Books are a great place to start finding information on your topic! In this guide, you'll find ways to access the library's collection including both print and e-books.
The library catalog is where you can find out what books we have in the library. To use the catalog, enter a subject or title in the search box below.
E-books can also be found in the library catalog! You can read these books on or off-campus, by logging in with your library barcode (starts with 20464, and is usually on the back of your student ID) and your password, which is your last name in all capital letters.
To limit your search to just e-books, change the "All formats" dropdown option below to "E-book."
If you have any difficulty accessing these resources, or if you don't know your library barcode, please contact the library.
There are a few options to find out what books are available at other libraries:
C/W MARS: The Central/Western Massachusetts Resource Sharing Consortium (C/W MARS) is made up of 100+ academic and public libraries. Search the entire C/W MARS collection in the library catalog by changing the "Library" dropdown menu on the far right of the screen to "All C/W Mars Libraries." To request books from these libraries, click the "Place hold" button on the book you want, and enter your library credentials. When the book comes in (which usually takes ~1 week), you can pick it up at the AMC Library.
ARC Libraries: Our library is also a part of the Academic & Research Collaborative (ARC)! This allows Anna Maria students and faculty to visit other participating libraries to check out books, and use their electronic resources while on site. To do this, you must come in to the library and sign up for an ARC card before visiting the other libraries. For more information and a list of participating libraries, check the ARC website.
OCLC Worldcat: Search for books that may not be available in our area using Worldcat and place an inter-library loan request to have the item shipped here for pickup.
If you're looking for factual information, or introductions to a topic, try searching databases that have online reference material. These databases feature sources such as encyclopedias and dictionaries which will define terms and concepts, provide background information, and offer starting points to help focus your research topic.
If we don't have the book (or article) that you're looking for, we can try to get you a copy from another library. It's completely free for you, and all you need to do is fill out the Interlibrary Loan Request Form with the publication information.
Note: Items may take ~7 business days to arrive, depending on whether it is an electronic or physical item, so make sure you request materials you need well ahead of when your project is due!