Simpson Library: Religion: Finding Books

Search Strategies

If you know the book you are looking for, use the library website. Use Advanced Search to combine author and title.
Use quotation marks to search for a phrase, as in "Ancient Greece" or "Roman Britain".
Use the options under "Refine My Search" to narrow your results.
The Virtual Shelf Browse will allow you to see what books are shelved near the one you've found. You can browse the shelves without coming to the libray!
Sign into the system to request that a book be held for you, or to request a scan of parts of it.

When you find a physical book on the library website, write down its call number, and then go to the shelves.

To use call numbers, read them from the top down.

For example, here's how you'd find this book:

First, follow the alphabet to the PR section of the library, which is part of the larger P section.
Next, within the PR section, look in numerical order for 8875.
Next, within the books numbered 8875, look in alphabetical and numerical order for .P46.
(1999 is the year the book was published.)

If you find an item that belongs to another library, you may request to borrow it through InterLibrary loan (ILL).

To find items owned by other libraries, visit WorldCat

To place an InterLibrary loan request, log in to your free Simpson Library ILL Account using your UMW NetID and password.

Cooperative Borrowing Program
You can visit other colleges and universities in Virginia and check out books from their libraries. Click the link to see which libraries participate in this program.