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Book reviews may be found in a number of places depending upon the subject matter of the book. Reviews of books for the general reader, or popular books, may be found in sources which index general interest periodicals, while reviews of books written on specific subjects may be found in sources which index more scholarly, or academic, publications.

• It is useful when looking for book reviews to know:
  • The author's full name.
  • The book's complete title.
  • The publication year of the book.
• As reviews of books do not always appear in same year as the books' publication, it is frequently necessary to consult index volumes for two or more years following the publication date. Remember also that the great majority of books never get reviewed at all.
• Sometimes a new edition of a book will receive reviews, especially if it is a lengthy period between editions.
• It is generally useful to consult several reviews of a book to make a more balanced evaluation.
• It is of utmost importance that you choose appropriately the index(es) for finding the reviews. For example, it probably would not be very useful to seek a review of a book about Renaissance art in an index to medical journals or a review of a book about Apple computers in an index to nineteenth century periodicals.
• Remember that by no means are all periodical indexes in electronic format. In O'Neill Library there are many printed indexes to the periodical literature of a large number of different disciplines/subject areas. (Most of these printed indexes are in Index Ranges at the back of the 3rd floor). Many of these indexes contain citations to book reviews.
• It is important that you yourself know as much possible about the book before you attempt to seek a review. For example, is it a current or historic work? Is it a popular title or is it more scholarly? Good prior knowledge of the type of book it is will help you to choose the most appropriate printed index or electronic resource when you want a review.