Reading & Literature

Search thousands of academic journals at once on a broad range of disciplines.

Academic Search Complete Help, opens a new window

Explore and stay informed on local, national and international topics, people and events in areas such as business, health, education, jobs and careers, political and social issues and more. Features a wide variety of credible, vetted news sources from around the world to around the corner, including The San Mateo Daily Journal. Also available remotely 24/7 on any device.

Enriches the reading experience for all ages, from young children to adults! Find book readings, read-alongs, meet-the-author videos, book trailers and more.

Find book readings, read-alongs, meet-the-author videos, book trailers and more for children of all ages.

Enjoy over 200,000 resources about children's and young adult books while learning from home.

Book Connections se esfuerza por enriquecer con alegría la experiencia de todos al leer libros para niños y jóvenes. Solamente selecciona español en el menú desplegable ubicado en la esquina superior derecha.

Find book readings, read-alongs, meet-the-author videos, book trailers and more for teens.

Summaries and commentary for hundreds of literary classics.

Use EBSCOhost to select and search reference databases of your choice. This interface is recommended for advanced searchers. For students and general searchers, try one of the Explora databases below:

• General Research
• Elementary School Research
• Middle School Research
• High School Research

EBSCOhost Help, opens a new window

An authoritative database of indexed and full-text education literature and resources.

ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) Help, opens a new window

Search multiple databases at once covering general interest topics, business resources, literary reference, news articles and more.

Databases searched:

• MasterFILE Premier (with Consumer Reports)
• Business Source Complete
• Newspaper Source Plus
• Biography Reference Center
• Topic Overviews Public Libraries
• Associated Press Videos

General Research Help, opens a new window

Students can search multiple databases at once for full-text articles, images, videos, and more for high school research (grades 9-12).

Databases searched:

• MAS Complete
• Newspaper Source Plus
• History Reference Center
• Literary Reference Center Plus
• Science Reference Center
• TOPICsearch
• Biography Reference Center
• Topic Overviews 6-12
• Associated Press Videos

High School Research Help, opens a new window

This full-text database that combines information from major respected reference works, books, literary journals as well as original content from EBSCO Publishing.

Literary Reference Center Plus Help, opens a new window

Search and browse full-text articles from magazines, reference books, and other primary source documents.

MasterFILE Premier Help, opens a new window

72-hour complimentary, unlimited access pass to the full edition of The New York Times online and eligible apps without a subscription. Find all regular newspaper content, photography, and videos dating back from 1851 to the present. Personalize your access through email newsletters, mobile apps, and customizable news feeds and recommendations. Mandarin and Spanish versions are also available.

Getting Started
To get started, register for a free account either by being logged into smcl.org or from within a San Mateo County Libraries location using a library computer or using your own device on the library WiFi. Once registered, you will be able to enjoy your 72-hour access pass from anywhere by logging in with the same email and password entered during registration.

After your 72-hour pass expires, you may activate a new pass by visiting the pass activation page while once again being logged into smcl.org or from within a San Mateo County Libraries location using a library computer or using your own device on the library WiFi.

Search full-text articles from over 1,200 newspapers, newswires, and news magazines.

Newspaper Source Plus Help, opens a new window

Tell NoveList what you like to read, and it will suggest similar books you might like! Find new fiction, nonfiction, and even audiobooks and authors based on your old favorites. Requires a 29041, 29731 or 29735 library card.

Novelist Plus Help, opens a new window

Provides authoritative, full-text eBooks in a wide range of subject areas along with powerful tools to find, use, and manage the information. Subjects covered: Business & Economics; Computers & IT; Education; Engineering & Technology; History & Political Science; Humanities; Interdisciplinary & Area Studies; Language, Literature & Linguistics; Law, International Relations & Public Policy; Life Sciences; Medical; Nursing & Allied Health; Physical Sciences; Psychology & Social Work; Religion, Philosophy & Classics; Sociology & Anthropology.

eBook Central Help, opens a new window

Students can access all of Redwood City Public Library's eResources using their Empower Card. Requires 29731 or 29735 library card.

Provides multimedia content to complement children's and young adult books. Resources include audiobook readings, author videos, book discussion guides and lesson plans for over 40,000 books in English and Spanish.

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

Find lesson plans, discussion questions, novel units, reader's theater scripts, and other instructional support for the books you're reading in any K–12 classroom.

• Ready-to-use and vetted for quality to save you time
• Stimulate discussions about the books you're teaching
• Use for book clubs and to prompt conversation about books at home
• Choose from thousands of guides for both fiction and nonfiction
• Great for new educators and teachers-in-training

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

Compile, organize, analyze, and share instructional materials associated with the books in your curriculum.

• Create your own booklists
• Manage text sets
• Analyze text complexity differentiation
• Seamlessly edit, sequence, and annotate lists
• Immediately have instructional materials
• Distribute lists with QR codes, emails, or permanent links

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

Have the author reveal, anytime, the author's purpose, writing, and research processes with these TeachingBooks.net exclusively created primary source materials.

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

Have ready-to-use vocabulary lists — often organized by chapter — for the books that you're teaching. Vocabulary lists include:

• Definitions
• Example sentences pulled from each book
• Audio pronunciations

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

Get to know the latest award-winning books with exclusive primary source recordings that introduce students to authentic writing and research processes.

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

Include diverse cultural experiences in your instruction as reflected in quality fiction and nonfiction books.

• Identify exceptional multicultural books for all content areas
• Bring culture and race to the forefront of literary conversations with authentic, primary source instructional materials

TeachingBooks.net Help, opens a new window

An engaging, interactive, gamified and trustworthy online learning experience for grades pre-K through high school. A suite of online research tools that includes encyclopedia articles, primary source collections, educator tools, student activities, educational games, pictures, audio, maps and video, complemented by children’s ebooks, current periodicals and related Web sites.

Perfect for school reports and research papers. There are different portals for different age ranges and includes Spanish resources for elementary school users.

World Book Online Help, opens a new window