Referencing eBooks on Perlego
You can find our referencing tool in any book in the library. Simply open the book you want to cite and click on the quotation-marks " icon in the menu on the left-hand side.
You can then choose your preferred referencing style by clicking on the drop-down and clicking 'Copy' to then copy and paste your reference wherever you need it.
Styles
We have 22 different types of referencing styles available in our eReader, but we're always keen to hear if we don't have the one you need.
AAA (American Anthropological Association)
ACS (American Chemical Society)
AMA (American Medical Association)
APA 6 (American Psychological Association 6th edition)
APA 7 (American Psychological Association 7th edition)
APSA (American Political Science Association)
Chicago Manual of Style 17th edition (author-date)
Chicago Manual of Style 17th edition (full note)
CSE (Council of Science Editors)
Harvard
Harvard (Australian style)
IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)
MHRA (Modern Humanities Research Association - author date)
MLA 7 (Modern Language Association 7th edition)
MLA 8 (Modern Language Association 8th edition)
NLM (National Library of Medicine)
OSCOLA (Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities)
SBL (Society for Biblical Literature)
SBL (Society for Biblical Literature Full Note)
Turabian
Turabian 9
Vancouver
Referencing eBooks without Page Numbers
Learners often ask us how they should reference eBooks that don't contain page numbers.
All ePUB format books are designed by the publishers without page numbers because they are intended to adapt to the reader's screen size, with the ability to customise how many words or paragraphs you see at once, which causes page numbers to be inconsistent and inaccurate.
We've taken guidance from international academic best practices to build our citation tool. The majority of academic referencing styles suggest using the most narrow location reference to cite when a page number is not available - in the case of ePUBs that would be the chapter or section number.
Here are some examples of how to do so in 6 popular styles:
APA 6 & 7
Provide the reader with the relevant information to identify the location of the passage. For books that have no page numbers, include either the section title or paragraph number, or a combination of the two.
Citing a paragraph number:
Place the paragraph number – abbreviated to “para.” – after the date of publication.
Example:
(Prothero, 2019, para. 5)
Citing a section title:
Place the section title – followed by the word “section” – after the date of publication.
Example:
(Prothero, 2019, From Dinosaurs to Birds section)
Citing texts with long titles:
Abbreviate the heading and place it within quotation marks.
Example:
“The Importance of Dinosaurs in Evolutionary Theory” ➡️
(Prothero, 2019, “The Importance of Dinosaurs” section, para. 4)
Harvard
Despite being one of the most commonly used referencing styles, there is no single or definitive version of Harvard style: its usage varies from institution to institution. It is therefore imperative to consult your own university or academic institution’s Harvard formatting guidelines before starting your project. You should always provide the reader with the relevant information to identify the location of the passage.
Citing from a book with no page numbers:
Include either the section title or paragraph number, or a combination of the two.
Example:
(Prothero, 2019, para. 5)
or (Prothero, 2019, From Dinosaurs to Birds section, para. 4)
Citing texts with long titles:
Abbreviate the heading and place it within quotation marks.
Example
“The Importance of Dinosaurs in Evolutionary Theory” ➡️
(Prothero, 2019, “The Importance of Dinosaurs” section, para. 4)
Chicago
Provide the reader with the relevant information to identify the location of the passage. For books with no page numbers, include the section title, chapter or paragraph number, or a combination of the three.
Citing books consulted online:
Include a URL at the end of your reference.
Remember to abbreviate chapter to “chap.” and paragraph to “para.”
Footnote Example:
Donald R. Prothero, The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries: Amazing Fossils and the People Who Found Them (New York: Columbia University Press, 2019), chap. 4, para. 2, https://ereader.perlego.com/1/book/773597/12.
Subsequent Footnote Example:
Prothero, Story of the Dinosaurs, chap. 4, para. 2.
Turabian
Provide the reader with the relevant information to identify the location of the passage. For books that have no page numbers, include the section title, chapter or paragraph number, or a combination of the three.
Citing books consulted online:
Remember to abbreviate chapter to “chap.” and paragraph to “para.”
Example:
(Prothero 2019, para. 5)
(Prothero 2019, chap. 4)
OSCOLA
Provide a reader with the relevant information to identify the location of the passage. For books that have no page numbers, include the section title, chapter or paragraph number, or a combination of the three.
Unlike most referencing styles, OSCOLA (The Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities) does not require you to use any punctuation marks between chapter/paragraph and number.
Citing book consulted online:
Abbreviate chapter to “ch” and paragraph to “para”, remembering to leave a space before the number.
Example:
Donald R Prothero, The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries: Amazing Fossils and the People Who Found Them (Columbia University Press 2019) ch 1, para 4.
In-Text Citations
Referencing can feel confusing and laborious at times. The styles are one thing to consider but knowing how to reference specific sections in different types of content, especially e-books, adds an extra layer of complexity.
We’ve built a tool to help. Generate in-text citations instantly with our newest referencing tool. It’s available for our 6 most popular referencing styles: APA 6, APA 7, Chicago Manual of Style 17th edition, Harvard, OSCOLA, and Turbian 9.
First, select the text passage you want to cite in the Perlego eReader. Then, select the quotation marks in the pop-up, and your citation will automatically be added to your referencing tab in your chosen style, ready to copy into your work.
Check out the how-to visual below, and give it a go!
If you're ever unsure of how to reference and require further help, check out our Knowledge Base, full of free resources on how to reference: Perlego Knowledge Base 🧠
If you have any questions, feedback, or suggestions please feel encouraged to reach out to our Customer Support Team via [email protected] or live chat (available Sunday-Friday 9 am - 8 pm GMT, though hours may vary) - we'd love to hear from you 💙