Resources for English
Library Resources
This section guides you to the library's key print and electronic resources for English. You can access print and electronic books through your unit reading lists and the library catalogue. Online databases such as Discover and JStor will allow you to search for academic journal articles. There are also links to audiovisual resources for plays and performances, as well as resources such as newspapers and encyclopedias provided through the library.
Reading lists for your unit can be accessed from BREO, or by searching for the unit title. Reading lists will provide access to the core-texts and selected readings for your unit.
The Discover database allows you to search across multiple academic databases provided through the University of Bedfordshire Library. It is a good place to start searching for academic journal articles on a topic.
JSTOR contains many journal articles in the arts and humanities field. You can browse to related subject areas such as Language & Literature (click on Browse by subject / Language & Literature) and search within the subject area. You can also used the Advanced Search options to search with multiple keywords and filters.
The Arts & Humanities Citation Index is available through the ISI Web of Science database collection (click on the 'More settings' drop down menu). The citation index gives publication details for many academic journal titles in the subject areas of English, literature and the arts. Not all the articles will be available as full-text. If you are studying for a dissertation at level 3 or above you can usually access the full-text through the Document Supply service.
Academic Search Complete provides access to over 7000 academic journals, many relating to English such as the Chaucer Review, Shakespeare Studies, and Children's Literature in Education.
Communication & Mass Media Complete provides access to a range of academic journals relating to linguistics and cultural theory.
Credo Reference contains a variety of electronic encyclopedias and reference books. You can search within individual books or across all content at once. The 'Mind Map' search tool in Credo is useful if you wish to consider related concepts and ideas.
NewsBank contains the full text of many UK newspapers, both local and national. Try searching for recent publications and theatrical productions to see how they were first received by the press.
Lexis Library News contains the full text of many UK newspapers, both local and national. Try searching for recent books publications and theatrical productions to see how they were first reviewed.
The Special Collections are an group of archives relating to subjects taught at the University of Bedfordshire. The Cinderella and Hockcliffe collections contain a range of items relating to children's literature and the arts.
Free Resources and Useful Websites
Below is a list of useful websites and other online resources that are relevant to the English.
The British Library is the UK's national library.
Due to a cyberattack the full collections, such as the Sound Archive are currently unavailable.
The British Council promotes knowledge and understanding between the British People and the wider world. The Literature pages include a wide range of biographies and critical reviews of contemporary writers from the UK and the Commonwealth.
Literature Across Frontiers (LAF) is the European platform for literary exchange, translation and policy debate. It aims to develop intercultural dialogue through literature and translation and highlight less translated literatures. If you are interested in literary translation, this website contains some useful resources and news.
Project Gutenberg is a library of over 60,000 free ebooks. You can choose among free epub and Kindle eBooks, download them or read them online. Contains the world’s great literature, with a focus on older works for which U.S. copyright has expired.
Arts & Letters Daily – This website collects together literary journalism, including book reviews, gossip and opinion pieces on culture and the Arts. The website has been in existence since 1998 and is updated on a daily basis by a team of reviewers.
SimplyScripts features hundreds of downloadable scripts, movie scripts, screenplays, and transcripts of current, classic and soon-to-be-released movies, television, anime, unproduced content, and radio shows.
The Penguin Podcast features interviews with famous authors such as Arundhati Roy and Phillip Pullman. Guests bring with them five objects to discuss which have inspired their work.
The Banging Book Club is a podcast presented by three friends who decided to read a book about sex and gender every month.
University of Oxford Podcasts: Literature - A collection of lectures and discussions on a wide range of writers and topics.
Free Thinking - Free Thinking is BBC Radio 3's flagship arts and ideas programme. There are over 400 episodes in the archive as well as related audio-visual clips and galleries.
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