Frequently Asked Reference Questions
How do I find the value of my used car?
Check the N.A.D.A. price guides available at the Information Center for retail and trade-in values. Edmund's Ratings Guides are available online and in print in the Ready Reference-Consumer area behind the Information Center. Prices are also listed in the Kelley Blue Book.
How do I find dealer's invoice prices and evaluations of new cars?
This information is contained in Consumer Guide Auto '99, Jack Gillis' The Car Book 1999 and The Complete Car Cost Guide which are available in the Ready Reference-Consumer area behind the Information Center. The print and online versions of Edmund's Ratings Guides (see above) are also helpful.
How do I find the best products and services to buy?
The library subscribes to Consumer Reports, Consumer Guide, and Consumers Digest which are shelved in the Ready Reference-Consumer area behind the Information Center. Each of these publications issue an annual buyers guide which offers ratings on a variety of popular products. Check our Catalog by searching under the keywords "Consumer Education" or the name of the product or service in which you are interested, such as "cosmetics" or "nursing homes".Guidelines for wise decision making are included in Beat the System! (640.73 B38), The Consumer Bible (640.73 G82c), The Smart Consumer's Book of Questions (640.73 R73s), The Safe Shopper's Bible (640.73 St3s), Barron's Best Buys in College Education (New 378.73 So4b). Look for articles on your topic in the Ebsco Masterfile. Find information at The Consumer Resource Guide or The Department of Consumer Protection. Ask a librarian for more suggestions.
How do I find book reviews and literary criticism?
Book reviews are listed by author in the Book Review Section at the end of each issue of the Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature, by author and title in the Book Review Index, and by author, title, and subject in the Book Review Digest. These titles are shelved along the wall directly behind the Reference Stacks. The Library subscribes to the New York Review of Books, New York Times Book Review and the book review supplements to the Washington Post and Boston Globe. These are shelved with the newspapers adjacent to the grandfather clock in the Reading Area. For the many reviews in magazines, use Ebsco Masterfile. For literary criticism, use the Gale series located in the Ready Reference-Literature section behind the Information Center or search for books through the Catalog by entering your author's name. This will retrieve books by and about the author. For major works, such as Gulliver's Travels, Wuthering Heights, or King Lear, book length compilations of essays are available. Criticism of major authors can be found in series such as "Modern Critical Views" and "Twentieth Century Interpretations". Summaries and brief critical essays are included in Masterplots which is available on the CD-ROM network. The Internet Public Library offers a clearinghouse of critical sources on the web in its Online Literary Criticism Collection. Also recommended is the Librarian's Index to the Internet. Choose "Literature" from the main page. Small critical reviews plus reader's comments are selectively included on Amazon.com.
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