How do I cite a book in MLA Style?

Answer

All citations work on a basic format in MLA. If an element is missing, like the author, you skip it.

In Print

For more information, see MLA Handbook, 9th edition pp. 313-317.

Author's last name, first name (initial if known). Title of Source. Publisher, year of publication.
Waldron, Ann. Eudora: A Writer’s Life. Doubleday, 1998.
Farley, Tom and Tanner Colby. The Chris Farley Show: A Biography in Three Acts. Viking, 2008.
Brown, Richard, editor. A Companion to James Joyce. Blackwell, 2008.
Brettell, Caroline B. and James F. Hollifield, editors. Migration Theory: Talking Across Disciplines. Routledge, 2000.
People for the American Way. Attacks on the Freedom to Learn: 1992-1993 Report. People for the American Way, 1993.

From Database

To reference eBooks from databases MLA requires a standard print book citation plus the information about the database. For more information, see MLA Handbook, 9th edition p. 325.

Author's last name, first name (initial if known). Title of Source. Publisher, year of publication. Name of database, URL (permalink without the http://). Accessed day month year.
Gordon, Edward E. The 2010 Meltdown: Solving the Impending Jobs Crisis. Praeger, 2005. ABC-CLIO eBook Collection, union.discover.flvc.org/permalink.jsp?44LS001651654. Accessed 6 Aug. 2017.
Toth, Emily. Unveiling Kate Chopin. UP of Mississippi, 1999. EBSCO eBooks, db14.linccweb.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=25871&site=ehost-live.cri Accessed 1 Aug. 2017.
Wray, Robert D. Christmas Trees for Pleasure and Profit. Rutgers UP, 2009. ebrary, ebookcentral-proquest-com.db14.linccweb.org/lib/lscc-ebooks/detail.action?docID=370487. Accessed 31 Jan. 2017.
“Nourish, v.”. Oxford English Dictionary Online, 3rd ed, Oxford University Press, 2003. Oxford English Dictionary Online, www.oed.com.db14.linccweb.org/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2016.
Martin-Kniep, Giselle and Joanne Picone-Zocchia. Changing the Way You Teach: Improving the Way Students Learn. ASCD, 2009. Gale Virtual Reference Library, union.discover.flvc.org/permalink.jsp?44LS002261849. Accessed 22 Oct. 2012.

From Website

For more information, see MLA Handbook, 9th edition pp. 324.

Author's last name, first name (initial if known). Title of Source, Publisher, year of publication. Name of Website, URL (without the http:// unless it's hyperlinked). Accessed day month year.
Austen, Jane. Persuasion. Little Brown, 1899. Google Book Search, books.google.com/books/about/Persuasion.html?id=3zsVAAAAYAAJ. Accessed 15 Aug. 2017.
Tressell, Robert. Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, edited by Michael S. Hart. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/files/3608/3608-h/3608-h.htm. Accessed 16 Aug. 2017.

E-Book Version

Author's last name, first name (initial if known). Title of Source. version edition, Publisher, year of publication.
Brown, Daniel J. The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. E-book ed., Penguin Books, 2013.
Lewis, Michael. The Premonition: A Pandemic Story. E-book ed., W. W. Norton & Company, 2021.

Audiobook Version

Author's last name, first name (initial if known). Title of Source. Narrator, version edition, edition type, Publisher, year of publication.
Grossman, Lev. The Magicians. Narrated by Mark Bramhall, audiobook ed., unabridged ed., Penguin Audio, 2009.
Patterson, James, and Bill Clinton. The President's Daughter: A Thriller. Narrated by Tony Goldwyn, et al., audiobook ed., unabridged ed., Little, Brown and Company and Knopt, 2021.

Please see MLA Style Citation Guide from the handout for more information, or see one of our Librarians in person or through Ask A Librarian.

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  • Last Updated May 15, 2023
  • Views 65
  • Answered By Nora Rackley

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