There are several different types of eBooks and the MHRA Style Guide does not give advice on all of them. This guide gives examples of how to deal with the 3 types of eBooks you might use most frequently:
- eBooks provided by the Library
- Books accessed through Library databases such as Historical Texts
- eBooks without page numbers, such as those read on a personal device (e.g. a Kindle)
1. Referencing Library eBooks
NB This is a change from earlier guidance.
Most eBooks provided by the library can be referenced in the same way as print books. These eBooks look like printed books, with the same publication details and page numbers. In some cases we may have both print and eBook versions or two different eBook versions.
For example, this is a book available from the library as a print and eBook: Technology, Literature and Culture, by Alex Goody
You can reference the print or library eBook in the same way:
Footnote format: Firstname Lastname, Book Title (Place of publication: Publisher, Year), p. x.
Footnote example: Alex Goody, Technology, Literature and Culture (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2011), p. 109.
__________________________________________
Bibliography format: Lastname, Firstname, Book Title (Place of publication: Publisher, Year)
Bibliography example: Goody, Alex, Technology, Literature and Culture (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2011)
2. Books accessed through Library databases
These include databases containing dictionaries and historical book collections like Historical Texts.
- If you have accessed an eBook through a Library database such as Historical Texts, you should include the name of the database, the URL and date accessed. Older texts may not include page numbers.
- You can also use this format if you have accessed a book through a freely available website like Project Gutenberg
- Put both the title of the book and the name of the database in italics.
- If using Historical Texts, click on the 'Details' option on the right to see the bibliographic details for the book.
- For links to databases containing dictionaries and historical books, see 'Books, eBooks and dictionaries' in the Resources section of Course resource help for English Literature and Creative Writing.
For further guidance and examples, see Books (11.2.2) and Online Databases (11.2.14) in the MHRA Style Guide and Cite Them Right Online: Electronic books (MHRA)
Footnote format: Firstname Lastname, Book Title (Place of publication: Publisher, Year), in Title of Collection p. x (if available) <URL> [accessed day month year].
Footnote example: Aphra Behn, The Fair Jilt, or, The History of Prince Tarquin and Miranda (London: R. Holt, for Will. Canning, 1688), in Historical Texts <https://data-historicaltexts-jisc-ac-uk.oxfordbrookes.idm.oclc.org/view?pubId=eebo-ocm13192465e> [accessed 9 April 2021].
__________________________________________
Bibliography format: Lastname, Firstname, Book Title (Place of publication: Publisher, Year), in Title of Collection <URL> [accessed day month year]
Bibliography example: Behn, Aphra, The Fair Jilt, or, The History of Prince Tarquin and Miranda (London: R. Holt, for Will. Canning, 1688), in Historical Texts <https://data-historicaltexts-jisc-ac-uk.oxfordbrookes.idm.oclc.org/view?pubId=eebo-ocm13192465e> [accessed 9 April 2021]
3. eBooks without page numbers
If you have read a book on a personal device such as a Kindle, or accessed a commercial online textbook provider like perlego, these often lack page numbers.
If you have read the novel on a personal device, state the format (for example, Kindle).
If any publication details are not given in the source, use: ‘[n.p.]’ (= no place), ‘[n. pub.]’ (= no publisher), ‘[n.d.]’ (= no date).
If there are no page numbers, the main advice is that you should only provide section details if these are fixed and stable:
You could provide the chapter information, e.g. ch. 4.
You can also number the paragraphs and include the paragraph cited in round brackets, e.g. (para. 3 of 24).
If using both chapter and paragraph details, put the chapter details first, e.g. ch. 4 (para. 3 of 24).
Don't use line numbers as these aren't fixed and stable.
Footnote format: Firstname Lastname, Book Title (Place of publication if available: Publisher, Year), type of ebook, p. x.
Footnote example: Franz Kafka, Metamorphosis and Other Stories, trans. by Michael Hofmann (London: Penguin, 2007), Kindle ebook, p. 33.
__________________________________________
Bibliography format: Lastname, Firstname, Book Title (Place of publication if available: Publisher, Year), type of ebook
Bibliography example: Kafka, Franz, Metamorphosis and Other Stories, trans. by Michael Hofmann (London: Penguin, 2007), Kindle ebook
If no page numbers are available:
Footnote format: Firstname Lastname, Book Title (Place of publication if available: Publisher, Year), type of ebook, ch. x.
Footnote example: Octavia Butler, The Parable of the Sower (London: Headline, 2019), Kindle ebook, ch. 4