Use this format if:
- You are citing a book in which there is only one set of authors for the whole book (you do not need to cite individual chapters).
- You are citing an edited book as a complete work - not the work of a particular chapter by a particular author.
You will need (minimum information in bold):
- Author(s) or Editor(s) (if editors, include "ed." or "eds")
- Book title (in italics - in Title Case)
- Volume number and title (if there is more than one volume)
- Edition number (if it is not the first edition)
- Publisher's name
- Latest copyright year
- Accessed date (if online - only if using URL)
- DOI or URL (if online)
Standard Book Patterns
Pay close attention to the punctuation use in these examples – including case, italics, the order of dates and spaces.
Standard Book in Print
Author AA, Author BB, Author CC. Book Title. Vol no. Nth ed. Publisher; Year.
Edited Book
Editor AA, Editor BB, Editor CC, eds. Book Title. Vol no. Nth ed. Publisher; Year.
Electronic Book
Author AA, Author BB, Author CC. Book Title. Vol no. Nth ed. Publisher; Year. Accessed Month DD, YYYY. DOI or URL
Examples
Drake RL, Vogl W, Mitchell AWM, Gray H. Gray's Anatomy for Students. 4th ed. Elsevier; 2020.
Cameron P, Little M, Mitra B, Deasy C, eds. Textbook of Adult Emergency Medicine. 5th ed. Elsevier; 2020.
Vieira AR.Genetic Basis of Oral Health Conditions. Springer; 2019. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-14485-2
Health Worker Roles in Providing Safe Abortion Care and Post-abortion Contraception. World Health Organization; 2015. Accessed January 22, 2024. https://pubmed-ncbi-nlm-nih-gov.foyer.swmed.edu/26401543/
Notes
- Dates follow the American pattern of Month-Day-Year.
- You only use the Accessed date if you are using a URL.
- The author may be an organisation or government body.
What's a DOI? Read this explanation from Citing Medicine.
