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Arts & Humanities
Arts & Humanities Resources
Academic Search Complete
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Multidisciplinary research database, providing acclaimed full-text journals, magazines and other valuable resources, now with access to 5,812 active full-text journals.
Article First
Use at Home? Yes
Description: OCLC index of articles from the contents pages of journals.
AtoZ Food America
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Covers food culture for six US regions, all 50 states, and 33 ethnic cuisines. Contains recipes in all course categories (appetizers, soups, salads, breads, main courses, side dishes, desserts, snacks, and beverages), and articles such as Classic Dishes, State Foods, Top Agricultural Products, Special Occasion Foods, Ethnic and Geographic Influences, Special Ingredients, and Food Trivia.
AtoZ World Food
Use at Home? Yes
Description: AtoZ World Food is the only food database that contains traditional recipes for 174 countries of the world in all course categories: appetizers, soups, salads, breads, main courses, side dishes, desserts, and beverages.
Biography Reference Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: More than 390,000 biographies. Includes complete full text run of Biography Today and Biography Magazine as well as thousands of narrative biographies.
Black Freedom Struggle in the United States
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Open Access collection of primary documents from 1790 to the modern day detailing the black struggle for freedom in the United States.
Booklist
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Book review journal of the American Library Association, connecting library and education workers to the books and resources needed to support and enrich their communities.
BookPage
A discovery tool for readers, highlighting the best new books across all genres, BookPage is editorially independent; only books we highly recommend are featured. Any publisher-sponsored content is clearly labeled as such.
Access to this resource will expire on August 1, 2026.
Books in Print
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Search the availability of current books, audio and video in a database of millions of titles. Also contains full text reviews from standard magazines.
Britannica Library
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Complete encyclopedia with related Internet links, best websites rated by EB editors, Britannica’s Lives and the Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary.
Britannica Library for Children
Use at Home? Yes
Description: All the resources found in Encyclopaedia Britannica, plus special online learning materials for students, in grades K-8.
Chelsea House Biographies
Use at Home? Yes
Description: In-depth looks at people who have shaped our world. World leaders, sports stars, popular icons, writers, legends of the old west, and many more.
Clase Periodica
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Indexes documents published in Latin American journals covering social sciences and humanities as well as science and technology.
Core Collections
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Contains seven key H. W. Wilson collection development titles – Children’s Core Collection, Fiction Core Collection, Graphic Novels Core Collection, Middle and Junior High Core Collection, Public Library Core Collection Non-fiction, Senior High Core Collection, and Core Collection en Español in an easily searchable interface.
Creativebug
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Unlimited access to more than 1,000 award-winning art & craft video classes taught by recognized design experts and artists.
EBSCO eBooks High School Collection
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Give students, educators, and administrators on-the-go access to popular e-books. This robust collection includes a selection of classic literary works, important historical documents, and general reference materials.
EBSCO Essentials
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Open Access journals available through EBSCO’s free search engine.
Education Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Education Source is a valuable full-text database covering all levels of education research and specialties such as multilingual education, health education and testing.
Electronic Books
Use at Home? Yes
Description: OCLC catalog of online electronic books available through libraries worldwide.
Electronic Collections Online
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Abstracts and selected full text of scholarly journals from 1995 to present, covering subjects such as business, education, geography and law.
ERIC
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Education Resources Information Center – Index of journal articles, books, theses, curriculum guides, conference papers, standards, and guidelines on a wide range of education topics. Sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education.
Ethnic Diversity Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: This full-text database is a dedicated resource covering the culture, traditions, social treatment and lived experiences of different ethnic groups in America.
FactCite – American and World Biography
Use at Home? Yes
Description: 10,000 biographies of famous people from around the world. More than 2,000 illustrations.
FactCite – American History
Use at Home? Yes
Description: More than 6,000 illustrated articles of people, places, and events in American history.
FactCite – Biography for Beginners
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Illustrated biographies written especially for beginning and striving readers.
FactCite – Defining Moments in U.S. History
Use at Home? Yes
Description: This resource for middle school students and above explores the historical context and consequences of 30 defining moments in United States history, such as the Battle of Gettysburg, the Great War and the Jazz Age and the Attack on Pearl Harbor. Each event is treated in detail and supplemented with primary source documents, timelines, biographies, reading lists, glossaries, and photographs.
FactCite – Greek and Roman Mythology
Use at Home? Yes
Description: 500 articles on Greek and Roman mythological figures with more than 300 illustrations.
Fact Cite – The Lincoln Library
Use at Home? Yes
Description: American History – More than 6,000 illustrated articles of people, places, and events in American history.
Biography for Beginners – Illustrated biographies written especially for beginning and striving readers.
Greek & Roman Mythology – 500 articles on Greek and Roman mythological figures with more than 300 illustrations.
U.S. & World Biography – 10,000 biographies of famous people from around the world. More than 2,000 illustrations.
First Search (OCLC)
Use at Home? No
Description: Scholarly and general content covering a wide variety of topics including health, education, technology, business, and the social sciences.
Freegal
Use at Home? Yes
Formats Available: Music
Description: Free unlimited streaming of music from the entire Sony Music catalog plus thousands of independent artists; also download up to 5 DRM-free tracks per week
Gale eBooks
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Contains the full text of hundreds of reference books on a wide variety of subjects, including history, business, medicine, science and humanities. Includes tables of content, indexes and illustrations.
Gale General OneFile
Use at Home? Yes
Description: General interest articles on current events, science, entertainment, the arts, etc.
History Reference Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Covering both U.S. and world history topics, History Reference Source is a full-text database featuring historical reference books, magazines, journals and thousands of primary source documents.
Illinois Digital Archives
Use at Home? Yes
Description: St. Charles, Kane County and Illinois local history documents, maps and photos.
Illinois Libraries Group Catalog
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Use WorldCat Discovery to search the holdings of libraries across the state of Illinois.
Journal of Intellectual Freedom & Privacy
Use at Home? Yes
Description: From the American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom, keep up to date with news of book bannings and censorship, new policies and reports from the Intellectual Freedom Committee and the Freedom to Read Foundation, and read peer-reviewed articles on privacy and intellectual freedom.
Kanopy
Use at Home? Yes
Formats Available: Video
Description: 10 play credits per month to view movies (checkout for 3 days) or series (checkout for 7 days); a mix of award-winning feature films, documentaries, and educational content, including Criterion Collection titles and The Great Courses.
LGBTQ+ Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: LGBTQ+ Source is the definitive database for LGBTQ+ studies. It provides scholarly and popular LGBTQ+ publications in full text, plus historically important primary sources, including monographs, magazines, newspapers, and videos. It also includes a specialized LGBTQ+ thesaurus containing thousands of terms.
Literary Reference Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Full-text literary database covering all genres and timeframes, including thousands of synopses, critical essays, book reviews, literary journals and author biographies, plus full-text classic novels, short stories and poems.
Magazines & Newspapers Publication Finder
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Find out what magazines, journals, and newspapers the Library subscribes to online, and then link to the correct database to read articles or issues.
MAS Complete
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Designed for high school libraries and offers coverage of popular high school magazines and reference books. Wide range of subjects offered including art, history, sports, and music. Over 1,000,000 photos, maps, and flags. Full text magazines include Discover, US News & World Report, Scientific American, and more.
MasterFILE Complete
Use at Home? Yes
Description:Broad collection of popular full-text magazines and reference books. Magazines include People, Better Homes and Gardens, TIME, and Newsweek. Covers subjects including business, health, education, fitness, sports and leisure, personal finance, general science, multicultural issues, DIY, and fashion. Also includes photos, maps, and flags.
Middle Schools – Explora
Use at Home? Yes
Description: The Explora experience for middle schools ensures that students, educators and library patrons can quickly find the reliable information they need to complete homework and research projects, deliver robust school curriculum, and satisfy their intellectual curiosity.
NoveList K-8 Plus
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Search for picture books through chapter books by author, title, series name or subject. Includes helpful educator’s tools.
NoveList Plus
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Fiction and nonfiction guide for all ages. Find read-alike books and authors, book reviews, book group discussion questions and author websites.
OAIster
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Millions of digital resources including books, audio files, images, movies and datasets and texts.
PebbleGo
Use at Home? Yes
Description: PebbleGo is a curricular content hub specifically designed for K-2 students. Packed with informational articles, ready-made activities, and literacy supports for students of all abilities, it boosts engagement and fosters independent learning in core subject areas.
PebbleGo Next provides a natural next step for 3rd-5th grade students with articles all aligned to state and national standards with a familiar, yet age-appropriate, experience and supports.
Points of View Reference Source
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Containing resources that present multiple sides of an issue, this database provides rich content that can help students assess and develop persuasive arguments and essays, better understand controversial issues and develop analytical thinking skills.
Primary Schools – Explora
Use at Home? Yes
Description: The Explora experience for elementary schools ensures that students, educators and library patrons can quickly find the reliable information they need to complete homework and research projects, deliver robust school curriculum, and satisfy their intellectual curiosity.
Professional Development Collection
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Specialized information for librarians, teachers, and education researchers.
Religion & Philosopy Collection
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Hundreds of full-text journals and magazines covering many religious and philosophical topics, including world religions, religious history, political philosophy, and philosophy of language.
Salem History
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Contains great historical reference books including: Great Lives From History, The Decades In America, and Milestone Documents. A great place to start your research.
Salem Literature
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Contains the series Critical Survey and Masterplots, great resources for plot summaries, author biographies, and outlines of the major themes discussed in literary works.
Scholastic BookFlix
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Online literacy resource that pairs classic fictional video storybooks with related nonfiction eBooks. Reinforces core reading skills and introduces students to a world of knowledge and exploration. Includes helpful educator’s tools.
Scholastic Go!
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Incorporates Grolier Online databases, including Amazing Animals, America the Beautiful, American Heritage Children’s Dictionary, American Heritage Children’s Thesaurus, Lands and People, New Book of Knowledge and New Book of Popular Science.
Shakespeare Survey
Use at Home? Yes
Description: A great resource from Cambridge University Press for students and Shakespeare lovers. Since 1948 Survey has published the best international scholarship in English, and many of its essays have become classics of Shakespeare criticism. Each volume is devoted to a theme, or play, or group of plays. The books are illustrated with a variety of Shakespearean images and production photographs.
World Book Online (in-library)
Use at Home? No
Description: Start here for background research on any topic. Articles are updated with current events information, useful links on the Internet, a monthly calendar of important dates and a Today in History feature.
World Book Online (remote access)
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Start here for background research on any topic. Articles are updated with current events information, useful links on the Internet, a monthly calendar of important dates and a Today in History feature.
WorldCat Discovery
Use at Home? Yes
Description: Locate books, periodicals, computer programs, films, maps, sound recordings, videotapes, dissertations and other formats in thousands of libraries worldwide.
Worldcat Dissertations and Theses
Use at Home? Yes
Description: A database of all dissertations and theses available in WorldCat
Arts & Humanities Websites
- American Indian Center Chicago
- Digital Public Library of America
- JSTOR Open Access Collection
- Library of Congress Performing Arts Databases
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
- Perseus Digital Library
- St. Charles Arts Council
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Word Digital Library – Library of Congress