranging from general reference collections to subject-specific databases relating to art, business, communication, film and television, history, medicine, sport etc. which can be searched individually or collectively. The resources offer abstracts, full-text journal articles, news items, company reports, and peer-reviewed sources. Includes some full text. alternative link

OAPEN
OAPEN is a platform supporting open access publishing of peer reviewed books.

Taylor and Francis SHU eBook Collection This link opens in a new window
A collection of selected ebooks published by Taylor and Francis, who publish across a wide range of subjects and disciplines including humanities, social sciences, education, behavioural sciences, built environment and law. Filter to "Show content I have access to" to see books SHU subscribes to.
VLeBooks This link opens in a new window
This database contains all the VLE ebook titles that Sheffield Hallam have access to. This includes the Dawsonera ebook titles.

Recommend something for the Library

We love books... and are always looking for new publications to support your learning and teaching, and to keep the library collections up to date with high-quality materials. If you think we're missing something crucial though, we'd like to hear about it. You can let us know here.

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