I hope the suggested resources and tips in this guide will be helpful. Please let us know if you don't find what you need.  Following the link below will give you information on how to meet with, call, or email a librarian.

Also feel free to email me directly at mccuskd@arc.losrios.edu.

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These books are ideal starting points for your research.  Just photocopy the 2-3 pages on your congressperson or district from each book.  These books are all located in the reference collection located on the first floor of the library, behind the research help desk.

Citing these books can be tricky.  Here's how you would do it in MLA style.  I'm basing this on 5.5.7 (citing an article in a reference book) in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook. Please correct the year as necessary.

“Your Congressperson’s Name.” The Almanac of American Politics. 2014. Print.

“Your Congressperson’s Name.” CQ’s Politics in America. 2014. Print.

This is just for those of you who elect to use Chicago Manual of Style citations. If you're using MLA style, you'll use in-text citations rather than footnotes.

When to use a footnote (from the Chicago Manual of Style):

"Ethics, copyright laws, and courtesy to readers require authors to identify the sources of direct quotations and of any facts or opinions not generally known or easily checked."

If you have a bibliography in addition to footnotes (which I believe you will):

Again from the Chicago Manual of Style, "If the bibliography includes all works cited in the notes, the note citations... can be quite concise."

What must the footnote contain?

The author (if there is no author, start with the title), the title (usually in italics, but it depends on the type of source), the page number (assuming the source has page numbers).

Please follow the link below for examples of what your footnotes should look like.