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Referencing Toolkit

How to Reference

Basic Format to Reference a Book

Format for footnotes for a book:

  • In your Reference List the author's initials come after the surname.
  • Use single quotation marks to enclose direct quotations. Quotes of 30 or more words are indented 1 cm from left hand margin, started as a new paragraph and don’t need quotation marks.
  • For more information about how to include quotes in your essay see Quotes in Oxford.
  • For all direct quotations, page numbers must be given.

Example:

1 L.A. Hunt, History: Why it Matters, Newark, Polity Press., 2018, p. 56.

Oxford book example

Examples

Printable Handout

Citation Examples

Material Type

Footnote examples

Reference list examples

Book: Single author

1 P. Clause, History: An Introduction to Theory, Method and Practice, 2nd edn., Florence, Routledge, 2017.

Use the state or territory abbreviation in place of the country for Australian and U.S. locations.

Clause, P., History: An Introduction to Theory, Method and Practice, 2nd edn., Florence, Routledge, 2017.

Book: Two authors

1 M. Lake and H. Reynolds, What's Wrong with ANZAC?: The Militarisation of Australian History Sydney, University of New South Wales Press, 2010, p. 8.

Don't include the city or state location if it is in the title of the University.

M. Lake and H. Reynolds, What's Wrong with ANZAC?: The Militarisation of Australian History, Sydney, University of New South Wales Press, 2010, p. 8.

Book: Three authors

1 T. FitzSimons, P. Laughren, and D. Williamson, Australian Documentary: History, Practices and Genres, 2nd edn., Port Melbourne, VIC, Cambridge University Press, 2011, p. 127.

The edition number is placed after the title (not necessary for the first edition).

FitzSimons, T., Laughren, P., and Williamson, D., Australian Documentary: History, Practices and Genres, 2nd edn., Port Melbourne, VIC, Cambridge University Press, 2011.

Book: More than three authors

1 D. McKenzie-Mohr et al., Social Marketing to Protect the Environment, Thousand Oaks, CA, SAGE Publications, 2012, pp. 197-198.

McKenzie-Mohr, D. et al., Social Marketing to Protect the Environment, Thousand Oaks, CA, SAGE Publications, 2012.

Book: No author

1 Collins English Dictionary, 12th edn., Glasgow, UK, HarperCollins, 2014, p.33.

If the work has no author or editor, the title is used as the first element of the reference.

Collins English Dictionary,  12th edn., Glasgow, UK, HarperCollins, 2014.

Book: Editor

1 J. Murray (ed.), Our Great Game: The Photographic History of Australian Football, Docklands, VIC, Slattery Media Group, 2010, p. 6.

Our Great Game: The Photographic History of Australian Football, Docklands, VIC, Slattery Media Group, 2010.

When there is more than one editor, follow the format for multiple authors but use (eds.).
Chapter or part of a Book to which a number of authors have contributed

1 G.I. Pearman, 'Climate Change', in Goldie, J., Douglas, B., and Furnass, B. (eds.), In Search of Sustainability, Collingwood, VIC, CSIRO Publishing, 2004, p. 97.

In the footnote name the author of the chapter.

Pearman, G.I.,'Climate Change', in Goldie, J., Douglas, B., and Furnass, B. (eds.), In Search of Sustainability, Collingwood, VIC, CSIRO Publishing, 2004, pp. 93-108.

"Include the full page range of the chapter in the Reference List entry.
Book: Translator and author

1 G. Breuer, Air in Danger: Ecological Perspectives of the Atmosphere, trans. P. Fabian, English edn., rev., New York, Cambridge University Press, 1980, p. 55.

Breuer, G., Air in Danger: Ecological Perspectives of the Atmosphere, trans. P. Fabian, English edn., rev., New York, Cambridge University Press, 1980.

Book: Organisation as author

1 Australian State of the Environment Committee [ASEC], Australia State of the Environment 2001: Independent Report to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Collingwood, VIC, CSIRO Publishing, 2001, p. 22.

If you want to cite from the report more than once, in the first footnote provide the full name of the organisation, as above. In subsequent footnotes use the abbreviated organisational title e.g. ASEC]

Australian State of the Environment Committee, Australia State of the Environment 2001: Independent Report to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Collingwood, VIC, CSIRO Publishing, 2001.

Use the full name of the organisation in the Reference List.
eBook

1 B. De Munck, Gated Communities?: Regulating Migration in Early Modern Cities, Farnham, UK, Ashgate Publishing, 2012, p. 301.

An ebook accessed from the Library Catalogue from a Library database is cited using the same format as for a print book.

De Munck, B., Gated Communities?: Regulating Migration in Early Modern Cities, Farnham, UK, Ashgate Publishing, 2012.

Book: Accessed from a webpage

 1 G. Orwell, 1984, George-orwell.org, 2005, p. Part 2, ch. 9, para. 4, http://www.george-orwell.org/1984, (accessed 3 September 2018).

Use paragraph or section numbers if there are no page numbers, e.g. p. Section 2, para. 5.

Orwell, G., 1984, George-orwell.org, 2005, http://www.george-orwell.org/1984, (accessed 3 September 2018).

Multiple works same author

... according to McDonald and Payne marketing requires matching your customers' needs.1,2

1M. McDonald and A. Payne, Marketing Planning for Services, Oxford, UK, Butterworth-Heinemann, 1996, p. 34.

2 M. McDonald and A. Payne, Marketing Plans for Service Business: A Complete Guide, 2nd edn., Oxford, UK, Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, 2006, pp. 345-346.

McDonald, M., and Payne, A., Marketing Planning for Services, Oxford, UK, Butterworth-Heinemann, 1996.

McDonald, M., and Payne, A., Marketing Plans for Service Business: A Complete Guide, 2nd edn., Oxford, UK, Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, 2006.

Book: Exhibition Catalogue

1 E. Floyd and K. Mansell, Disobedience: The University as a Site of Political Potential, exhibition catalogue, Caulfield East, VIC, Monash University, Museum of Art, 2013, p. 3.

2 J. Cederlund et al., Anders Zorn: Sweden’s Master Painter, exhibition catalogue, San Francisco, CA, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco (Skira Rizzoli), 2013, p. 12.

If no author or editor is listed on the title page, use the name of the author of the Introduction or first essay. If you cannot find an author or editor name, cite the exhibition catalogue by its title. It is important to include both the name of the gallery and the publisher in your citation if they are different, see second example above.

Floyd, E., and Mansell, K., Disobedience: The University as a Site of Political Potential, exhibition catalogue, Caulfield East, VIC, Monash University, Museum of Art, 2013.

Cederlund, J. et al., Anders Zorn: Sweden's Master Painter, exhibition catalogue, San Francisco, CA, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco (Skira Rizzoli), 2013.

Secondary Sources

1 A. Smith, Italian Architecture, Melbourne, VIC, Penguin, 2000, cited in D. Brown, Renaissance Italy, London, UK, Faber and Faber, 2002, p. 45.

Provide names of both authors (of the citing article and the original author).

Brown, D., Renaissance Italy, London, UK, Faber and Faber, 2002.

Provide the reference for the book that you actually read.