When searching for materials that specifically address the trilogy, run separate searches related to the series or the individual books that comprise it. Likewise, place titles in quotation marks ("title") for best results. Examples:

• "His Dark Materials"
• "The Golden Compass"

When searching for this title you might also include the author's last name:

• "The Golden Compass" AND Pullman

(AND should be in all caps when using CATQuest to search for books or for articles across databases.)

In some databases, like Academic Search Premier, it may help to include the alternative UK title of The Golden Compass -- The Northern Lights --in your searches. Using OR and grouping items in parentheses tells the database to look for the presence of either phrase in the results.

• Pullman AND ("The Golden Compass" OR "The Northern Lights")

If looking for a topic in relation to the works try a variety of terms to describe it so that you find a wider variety of information. Examples:

• "The Amber Spyglass" AND authority

To exclude film/television versions of the books, use the connecting term NOT rather than the usual options of AND or OR. For Example:

• "His Dark Materials" NOT (film OR movie)

Why use Multi-subject Databases?

Multi-subject databases enable you to locate articles from a wide variety of disciplinary perspectives at the same time.

As you search a large multi-subject database you may want to start by running some broad searches and then seeing which disciplines or subjects are relevant.