Thanks to being part of a large University, our IU East campus often has the opportunity to participate in group subscriptions that reduce our cost yet increases your access to a variety of databases. It’s part of what makes IU East special – a lot of the benefits of a big university, but the familiarity and personal attention of a small campus.
This semester, we are adding several great new databases. One of the most interesting is the Loeb Classical Library, a digitization of hundreds of volumes of classical literature currently published by Harvard University. The print version of the Loeb Classical Library has been a mainstay in universities for decades, offering the original Greek or Latin text on one page and a literal English translation on the opposite page. Beginning language students would learn to read and translate from the portable, coat pocket-sized books – green covers were for Greek texts, and red for Latin. But now, with an iPad or tablet, the entire series can fit in a coat pocket. James Loeb would be proud!
But we have many others. Take Women and Social Movements, International which includes almost 5,000 primary materials – the writings, letters, and diaries of female activists, as well as major conference proceedings where pivotal events in the women’s movement occurred. Or try Underground and Independent Comics, another primary source-driven database that looks at adult, non-mainstream comic literature including interviews, criticism, and journal articles that give context to the evolution of the comic strip. Or try Harper’s Weekly, which includes the full text of a leading newspaper in 19th Century America. You can search by topic or jump directly to a specific issue, to see what things were like at that time. It’s a great resource both for history students and writers of historical fiction.
Additionally, we’re adding numerous Gale database titles, which mostly include the full text of significant British and American magazines, newspapers, and manuscripts. Collections include topics as broad-ranging as British Literary Manuscripts Online 1660-1900, Indigenous Peoples: North America, State Papers Online, Associated Press: US City Bureaus Collection, Financial Times Historical Archive 1888-Onwards, Smithsonian Collections Online, Chatham House Online Archive Module 1 1920-1979, and Liberty Magazine1924-50. Something to fit almost any history-based assignment!
And remember, we’re here for you if you have any questions. Ask us at iueref@iue.edu!