Style Guide for Research Papers: Citing Books
Books & eBooks
The examples below provide guidance for how to cite sources in footnotes (N), in shortened footnotes (SN), and in the bibliography (B). If you are using a program to help format your citations, set it to "Turabian" or "Chicago," "notes-bibliography," and then correct the result so that it follows the requirements in this guide.
The citation of books (17.1) varies due to the wide variety of types of books and information needed to properly identify the source. For example, the style changes if a book has one author, multiple authors, or an editor. It changes if the book is part of a series or is a single chapter in a compiled work, (see the "Citing Commentaries" tab for examples of books in a series or essay collection). eBooks are cited like their print counterparts but with an additional piece of information at the end.
Books
The citation of books follows the basic format of: author, italicized title, city of publication, publisher, date of publication, and page(s) cited. In the following examples, the footnote number may be different than the number in your paper.
Book with One Author
N: 1. Michael F. Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe: An Introduction to Christian Doctrine through the Apostles’ Creed (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016), 179.
SN: 3. Bird, Believe, 179.
B: Bird, Michael F. What Christians Ought to Believe: An Introduction to Christian Doctrine through the Apostles’ Creed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016.
Book with Two Authors
N: 1. James M. Robinson and Helmet Koester, Trajectories through Early Christianity (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1971), 237.
SN: 3. Robinson and Koester, Trajectories, 237.
B: Robinson, James M. and Helmut Koester. Trajectories through Early Christianity. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1971.
Book with an Editor
N: 1. Mark W. Chavalas, ed. Women in the Ancient Near East (New York: Routledge, 2014), 70.
SN: 3. Chavalas, ed. Women, 70.
B: Chavalas, Mark W., ed. Women in the Ancient Near East. New York: Routledge, 2014.
Article in an Edited Volume
Article/Chapter in an Edited Volume (e.g., essay collection, anthology, festschrift)
Books that are essay collections usually have a different author for each chapter in the book. Begin by citing the author of the chapter and not the editor of the book. The editor has his or her own space later on in the citation.
N: 1. Richard Bauckham, “Relevance of Extra-canonical Jewish Texts to New Testament Study,” in Hearing the New Testament: Strategies for Interpretation, ed. Joel B. Green, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2010), 68.
SN: 3. Bauckham, “Relevance,” 68.
B: Bauckham, Richard. “Relevance of Extra-canonical Jewish Texts to New Testament Study.” Pages 65–84 in Hearing the New Testament: Strategies for Interpretation. Edited by Joel B. Green. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2010.
eBooks
Electronic books (eBooks) are digital versions of books that are read in a browser or in an app. Cite electronic books just like their printed counterparts. The publication information is for the book and not the software. If you read the book in a library or commercial database, give the name of the database but not the URL (AdobePDF eBook, Proquest Ebrary, Google Books). If read in an app, specify the app (Kindle, iBooks, Logos, Accordance).
If no page number is available then find and cite the corresponding page number in a hardcopy of the book. Google Books or other keyword-search book-browsing sites can be helpful for this. If you have done your due diligence in finding the page number and it is still not forthcoming, do not cite an app-specific location number or designation but instead cite the chapter & section number, or the chapter & section title, that contains the page you are citing.
N: 1. Joseph P. Quinlan, Last Economic Superpower: The Retreat of Globalization, the End of American Dominance, and What We Can Do About It (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010), 211. ProQuest Ebrary.
SN: 3. Quinlan, Last Economic Superpower, 211.
B: Quinlan, Joseph P. Last Economic Superpower: The Retreat of Globalization, the End of American Dominance, and What We Can Do About It. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. ProQuest Ebrary.
N: 1. Thomas Schreiner, Forty Questions About Christians and Biblical Law, ed. Benjamin L. Merkle (Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2010), 33. Logos.
SN: 3. Schreiner, Forty Questions, 33.
B: Schreiner, Thomas. Forty Questions About Christians and Biblical Law. Edited by Benjamin L. Merkle. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2010. Logos.
N: 1. Bruce W. Winter, Roman Wives, Roman Widows: The Appearance of New Women and the Pauline Communities (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003), “Chapter 5: What was Proper in Roman Corinth?” Kindle.
SN: 3. Winter, Roman Wives, “Chapter 5: What was Proper in Roman Corinth?” Kindle.
B: Winter, Bruce W. Roman Wives, Roman Widows: The Appearance of New Women and the Pauline Communities. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003. Kindle.