Environmental Design Library @ UC Berkeley

Book Review Sources for Environmental Design

Book reviews are critical analyses of a published material. They are generally found in journals and newspapers. Keep in mind that only a very small percentage of books are ever reviewed. The sources listed below include book reviews on architecture, city planning and landscape architecture. They are usually available in the Environmental Design Library or the University of California, Berkeley Libraries. For best results, search for book reviews within five years of the date of publication. You may have to search multiple sources to locate a review of the book you have selected. Entries listed here are in alphabetical order, not arranged in a priority order, and they include a description of why the index is relevant to environmental design and specific directions on how to find reviews.

Before you begin, identify the author's name, or the book title, and the year of publication. Once you have found the review(s), note the complete citation. Check to see if it is available in full text; if not, search the title of the journal cited in OskiCat or Melvyl. For further assistance, consult the Environmental Design Library's reference staff.

Content reviewed: September 2008. Updated by Susan Koskinen 2006. Originally compiled by Elizabeth Byrne.

Jump to: A, B, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W-Z

• Alternative Press Index Online - via FirstSearch/OCLC. UCB Only Draws from alternative, radical, and left publications which report and analyze issues of cultural, economic, political, and social change. Online: 1991-present
To find reviews: select Advanced Search, enter author, title or subj. + Article Type Phrase = book reviews.
• America: History and Life - UC Only Focuses on the history and culture of the U.S. and Canada from prehistory to the present. A good source for cultural histories of architecture, building types, city planning, landscape and vernacular architecture. Online: 1964-present
To find reviews: select Advanced Search, Document type enter book review + title, author, or subject.
Example: author = groth and document type = book review.
• Art Full Text via WilsonWeb - UC Only | Guide. some full text, images in PDF format only. Indexes articles in art and related fields, including architecture, art history, city planning, urban design, and landscape architecture. Includes book reviews. Online: 1984-present.
Print: EnvDsgn N18 A72 Indexes, 1929-95
To find reviews: select Advanced search, enter author, title or subject keyword + document type (book review). Example: in the search box: groth book review
• Art Index Retrospective via WilsonWeb - UC Only Covers architecture, art history, city planning, industrial design, interior design, landscape architecture, museology, and urban design. Includes book reviews back to 1971. Online: 1929-1984.
Print: EnvDesign N18 A72 Indexes
To find reviews: select Advanced search, enter author, title or subject keyword + document type (book review).
• Arts & Humanities Citation Index via ISI Web of Knowledge - UCB Only Includes architecture, Online: 1975-present
To find reviews: --Select General Search. Enter author, title or subject - At bottom of the page - select restrict search to: document type = book review.
• Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals via CSA - UC Only Covers architecture, city planning, urban design, landscape architecture and related disciplines. Online: 1860's-present, updated weekly.
Print: 1890-1995; EnvDesign fNA8.C64 Index
To find reviews: use Advanced Search, enter title, author or subject keyword + book review or review.
Example: author word = chow + keyword=book review.
• BHA (Bibliography of the History of Art) - Covers the arts, architecture, city planning and landscape architecture, from late antiquity to the present. The print edition of BHA incorporates the art indexes RILA (International Repertory of the Literature of Art) and RAA Repertoire d'art et d'archeologie). Print: 1973-present. Online: 1990-2009.
To find reviews: Select Advanced Search, enter title, author or subject keyword + keyword book review or review. Example: au pevsner and kw book review.
• Book Review Digest - UCB Only Covers architecture, city planning , and landscape architecture. Online: 1983-present.
Print: 1905-present (more comprehensive coverage); Moffitt & Doe Ref. Z1219 B8
To find reviews: use Advanced Search - enter author, title, or subject. Use - Set Search Limits - enter document type=book review.
• Book Review Index. 1965-present. Provides citations to reviews from over 400 popular & scholarly journals & newspapers.
Doe Ref Z1035.A1.B6 Library has: 1965/84-2000; later issues unbound
• Design Book Review - DBR review citations are included in Avery index to Architectural Periodicals. Includes architecture, city planning, landscape architecture. Coverage:1983-2001.
EnvDesign NA1 D458
To find reviews: select Advanced search; select journal - enter Design Book Review? + title, author or subject keyword. you need to include the question mark.
Example: enter journal=Design Book Review? and au=kostof
• Expanded Academic ASAP Good for architecture, city planning, landscape architecture,urban design. Indexes articles from popular magazines, general interest journals, and scholarly journals in the humanities, social sciences, and general sciences. Some complete text is available. Online: 1980-present
To find reviews - use Relevance search - enter keywords + "book review"
• FirstSearch - UC Only Searchable databases: WorldCat, ArticleFirst, ERIC, GPO Monthly Catalog, PapersFirst, and ProceedingsFirst. Good for verification of bibliographic information. Coverage varies by database.
To find reviews: choose database(s) to search, include 'review' in your keyword search.
• H-Urban, set up in February 1993 at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) to provide a forum for scholars of urban history. There are no geographical or chronological boundaries.
To find reviews: Select reviews on homepage and enter search terms in upper left search box.
• The Historical Index to the New York Times (covers 1863-1879) also available on the web. Online: 1851-present.
BOUND 1913(1)-1929(17) UCB Hum/Area AJ21 .N41
BOUND 1930(18)-1999(87) DoeREF AJ21.N41 Doe Library Reference
• Historical Newspapers (Proquest) - UCB Only New York Times, Wall Street Journal, New York Times & Wall Street Journal, LA Times. To search all of the newspapers, on the ProQuest home page click on the tab that reads "Collections." Then click on the link that reads "ProQuest Historical Newspapers."
http://proquest.umi.com/login?
• Humanities Index (Print ed.)Lists citations for book reviews found in 400 English language periodicals. Entries are located in a separate book review section at the end of each issue and are arranged alphabetically by author. Coverage: 1974-present
Doe Ref AJ3 .H8; Bound:1(1974/75)-27(2000/2001); later issues unbound
• Index to Book Reviews in the Humanities (Print ed.) Provides citations for reviews of books in the humanities, art & architecture. Arranged alphabetically by author.
Hum/Area Z1035.A1 I6; 1(1960)-31(1990)// **ends in 1990. see also -
Combined retrospective index to book reviews in humanities journals, 1802-1974// Hum/Area Z1035.A1 C62 1982; v.1-10 (1982-1984)
• JAPA - Journal of the American Planning Association. Good source for city planning and landscape architecture. Vol. 49:4. Indexes reviews which appeared in the Journal 1958-1983, by title of book reviewed. Reviews were included in the main index under subject (including biographies) or author of book reviewed.
Print: EnvDesign NA9000 A48 Bound Periodicals
Use Expanded Academic ASAP - For full-text reviews online published February 1996--
To find reviews - use Relevance search - enter keywords + "book reviews" and enter in 'the following journal' - Journal of the American Planning Association.
Use Sociological Abstracts - For citations to reviews published Autumn 1992--
To find reviews: Select Advanced search - select publication type = book review and so=journal of the american planning association + author, title or subject.
• Journal of planning education and research. Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning. Good for city planning and urban design. See "book reviews" section. Includes dissertation abstracts and reviews by planning educators. Vol. 6, no. 3 (Spring 1987) includes cumulative index to vols. 1-6 (1981/8 - 1986/87). Indexed by Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals.
EnvDesign NA1 12 J68 periodical stacks. Coverage: 1981-present, quarterly
• Journal of the American Institute of Planners. Index. Good for city planning and urban design. For reviews published 1925-1974. Reviews included in the main index under subject (including biographies) or author of book reviewed.
EnvDesign NA9000 A48 Index
• JSTOR - UCB Only JSTOR is an archive of interdisciplinary scholarly journal literature. A list of journals by discipline is available. Good for architecture, city planning, landscape architecture, urban design and environmental planning.
To find reviews: select search, enter search terms - keyword, author or title, choose subject category, choose - limit type: reviews
• Lexis-Nexis Academic - UCB Only Good for architecture, city planning, landscape architecture, urban design. Provides access to thousands of full-text news, business and legal sources. For author information use Lexis-Nexis Biographical Index.
To find reviews: select Guided News Search, select Arts & Sports News, select News Source = Book, movie, music and play reviews, enter keyword, author or title.
• New York Times Index. (Print ed.). Good for architecture, city planning, landscape architecture, urban design. Issued twice monthly with cumulations. Lists citations for book reviews in the New York Times. Entries are listed under the heading "Books and Literature."
Doe Reference AJ21 .N41 BOUND 1930(18)-1999(87); see catalog for more locations.
• New York Times Book Reviews - online edition - Free searching for today's date and charges for previous articles.
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/books/
• Periodicals Index Online (formerly Periodicals Contents Index) UCB Only Coverage 1770-1995. Indexes the contents of periodicals in the arts, humanities and social sciences. The scope is international, including other language journals. You can browse journal lists by subject. Good for architectural history and city planning. - in English as well as foreign languages.
To find reviews: enter keywords - author, title, subject, and select scope - 'book reviews only'. e.g. Keyword: Kostof and scope - book reviews only.
• ProQuest Newspapers - UCB Only Indexes the New York Times (1999-present), Los Angeles Times (1985-present), Wall Street Journal (1982-present). It includes some full-text. Good for architecture, city planning and landscape architecture.
To find reviews: use 'Advanced Search' enter keywords author, title or subject & select 'article type' book review.
• Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature. Lists citations to book reviews found in general interest periodicals, including popular architecture, city planning and landscape architecture journals. Most articles from 1988- present are also in Expanded Academic Online: 1900-present
Print: AJ3. R4 Doe Reference
• Sociological Abstracts - UCB Only Citations for articles in journals, books, book chapters, and reviews. Topics covered include architecture, city planning, landscape architecture, urban design and development. Coverage: 1963 - present.
To find reviews: Select database, select advanced search, select 'publication type' in the pull down menu - enter book review, and keyword - author, title or subject. i.e. - pt = book review and author = groth
• Vernacular Architecture Forum - Book Reviews - Current reviews from the Vernacular Architecture Newsletter.
Select Departments→ select book reviews.
• Web of Science - UCB Only Science, Social Science, and Arts and Humanities Citation Indexes. Includes architecture, city planning, landscape architecture and urban design. Note coverage for each index. Web of Science has incorporated Current Contents into its databases. You can search book reviews and cited references.
To find reviews: select 'general search' enter keyword in the topic field (or another search), add under "Restrict search by languages and document types" document type - book reviews and click on search.

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