Books and Other Printed Works
Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date.
American Heritage Dictionary. Houghton, 2002.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (American Heritage 49)
Narrative: American Heritage Dictionary (49)
In your list of works cited: "when a work is published without an author's name, do not list the author as "Anonymous." Instead, skip the author element and begin the entry with the work's title." (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p.108).
When citing such sources in-text either cite the title in your prose or in parentheses. Note, "for concision, when a title is needed in a parenthetical citation, shorten the title if it is longer than a noun phrase" (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p.237).
Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date.
Alexis, Andre. Fifteen Dogs: An Apologue. Coach House Books, 2015.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Alexis 58).
Narrative, first reference: Alexis (58).
Narrative, subsequent references: Alexis (58).
The first time you mention the authors in your writing, include both first and last names. For all subsequent references to those authors, use only their last names. (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 232).
Two authors
Last Name, First Name, and First Name Last Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date.
Rosow, Stephen J., and Jim George. Globalization and Democracy. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2015.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Rosow and George 19-20).
Narrative: Rosow and George (52).
When a source has two authors, include them in the order in which they are presented in the work. Reverse the first of the names...follow it with a comma and the word and, and give the second name in the normal order" (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 111).
Three or more authors
Last Name, First Name, et al. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date.
Charles Taylor, et al. Reconstructing Democracy : How Citizens Are Building From the Ground Up. Harvard UP, 2020.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Taylor et al. 135).
Narrative: Taylor and colleagues (135).
"If you refer to the (3 or more) co-authors in your prose... you may list all the names or provide the name of the first collaborator followed by 'and others' or 'and colleagues'" (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 232).
If the name of an academic press contains the words University and Press or a foreign language equivalent, use the abbreviation UP or the equivalent in the publisher's name (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 172). E.g.: Oxford University Press = Oxford UP.
Name of Corporate Author. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date.
United States Department of Justice. Federal reports on police killings: Ferguson, Cleveland, Baltimore, and Chicago. Melville House, 2017.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (United States Department of Justice 52)
Narrative: United States Department of Justice (52)
"When a non-government organization is both author and publisher you may skip the Author element and begin the entry with the work's title. List the organization only as publisher" (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 119).
Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Key contributor(s), Publisher, Publication Date.
Paz, Octavio. In Light of India. Translated by Eliot Weinberger, Harcourt, 1997.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Paz 37)
Narrative: Paz (37)
This example shows a citation highlighting a key contributor - the translator. This format could also be used to highlight roles such as illustrators, editors of a single author's work, directors, choreographers etc. (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., pp. 146-7)
Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Edition, Publisher, Publication Date.
Lutgens, Frederick K., and Edward J. Tarbuck. The Atmosphere: An Introduction to Meteorology. 13th ed.,Pearson, 2016.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Lutgens and Tarbuck 219)
Narrative: Lutgens and Tarbuck (219)
Note: the edition information is only required if the book is not a first edition. The edition field is not included for first editions.
The following example applies when you are citing the entire edited book - not a particular work within the book. See the box titled Book, Chapters and Works in Anthologies with an Author if you need to cite a specific chapter/work within an edited book.
Editor's Last Name, First Name, editor. Title of Book. Edition if not the first, Publisher, Publication Date.
Bunjun, Benita, editor. Academic Well-Being of Racialized Students. Fernwood Publishing, 2021.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Bunjun 78)
Narrative: Bunjun (78)
Formatting editors' names in this scenario follows the general MLA rules for formatting authors' names, e.g., when there are two editors follow the same formatting as if there were two authors:
Editor's Last Name, First Name, and Second Editor's First Name Last Name, editors. Title of Book. Edition, Publisher, Publication Date.
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Short Story, Essay, or Article." Title of Book, edited by Editor's First Name Editor's Last Name, Edition if not the first, Publisher, Publication Date, pp. xx-xx.
Bedford, David. “The Beatles in Liverpool.” The Beatles in Context, edited by Kenneth Womack, Cambridge University Press, 2020, pp. 19-27.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Bedford 24)
Narrative: Bedford (24)
If the name of an academic press contains the words University and Press or a foreign language equivalent, use the abbreviation UP or the equivalent in the publisher's name (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 172). E.g.: Oxford University Press = Oxford UP.
"Title of Short Story, Essay, or Article." Title of Book, edited by Editor's First Name Editor's Last Name, Edition if given and not the first, Publisher, Publication Date, pp. xx-xx.
"Is Abortion Immoral?" Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Bioethical Issues, edited by Carol Levine, 14th ed., McGraw Hill, 2012, pp. 136-7.
In-Text
Parenthetical: ("Is Abortion Immoral?" 136)
Narrative: "Is Abortion Immoral?" (136)
"For concision, when a title is needed in a parenthetical citation, shorten the title if it is longer than a noun phrase...." e.g., "Faulkner's Novels of the South can be shortened to ... Faulkner's Novels." However, if the title is short and "especially if it forms a rhetorical unit, you can give the full title," as in the example citation above (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., pp. 237-8).
Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date. Name of Website or Database, URL or doi number.
Seton, Ernest Thompson. The Trail of the Sandhill Stag. Charles Scribner's Sons, 1914. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/32319.
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Seton 6)
Narrative: Seton (6)
*An access date for an online work should...be provided if the work lacks a publication date or if you suspect that the work has been altered or removed" - or if it's subject to frequent revisions without notice. (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., p. 211). A good example of this would be a Wikipedia article. The above citation does not require an access date as the book is not editable and has a permalink as its URL.
"When including a URL, copy it in full from your browser. Omit a query string when possible....You can usually omit http:// or https:// from URLs unless you want to hyperlink them and are working in a software program that does not allow hyperlinking without the protocol" (MLA Handbook, 9th ed., pp. 195-6).
Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Date. Name of Website or Database, DOI or URL.
Parkington, John. Cederberg Rock Paintings. Clanwilliam Living Landscape, 2003. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/al.ch.document.puhc003
In-Text
Parenthetical: (Parkington 76)
Narrative: Parkington (76)