# History books for students: what to read and how to cite it

**Which books do history students need, and how should they cite them?** History books for students fall into five kinds: surveys, monographs, edited collections, historiography, and primary sources in printed editions and translations. Read the edition your module names and cite the one you read. History departments often want footnotes, which EdCitation does not make; where author-date is allowed, Cite a source builds Chicago 18 author-date, and EdCitation's Library holds the books.

Published 2026-09-23 by EdCitation. https://edcitation.com/newsletter/history-books-for-students

History books for students come off reading lists that are not always right. York's first-year module Knowledge and Beliefs in World History gives the University of Chicago Press as publisher of Michel-Rolph Trouillot's *Silencing the Past* (University of York, 2026e). Beacon Press publishes it, since 2015 in a twentieth-anniversary edition with a new foreword by Hazel V. Carby (Beacon Press, n.d.).

EdCitation publishes this guide. It takes the books a history degree reads from York's 2026/27 history module pages, Warwick's Historiography I bibliography and both universities' library guides, all read on 23 September 2026, then gathers them in EdCitation's [Library](https://edcitation.com/tools/library).

On citing, history departments often want footnotes: York's library sets Chicago for History and shows it in footnotes, and Warwick's history department uses MHRA. EdCitation makes neither. Its [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite/chicago) builds Chicago 18 author-date, and APA 7, MLA 9, Harvard, IEEE and Vancouver, for a module that accepts author-date, never in place of footnotes.

## What books does a history student read?

A history student reads five kinds of book: surveys of a period or theme, monographs that argue one case from the evidence, edited collections, historiography on how history has been written, and primary sources, usually in a printed edition or translation.

| Kind of source | Named on a 2026/27 list or library guide |
| --- | --- |
| Survey or textbook | Bayly, *The Birth of the Modern World* (York); Kramer and Maza, eds, *A Companion to Western Historical Thought* (Warwick) |
| Monograph | Drescher, *Abolition*; Trouillot, *Silencing the Past* (York) |
| Edited collection | *The Cambridge World History*, vol. 5; Carr and Lipscomb, eds, *What Is History, Now?* (York) |
| Historiography | Carr, *What is History?*; Iggers and Wang, *A Global History of Modern Historiography* (Warwick) |
| Printed primary source | English Historical Documents; the Loeb Classical Library (York's library) |
| Archive or digitised collection | The Borthwick Institute; Early English Books Online (York's library) |
| All the books together | EdCitation's [Library](https://edcitation.com/tools/library), by title, author or ISBN |

### York: two or three books before each module starts

York's first year has five core modules and a Historical Project (University of York, n.d.). Each module page names two or three books to read before term; the rest is on the module's VLE site. The world history modules open with surveys, such as Burbank and Cooper's *Empires in World History* (University of York, 2026f) and the fifth volume of *The Cambridge World History* (University of York, 2026g).

Arguments and Analysis sets John Arnold's *History: A Very Short Introduction* and the collection edited by Helen Carr and Suzannah Lipscomb (University of York, 2026a); Evidence and Methods sets Jordanova's *History in Practice* and Natalie Zemon Davis's *Fiction in the Archives* (University of York, 2026c). The Historical Projects go deeper: Drescher's *Abolition* (University of York, 2026b), and a chapter of Nancy Partner's edited *Writing Medieval History* with Anthony Bale's *Margery Kempe: A Mixed Life* (University of York, 2026d).

### Warwick: a historiography bibliography

Warwick's Historiography I, a second-year core module listed for 2026/27, runs from the Enlightenment to post-structuralism. Its one core textbook is Kramer and Maza's *Companion*, held in print and online (University of Warwick, 2024). Its bibliography, last revised in April 2019, lists 25 titles: students are to read Carr's 1961 book "in full at the start of the year", and Iggers and Wang are recommended for treating history-writing as a global subject (University of Warwick, 2019).

## What counts as a primary source, and where do history students read one?

A primary source is material from the time being studied: a charter, a letter, a newspaper, a diary. Students mostly read one in a printed collection of documents or a scholarly edition or translation, and sometimes in an archive or a digitised collection.

### Printed collections, editions and translations

York's library guide for history lists them side by side (University of York Library, n.d.-b):

- **English Historical Documents Online**: over 5,500 documents from 500 to 1914, from treaties to diaries, many with editorial commentary.
- **Manchester Medieval Sources Online**: 34 titles of medieval texts in translation, each with introductory and explanatory material.
- **The Loeb Classical Library**: over 530 volumes of Latin and Greek with English translations, updated with new and revised volumes.

Each puts an editor or translator between you and the source.

### Archives and digitised collections

Archives hold unpublished records, often described only by the box, and York's guide warns that researchers may have to sift through them themselves. It points to the Borthwick Institute for Archives, the Archives Hub (descriptions from over 390 UK institutions) and The National Archives' Discovery. Digitised collections put print online: Early English Books Online holds over 100,000 titles printed between 1475 and 1700.

## Why does the edition of a history book matter?

The edition matters because what you quote must be what you read: a reissue can add an introduction or a foreword, and a primary text reaches you in its editor's or translator's words. Chicago's advice, for volumes in many editions, is to cite the ones you used (University of Chicago Press, n.d.-c).

### New introductions and anniversary editions

Warwick dates Carr's *What is History?* to 1961, the year of the Trevelyan Lectures behind it; Penguin's Modern Classics edition of 7 June 2018 adds an introduction by Richard J. Evans (Penguin, n.d.). Beacon Press reissued *Silencing the Past* on 17 March 2015 with Carby's foreword. A sentence by Evans or Carby is not one by Carr or Trouillot, and one printing's pages are not another's. A book can also answer another: *What Is History, Now?* marked sixty years since Carr's book, and one of its editors, Helen Carr, is E. H. Carr's great-granddaughter (Lipscomb, n.d.).

### One manuscript, many versions: *The Book of Margery Kempe*

Kempe's *Book* survives in one manuscript, Add MS 61823, which the British Library (n.d.) catalogues as "the unique manuscript witness", copied around 1445 to 1450 and identified in 1934. Every student reads it through an edition or translation; the catalogue lists these among others:

| Year | Version | Editor or translator, publisher |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1936 | A modern version | W. E. I. Butler-Bowdon, Cape |
| 1940 | The Middle English text, Early English Text Society | Sanford Brown Meech, with Hope Emily Allen, Oxford University Press |
| 1985 | Translation | Barry Windeatt, Penguin |
| 1996 | Edition | Lynn Staley, Medieval Institute Publications |
| 2000 | Annotated edition | Barry Windeatt, Brewer |
| 2001 | Translation, with contexts and criticism | Lynn Staley, Norton |
| 2015 | Translation | Anthony Bale, Oxford University Press |

A sentence quoted from Bale is Bale's modern English, not the Middle English of Kempe's scribes: name the translator, and quote only from the version your reference names.

## How do I find the edition a reading list names by ISBN?

Find the publisher's page for the edition the list names, copy its ISBN, and search with that. York's lists give no ISBNs, and one book can carry several: Cambridge gives Drescher's *Abolition* one each for the hardback, the paperback and the online book (Drescher, 2009).

1. Write down the list entry as it stands, publisher and year included.
2. Find the publisher's page for that edition and note the ISBN. Beacon's page for the anniversary *Silencing the Past* gives 978-0-8070-8053-5; Penguin's for Carr's 2018 edition gives 9780241351901.
3. Check the entry against that page. Besides Trouillot's publisher, York's Arguments and Analysis spells Lipscomb's first name "Suzanna" (University of York, 2026a); her own page spells it Suzannah.
4. Put the ISBN, or the title, into EdCitation's [Library](https://edcitation.com/tools/library) and sort by most editions or newest first: the editions it holds line up in one list.
5. Where a later edition exists, check with the module tutor before switching, and build your reference from the title page of the copy in your hands.

## Do history students cite with footnotes or author-date?

Often with footnotes. The University of Chicago Press (n.d.-b) says its notes and bibliography system is preferred by many in the humanities, history included, and that students should check with their instructor. EdCitation builds no footnotes.

### What York and Warwick ask for

York's library names Chicago as the History department's style and shows its examples in footnotes, sending anyone whose department allows author-date to the Manual (University of York Library, n.d.-a, n.d.-c). It adds a History rule: for a source quoted in another, the footnote names both and the list only the one you read. Warwick's library calls MHRA, another footnote style, the department's standard (University of Warwick Library, n.d.).

For footnotes, work from Chicago's own [notes and bibliography samples](https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html) (University of Chicago Press, n.d.-d) or your department's MHRA guide. Where a module accepts author-date, see [when to use Chicago author-date](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/when-to-use-chicago-author-date) and the [Chicago author-date referencing guide](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/chicago-author-date-referencing-guide). If a brief says only "Chicago", EdCitation's free [Check your paper](https://edcitation.com/check) reads it into a checklist that includes the style.

### A monograph, from its DOI and its ISBN

These entries were built for this guide in EdCitation's [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite/chicago), free with no account, in Chicago 18 author-date, and are quoted as they came back. From the DOI of Drescher's *Abolition*:

Drescher, Seymour. 2009. *Abolition: A History of Slavery and Antislavery*. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511770555.

That entry stands. The subtitle, kept in a field of its own in the publisher's record, is joined to the title, and no edition is given: the record calls this the first, and Chicago's samples name an edition only after the first, as in Borel's "2nd ed." (University of Chicago Press, n.d.-a). The paperback's ISBN, 9780521600859, gave the same entry without the DOI.

In the text: (Drescher 2009), with any page after a comma.

### A chapter in one volume of *The Cambridge World History*

From the DOI of Susan Reynolds's chapter in the volume York sets:

Reynolds, Susan. 2015. “Society: Hierarchy and Solidarity.” In *The Cambridge World History*, edited by Benjamin Z. Kedar and Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667480.005.

The chapter's record names no editors, so Cite a source took them from the book's own record, but neither record names the volume, only the set. Cambridge's page supplies it: volume 5, *Expanding Webs of Exchange and Conflict, 500 CE–1500 CE* (Reynolds, 2015). Chicago's Q&A puts the volume and its editors first, then "Vol. 11 of" the set. Corrected:

Reynolds, Susan. 2015. “Society: Hierarchy and Solidarity.” In *Expanding Webs of Exchange and Conflict, 500 CE–1500 CE*, edited by Benjamin Z. Kedar and Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks. Vol. 5 of *The Cambridge World History*. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667480.005.

The 18th edition drops the chapter's page range from the list; give the page in the text: (Reynolds 2015, 97).

### A translated primary text

From the ISBN of Bale's translation, 9780199686643:

Bale, Anthony. 2015. *The Book of Margery Kempe*. Oxford World’s Classics. Oxford University Press.

The series and the publisher, which the book record writes in one field, came apart, but the record names Bale, the translator, as the author, and no rule can tell a translator the record does not mark. Chicago puts the author first and the translator after the title, as in its example "Translated by Jeremy Tiang". Corrected:

Kempe, Margery. 2015. *The Book of Margery Kempe*. Translated by Anthony Bale. Oxford University Press.

In the text: (Kempe 2015, 12). On the first tries the book registry did not answer; Cite a source said so rather than guess, and a later try worked. A document in a printed collection goes under the collection's editors, with its place in the text, as in Chicago's (Kurland and Lerner 1987, chap. 10, doc. 19). More cases: [how to cite a book or ebook](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/how-to-cite-a-book-or-ebook) and [how to cite a textbook chapter](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/how-to-cite-a-textbook-chapter).

## Where can I find history books in one place?

EdCitation's [Library](https://edcitation.com/tools/library) is the best place to bring a history student's books together, because the reading spreads so far: York's first-year pages alone name more than a dozen publishers, and one medieval text comes in at least seven versions. Its single catalogue of textbooks and scholarly books takes a title, an author, a subject or an ISBN, and each search narrows by discipline, kind of book, language and year. History is one of 31 disciplines.

### Carr, Kempe and Trouillot in the catalogue

On 23 September 2026, History with the kind set to Textbook returned 37,589 books, and with Atlas or illustrated guide 3,691. Carr's *What is History?*, newest first, returned 14 records, among them the 2021 collection, Penguin's 2018 edition, Macmillan's of 1961 and Japanese, Thai and Hebrew translations. *The Book of Margery Kempe*, by most editions, put the 1940 Early English Text Society edition first, and the title alone found Bale's translation. Beacon's ISBN for *Silencing the Past* went straight to the book, one to borrow with Max.

Every record shows its cover, authors, publisher and year, and whether it opens here or must be bought. Beside it sit four actions: a link to buy a paid one, the nearby libraries that hold a copy, a bookmark into My Books, and a reference built in one click. Max goes further: more than 5 million books to read in full or to borrow, a collection EdCitation compiled for students and readers and keeps in one place.

### Free with an account, or part of Max

Searching the catalogue, keeping My Books, following a buying link and looking for a nearby library copy need only a free EdCitation account. To read or borrow, you need Max, at $24 a month or $216 paid yearly, which also brings Theoretics QA. No sign-in is asked for [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite) or [Verify references](https://edcitation.com/verify-references), and [Pricing](https://edcitation.com/pricing) sets the plans side by side.

### Journal articles, and a last check of the list

For journal articles, EdCitation's [Find sources](https://edcitation.com/) searches about 300 million published works by topic, or by the claim a sentence needs, with filters for kind of source, years and open access. When the list is finished, paste it into [Verify references](https://edcitation.com/verify-references): every entry is looked up in the publishers' records and marked verified, "check this" or not found, retracted papers carry a flag, and one that could not be checked is labelled so, never as not found. The same guide exists for [psychology](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/psychology-books-and-textbooks-in-one-place), [nursing](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/nursing-textbooks-and-books-in-one-place), [medicine](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/medicine-books-and-textbooks-for-students), [engineering](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/engineering-textbooks-in-one-place), [computer science](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/computer-science-books-and-textbooks), [business](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/business-and-management-books-for-students), [economics](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/economics-textbooks-in-one-place) and [law](https://edcitation.com/newsletter/law-books-and-textbooks-for-students).

## Quick questions

### What books do first-year history students need?

The ones each module names. York's first-year modules set two or three books before term, such as Burbank and Cooper's *Empires in World History*.

### Which edition of What is History? should I read?

The one your module names. Penguin's 2018 Modern Classics edition of Carr's 1961 lectures adds an introduction by Richard J. Evans; cite the edition you read, with its year.

### Does EdCitation do footnotes for a history essay?

No. EdCitation's [Cite a source](https://edcitation.com/cite/chicago) produces Chicago 18 author-date and five other styles, none of them a footnote system, so Chicago or MHRA notes are written from the style's own guide.

### How do I cite a translated primary source in Chicago author-date?

Author, year of the edition read, italic title, "Translated by" and the translator, then the publisher: Kempe, Margery. 2015. *The Book of Margery Kempe*. Translated by Anthony Bale. Oxford University Press.

### Where can I find history books in one place?

EdCitation's [Library](https://edcitation.com/tools/library) gathers them: History is one of its 31 disciplines, a search narrows by kind, language and year, My Books keeps what you choose, and Max lets you read or borrow from more than 5 million books.

## References

- Beacon Press. (n.d.). *Silencing the past: Power and the production of history* (20th anniversary ed.). [https://www.beacon.org/Silencing-the-Past-P1109.aspx](https://www.beacon.org/Silencing-the-Past-P1109.aspx)
- British Library. (n.d.). *Add MS 61823: The book of Margery Kempe* [Catalogue record]. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from [https://searcharchives.bl.uk/catalog/032-001962059](https://searcharchives.bl.uk/catalog/032-001962059)
- Drescher, S. (2009). *Abolition: A history of slavery and antislavery*. Cambridge University Press. [https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511770555](https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511770555)
- Lipscomb, S. (n.d.). *What is history, now?* [https://suzannahlipscomb.com/books/what-is-history-now/](https://suzannahlipscomb.com/books/what-is-history-now/)
- Penguin. (n.d.). *What is history?* [Penguin Modern Classics]. [https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/308101/what-is-history-by-carr-edward-hallett/9780241351901](https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/308101/what-is-history-by-carr-edward-hallett/9780241351901)
- Reynolds, S. (2015). Society: Hierarchy and solidarity. In B. Z. Kedar & M. E. Wiesner-Hanks (Eds.), *The Cambridge world history: Vol. 5. Expanding webs of exchange and conflict, 500 CE–1500 CE* (pp. 94–115). Cambridge University Press. [https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667480.005](https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667480.005)
- University of Chicago Press. (n.d.-a). *Author-date: Sample citations*. The Chicago Manual of Style Online. [https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html](https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html)
- University of Chicago Press. (n.d.-b). *Chicago-style citation quick guide*. The Chicago Manual of Style Online. [https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html](https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html)
- University of Chicago Press. (n.d.-c). *Citation, documentation of sources* (Q&A No. 55). The Chicago Manual of Style Online. [https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Documentation/faq0055.html](https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Documentation/faq0055.html)
- University of Chicago Press. (n.d.-d). *Notes and bibliography: Sample citations*. The Chicago Manual of Style Online. [https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html](https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html)
- University of Warwick. (2019). *Historiography I (HI2E1): Bibliography*. Department of History. [https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/modules/hi2e1/bib/](https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/modules/hi2e1/bib/)
- University of Warwick. (2024). *Historiography I: Methods and theories in their historical context, 1750–c.1990 (HI2E1)*. Department of History. [https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/modules/hi2e1/](https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/modules/hi2e1/)
- University of Warwick Library. (n.d.). *History: Referencing*. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from [https://warwick.libguides.com/history/referencing](https://warwick.libguides.com/history/referencing)
- University of York. (n.d.). *History (BA)*. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from [https://www.york.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/ba-history/](https://www.york.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/ba-history/)
- University of York. (2026a). *Arguments & analysis (HIS00104C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00104C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00104C/2026-27)
- University of York. (2026b). *Ending slavery & serfdom (HIS00100C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00100C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00100C/2026-27)
- University of York. (2026c). *Evidence & methods (HIS00088C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00088C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00088C/2026-27)
- University of York. (2026d). *Extraordinary lives: The medieval worlds of princes, monks & unconventional women (HIS00102C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00102C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00102C/2026-27)
- University of York. (2026e). *Knowledge & beliefs in world history (HIS00085C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00085C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00085C/2026-27)
- University of York. (2026f). *Political communities in world history (HIS00084C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00084C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00084C/2026-27)
- University of York. (2026g). *Societies & economies in world history (HIS00086C) 2026-27*. [https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00086C/2026-27](https://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/programmes/module-catalogue/module/HIS00086C/2026-27)
- University of York Library. (n.d.-a). *Chicago*. Referencing styles. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from [https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/referencing-style-guides/chicago](https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/referencing-style-guides/chicago)
- University of York Library. (n.d.-b). *History: Resources*. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from [https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/history/resources](https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/history/resources)
- University of York Library. (n.d.-c). *Referencing styles*. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from [https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/referencing-style-guides/home](https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/referencing-style-guides/home)