Research Guide: Books

Use this guide to learn more about how to find books

Why use books?

Why Use Books?

Books...
  • can get you a historical perspective on your topic to see how it has evolved over time
  • often are written by authors who are experts or have taken the time to do research on a particular subject
  • help you understand the complexity your topic
When you find a book...
  • you do not have to read the whole book! Instead look at the table of contents in the front to find which chapters will be most helpful to you
  • look in the back of the book.  Often there is a list of sources that the author consulted when he or she wrote the book.  You might want to use these sources for your research, too!

Is a "good" book for your research? Be sure you evaluate it!

Holman Library Primo One Search

Holman Library logo

Use Holman Library One Search to:
  • Search for books, CDs, videos and articles in Holman Library
  • Get an overview of information on a subject
  • Track down citations
Sample Search:

This sample search of "green tea" in the image below found over 79,508 books, articles, videos.

  • Use "Advanced Search" to add additional search options.
  • The "Filter My Results" options on the left let you sort by type (books, videos, articles), location (library items), and date. 

(click on image to enlarge)

Primo One Search on 'green tea'

Beyond Our Collection: Interlibrary Loan

Using the Interlibrary Loan Service

InterLibrary Loan: No library has it all! But the InterLibrary Loan (or ILL) is a service offered by Holman Library for borrowing books and articles from other libraries. InterLibrary Loan requests are free to current GRC students, faculty and staff.

For your research, it is important to search many places.

  • First, start with the books and articles available through the Holman Library.

  • Then, If you find books and articles that the Library does NOT have access to, just request them through Interlibrary Loan.

  • Using Interlibrary Loan increases the amount of resources available to you and helps you become a more thorough researcher.

Note:

  • Books and other items that require mailing may take 1-2 weeks.

  • Articles and other digital items may arrive within 2-5 days. Use your email as your contact info and the article will be sent directly to you.

If you need help filling out this form, call the library reference desk at (253) 931-6480.

Other places you can search...

Use the links below to look for books, articles and more beyond our collection: