Short Know-How About how to Cite a Book in an Essay without Mistakes

July 23, 2024

An essay may seem simple. However, this kind of academic writing and requires much from an author. For instance, you must use four relevant sources for any type of essay. Today you will know how to cite a quote from a book in an essay. You will need to know and gather some sufficient pieces of information concerning a book, no matter where and how you have got it.
To cite sources you’ve used in your paper, you are obliged to know the following information:

  • Author, editor and other contributors (translators, assistants, etc.)
  • The title of container (if you cite only one paragraph or a source is a part of bigger book)
  • Issue number or volume if it is a part of set
  • Indicate an edition of book if you are working with republished one
  • Publisher, date, and city/state of publishing are obligatory to mention. The location of publication is indicated only in several cases: if date of publishing is before 1900, if it is an international publisher with several offices in the world and if publishing company is unknown in North America
  • Do not forget to mention page numbers, from which you’ve taken information for your paper. If you were wondering how to cite a page in a book in an essay, if you have used an e-book or any other kind of online source, just provide a URL to it.

Inside the text, a book can be cited like any other resource concerning chosen format. You may require an author’s surname, name, year of publishing and page number. Usually, an in-text reference is given in brackets: (Doe, 2018, p.30). If author is unknown, the title will work as well: (The Title, 2018, p.45).

How to Make a Good Reference List?

Making a reference list can be tricky. You are required to know exactly where you have retrieved it from, whether it is part of container, etc. In order to know how to cite a book title in an essay properly, find out title itself, container name and changes in the title in editions of the book. Note that if you have an electronic version, but it also has a printed equivalent, opt for referring to printed one.

We will take a look at referencing of different kinds. Check out an example of citation in MLA formatting style:

Example: Doe, John. Title. Famous Publisher, 2018.

The basic format reference includes the author’s name and surname, the title, the city of publication, the publisher, and the publication date.
If there are many authors, order them as they are typed on a book cover. You can also use Latin words “et al” instead of naming all authors.

Example: Doe, John, and Jane Doe. Title. Famous Publisher, 2018
Doe, John, et al. Title. Famous Publisher, 2018

If you have to cite many resources with the same author, rank them by titles in the alphabetical order. When there are no authors available in the book, follow basic structure, but begin with title.

If working with electronic sources, find an online version available. It is not enough having something just on your computer, as professor might want to check it as well. Sometimes you have to indicate that it is an online source and always provide a link to it instead of pages.

If you need to learn how to cite an essay in a book mla format, you have to know when essay was published, then define a place where you have got it and the author. Remember to mention online attributes if they are needed.

Table of Content
Order your paper now!

By clicking “Continue”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy. We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related emails.

Latest Articles