When citing books, make sure to gather the following bibliographic elements:
- the author name(s)
- translator and editor name(s)
- the book’s title
- the edition
- the publication date
- the publisher
- the place of publication.
Note that locations in the U.S. are abbreviated in accordance with the U.S. Postal Service guidelines for abbreviating states and territories.
Example:
Provide the name of the publisher after a colon excluding Co. and Inc., which are not necessary for the identification of the publisher.
However, do not omit words Books and Press.
When the author and the publisher are the same, use the word Author instead of the publisher’s name.
In our citation examples we use the following color coding:
- Red – Author
- Blue – Title of book/article/charter/webpage
- Pink – Date
- Orange – Website/Publisher
- Turquoise – Place of publication
- Violet – Editor/Translator
- Black – Volume/Issue
- Sienna – Pages
- Gray – URL/database/website where the source is retrieved
- Gold – Book, a part/chapter of which is being cited
- Peach – Additional information about the source (i.e. its type, specific features etc.)
One author
Example:
Two authors
Example:
Press.
Three to five authors
Example:
techniques and tools. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Six to seven authors
Example:
and plagiarism: A complete guide. London, England: Sage Publications.
More than seven authors
Provide last names and initials for six authors of the work. Insert three dots after the name of the sixth author followed by the last author’s name.
Example:
and archaeological site location modeling. Boca Raton, FL: Taylor & Francis.
Corporate/Organization Author
If there is a report, publication or contract number assigned to a document by the issuing organization, write that number in parenthesis after the title.
Example:
for Americans (NIH Publication No. U0036). Retrieved from https://health.gov/paguidelines/pdf/paguide.pdf
Unknown author
Example:
Two or more works by the same author
If you have to cite several works by the same author – those that have been written earlier come first in the list.
Example:
SAGE.
Malhotra, Y. (2014). Managing organizations: An introduction to theory and practice.Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Two or more works by the same author, same year
Works by the same author and with the same publication date are ordered alphabetically by the title (disregarding articles). Add a, b, c … to distinguish citations.
Example:
Reston, VA: Routledge.
Gabarro, J. (2011b). Managing and organizations: An introduction to theory and practice.Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Edited book, no author
In a reference to an edited book with no author, move the editor name in the author position, and follow it with the parenthetical abbreviation (Ed.) for one editor or (Eds.) for multiple editors.
Example:
Responsibility for performance. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation.
Edited book with an author/authors
When citing APA book with editor source, place names of editors immediately after the book’s title followed by the parenthetical abbreviation (Ed.) for one editor or (Eds.) for multiple editors. Mind that when writing editor’s names, you should write initials of their names first.
Example:
K.V. Emory (Ed.). Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Author with a translator
Need APA reference for translated book?
Easy!
Just place the translator’s names immediately after the book’s title, add the abbreviation “Trans.” in brackets.
If the book is republished, provide both publishing dates.
Example:
Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. (Original work published 1921).
Note that in-text referencing of a republished source also includes both publishing dates.
Example:
Different editions
Include information about the edition in parenthesis immediately after the title.
Example:
Chapter in an edited book
When it comes to chapter in an edited book, make sure that:
- You do not invert the editors’ names and do not place them in the author position.
- The editors’ names are preceded by the word In. and followed by the parenthetical abbreviation (Ed.) for one editor or (Eds.) for multiple editors.
Note: if an editorial board consists of more than 3 members, include the name of the lead editor and follow it by et al.
Example:
Gender identity and gender politics (pp. 134-146). Frankfurt, Germany: Springer.
Multivolume work
Multivolume work sounds scary in works cited APA.
In fact, it’s super simple:
Just add information about volume number(s) in parenthesis immediately after the book’s title.
Example:
McGraw-Hill.
Encyclopedia/Dictionary
Example:
Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
Foreword, introduction, preface, or afterword
Provide the names of the authors of the book and follow the date of the book’s publishing with the word Foreword (or Introduction, Preface, Afterword). Add the page numbers after the book’s title.
Example:
Frankfurt, Germany: Peter Lang.
Online books
Example:
and the therapeutic process [EBSCO NetLibrary version]. Retrieved from http://www.ebscohost.com