Research Guides: WRI 159/160: Gray Matter: Book and film reviews

Book and film reviews

The real challenge of your research paper is to present your topic within the context of a "scholarly debate." What are scholars talking about, or even better, what do they disagree about? Book and film reviews are excellent sources for finding these debates.

Articles+
Princeton's most comprehensive database of academic journal scholarship. Also an excellent way to find Book Reviews. A good review identifies the scholarly debate in question. If you have a book you like, quote the title in Articles+, then limit by "Book review" in the Content Type options on the left.
Movie Review Query Engine (MRQE)
Excellent source of film reviews. Play special attention to the reviews listed at the very top of the list since these are often the most authoritative (e.g. from the New York Times or Roger Ebert). Again, read these reviews with a critical eye, looking for features or issues that are controversial or thought provoking.