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American Literature

Here you will find library and internet resources for research on American Literature, including genres, literary movements, terms, concepts, poets, novelists, playwrights

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Use the icon above to contact a reference librarian by chat or email.

If chat is not available at the moment, email library-reference@redwoods.edu, and a librarian will respond as quickly as possible.  Please allow at least 48 hours for responses to emails!

Finding Library Materials

Library Materials

Many useful resources are available in the College of the Redwoods Library, including books, reference books, eBooks, and videos. Additional resources may be available at the Del Norte or Humboldt County Libraries and Cal Poly Humboldt Library. Visit those libraries' websites to search their catalogs. Use OneSearch to find books and other resources about your topic in the CR library and selected, college-level resources on the web.

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Call Numbers for Browsing

College of the Redwoods Library Call Numbers

Books in College of the Redwoods library are filed by the Library of Congress Classification (LCC) system that uses letter-number combinations assigned by subject, so that most books about the same subject will be filed together on the shelf. HSU Library uses this same system, and so do most colleges and universities in the United States. Browse the titles on the shelf in the sections listed below for relevant research topics. 

  • PS 1-3576       American literature, by period, by region
  • PS 301-326     Poetry (general)
  • PS 330-353     Drama
  • PS 360-380     Prose
  • PS 409-429     Diaries, Letters Essays
  • PS 430-439     Wit and humor. Satire
  • PS 501-689     Collections of American literature, by period, by region
  • PS 700-3576   Individual authors, by period

Public (or County) Library Call Numbers

Most public or county libraries in the United States will use the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system, which uses numbers to represent subjects so that books about the same subject are filed together on the shelf. American Literature will be found in public libraries in the numbers ranging from 810 - 818.

Topics in American Literature

Videos