Exploring McGill University’s Study Guides


As you embark on your academic journey at McGill University, having the right resources at your fingertips can significantly impact your success. In this blog, we’ll introduce you to a selection of recommended books available at the McGill Libraries. These resources cover various aspects of academic writing, research, and presentation skills, making them valuable assets for your educational pursuits.

Recommended Books

1. “100 Tips to Avoid Mistakes in Academic Writing and Presenting” by Adrian Wallwork and Anna Southern:
This book is an indispensable guide to academic writing and presentation skills. With 100 practical tips, it offers insights to help you avoid common mistakes and enhance your writing and presentation abilities. Whether you’re a novice or an experienced scholar, this resource will help you craft more polished and professional academic work.

2. “A Student’s Writing Guide: How to Plan and Write Successful Essays” by Gordon Taylor:
Gordon Taylor’s guide is a comprehensive approach to essay writing. It provides valuable insights on how to plan, structure, and write successful essays. Whether you’re tackling essays as assignments or part of your research, this book offers essential guidance to excel in your academic writing.

3. “EndNote 1-2-3 Easy!: Reference Management for the Professional” by Abha Agrawal and Majid Rasouli:
Proper reference management is vital for academic research and writing. This book simplifies the use of EndNote, a popular reference management software. It helps streamline your research process, ensuring you can cite your sources correctly and efficiently.

4. “Stylish Academic Writing” by Helen Sword:
Academic writing doesn’t have to be dull and dry. Helen Sword’s book explores the art of crafting stylish and engaging academic prose. It offers practical tips and examples to make your academic writing more accessible and appealing to readers.

5. “Writing the Research Paper: Multicultural Perspectives for Writing in English as a Second Language” by Philip M. McCarthy and Khawlah Ahmed:
For non-native English speakers, this book is an excellent resource for improving research paper writing skills. It provides multicultural perspectives and guidance to help ESL students excel in academic writing. Whether you’re writing research papers or working on academic projects, this resource offers insights into effective writing in English as a second language.

These recommended books, available at the McGill Libraries, offer valuable guidance and tips to help you excel in academic writing, research, and presentation. Whether you’re looking to improve your writing skills, manage references efficiently, or make your academic writing more engaging, these resources can empower your academic journey. Explore these books and enhance your academic success at McGill!

The Eras Tour: A Book Display

Calling all Swifties! With the recent release of Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) album and the Eras Tour still in full swing, what better way to celebrate than to find books related to some of her most popular songs from each decade?

Our newest book display contains a variety of books and movies, all matched to a song from The Eras Tour setlist. The display also includes the infamous surprise songs, both pulled from her Debut album. From romance to crime, you’re sure to find a book that will suit your wildest dreams!

Below are just a few of the books and movies featured in the display, available to you for free through the McGill Library and Overdrive.


She’s the Man

Viola becomes furious when she learns that her high school, Cornwall, has just cut the girl’s soccer team. So furious, in fact, that she takes advantage of her twin brother Sebastian skipping town for a few weeks to take his place at his school, Illyria, so she can join the soccer team there. But her disguise as her brother leads to major complications when she falls in love with her soccer-playing roommate and the girl he’s in love with falls in love with “Sebastian.”

The Man


I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston

Chloe Green is so close to winning. After her moms moved her from SoCal to Alabama for high school, she’s spent the past four years dodging gossipy classmates and the puritanical administration of Willowgrove Christian Academy. The thing that’s kept her going: winning valedictorian. Her only rival: prom queen Shara Wheeler, the principal’s perfect progeny.

You Belong With Me


The Guest List by Lucy Foley

On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed.

And then someone turns up dead. Who didn’t wish the happy couple well? And perhaps more important, why?

no body, no crime


The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

Forty years ago, Harriet Vanger disappeared off the secluded island owned and inhabited by the powerful Vanger family. There was no corpse, no witnesses, no evidence. But her uncle, Henrik, is convinced that she was murdered by someone from her own deeply dysfunctional family. Disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist is hired to investigate, but he quickly finds himself in over his head. He hires a competent assistant: the gifted and conscience-free computer specialist Lisbeth Salander, and the two unravel a dark and appalling family history. But the Vangers are a secretive clan, and Blomkvist and Salander are about to find out just how far they are prepared to go to protect themselves.

Look What You Made Me Do


Before Sunrise

A young American man meets a beautiful French student on a train bound for Paris, falls in love and asks her to share his last night in Vienna.

Enchanted


Normal People by Sally Rooney

Connell Waldron is one of the most popular boys in his small-town high school—he is a star of the football team, an excellent student, and never wanting for attention from girls. The one thing he doesn’t have is money. Marianne Sheridan, a classmate of Connell’s, has the opposite problem. Marianne is plain-looking, odd, and stubborn, and while her family is well-off, she has no friends to speak of. There is, however, a deep and undeniable connection between the two teenagers, one that develops into a secret relationship.

All Too Well


Bad Cree by Jessica Johns

Mackenzie, a Cree millennial, wakes up in her one-bedroom Vancouver apartment clutching a pine bough she had been holding in her dream just moments earlier. When she blinks, it disappears. But she can still smell the sharp pine scent in the air, the nearest pine tree a thousand kilometres away in the far reaches of Treaty 8.

Haunting, fierce, an ode to female relations and the strength found in kinship, Bad Cree is a gripping, arresting debut by an unforgettable voice.

my tears ricochet


Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune

Fern Brookbanks has wasted far too much of her adult life thinking about Will Baxter. She spent just twenty-four hours in her early twenties with the aggravatingly attractive, idealistic artist, a chance encounter that spiraled into a daylong adventure in Toronto. The timing was wrong, but their connection was undeniable: they shared every secret, every dream, and made a pact to meet one year later. Fern showed up. Will didn’t.

Style


The Radical Element by Jessica Spotswood

In The Radical Element, twelve of the most talented writers working in young adult literature today tell the stories of girls of all colors and creeds standing up for themselves and their beliefs — whether that means secretly learning Hebrew in early Savannah, using the family magic to pass as white in 1920s Hollywood, or singing in a feminist punk band in 1980s Boston. And they’re asking you to join them.

Mastermind


John Tucker Must Die

When the class-overachiever, the head cheerleader, and the vegan lover discover they’re all dating the same guy – namely the star basketball player John Tucker – the girls decide to recruit a bashful new girl named Kate to become the ideal girl to break Tucker’s bad boy heart. But as Kate uses the girls’ combined wiles to lure Tucker, his interest gives her a social standing she’s never had before. But the intoxicating experience may cost her a chance at honest love with another boy.

Picture to Burn


Taylor Swift’s music is a treasure trove of emotions and storytelling, and her eras have something for everyone. Whether you’re in the mood for reflection, empowerment, nostalgia, or revenge, there’s a Taylor Swift song and a book to match. So, the next time you listen to one of her songs, consider picking up one of these books or movies to complement the experience!

Writing Tips & Tricks: Your Guide to Successful Writing

The first snowfall in Montreal is a strong indicator of a certain time for the McGill community: the end of the fall semester is fast approaching, and with that comes many assignments and papers that are due. There’s no reason to fret however, as the McGill University Library has a wide collection of writing guides and books to help you get through with the best grade possible.

The following book suggestions cover writing tips for all kinds of subjects, from sciences to management!

Strategies for Writing a Thesis by Publication in the Social Sciences and Humanities by Lynn P. Nygaard and Kristin Solli

Written primarily for PhD students, this guide covers key topics within thesis by publication writing, including rhetorical challenges, strategies for handling the writing process, and much more!

A Companion to Creative Writing by Graeme Harper

This guide covers the writing of poetry, fiction, new media, plays, films, radio works, and other literary genres and forms.

Writing for Engineering and Science Students: Staking Your Claim by Gerald Rau

Accessible to both international students and native speakers of English, this book explores all the distinctive characteristics of a research paper based on articles from engineering and science journals.

Academic Writing: A Guide for Management Students and Researchers by Mathukutty M. Monippally and Badrinarayan Shankar Pawar

This book focuses on three main aspects: understanding existing research, documenting and sharing the results of the acquired knowledge, and acknowledging the use of other people’s ideas and works in the documentation.

Writing Winning Proposals for Nurses and Health Care Professionals by Sandra G. Funk and Elizabeth M. Tornquist

A step by step guide of the entire process of writing and submitting a successful proposal, with focus on writing with substance, clarity, and conviction.

English for Writing Research Papers by Adrian Wallwork

Aimed to help a wide variety of students succeed in academia, this guide contains rules, tips and examples to help you reduce the number of mistakes you make in English.

If you have any questions about how to access these titles or more, contact hssl.library@mcgill.ca