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Politics and International Relations: Reading list guide


The Library’s online reading list service will help you find the books, journal articles and other resources that you need for your modules. 

Reading Lists link: 
https://soton.rl.talis.com/index.html

It has many features including:

  • can be accessed from Blackboard 

  • lists structured by week or by topic 

  • items tagged as essential or additional so that you know which to look at first 

  • direct links to online materials 

  • shows how many print copies we have and where to find them 

How do I find the reading list for my module?

There are two ways of accessing your lists:

1. Through Blackboard

On your module page, look for the Reading Lists link.

There should be a link to your module reading list  - please contact your module lead if you can't see one. 

 

Homepage for Blackboard module with Reading List link circled in red.


2. By searching

Go to the homepage of the reading list system: https://soton.rl.talis.com/index.html?lang=en

Find your reading list by entering the name of the module or lecturer/tutor in the search box.

Search box that appears on the Reading List homepage.   A search for GEOG1010 is shown. 

Getting started with your reading list

Your reading list will include some core information about each item on the list such as title, author, date, and item type.  A View Online button appears next to those items that are available electronically. 

To check whether a book is held in print, click on its title.  More details will appear, including information on where to find the book and how many copies are available.

An example of an entry for a print book on a reading list which is tagged as additional reading.  Shows information on where to find book in the Library.  Lecturers note also appears.

You may see additional information provided by your lecturer, telling you if the item is essential or additional reading and other notes for guidance.

Using other resources

Your reading list is your starting point for resources to support your studies but there are other places to find information, including:

Book online appointment. Imagee:iStock-1212108555

FAQs

Click on Table of Contents in the top menu bar to see section headings used in the list. These might be weeks, topics or type of reading.

Table of contents drop-down menu.  Table of Contents heading highlighted in red.

Click on a heading to go directly to that section's resources.

Use the search box at the top right-hand side of the screen to look for items by author, title etc.

Search box that appears on each Reading List.   A search for Larsson is shown. Clear Search option appears underneath.

Click on Clear Search to return to the full list.

You can group the list by resource type (book, article, etc.) or by importance (essential or additional). Use the Filter option at the top of the screen to make your selection.

Drop-down menu with Filter heading highlighted in red.

Click on Clear Filter to return to the full list.

Setting reading intentions can help you plan and track your reading progress. Your reading intentions are private to you.

To add a reading intention, click on the circle button and choose from the options offered.

Reading intentions drop-down menu, Reading Intentions button highlighted in red.

The selected colour symbol displays against each item to show your reading intention. You can go back and update these as you read items on your list.

You can also filter by your reading intentions using the Filter menu at the top of the list.

Click on the three dots next to the title. Choose Personal note, type your note in the box and click Save. Notes are kept personal to you.

Three dots menu is shown, Personal Note option highlighted in red.

From the View & Export menu:

View & Export drop-down menu with View & Export option highlighted in red.

  • Click RIS to export the list to a file you can open in Endnote, Mendeley or other reference management software
  • Click CSV to export the list to a spreadsheet
  • Click PDF - List or Bibliography to export the list to a PDF file

Click on the three dots next to the title and choose Report broken link.

Three dots drop-down menu is shown with Report Broken Link option highlighted in red.