Resources for Landlords & Tenants
by Nicole R
As the University of Michigan fall semester approaches, student move-in begins!
Whether you’re a landlord preparing a rental agreement or a tenant looking to sublease your apartment, the Michigan Legal Forms database can help. The database provides downloadable sample letters and legal forms in a variety of categories, including Real Estate and Landlord-Tenant forms.
Access Michigan Legal Forms in the Legal Resources section of our Research page.
E-books (and more) for kids!
by Nicole R
If your kids are clamoring to use the computer this summer, check out the activities available in the Tumblebooks Library database. The Tumblebooks e-books, audiobooks, puzzles, and games can be accessed from home with your library card.
Find Tumblebooks in the Kids & Teens section of our Research page. Select a category on the Tumblebooks homepage to get started, or choose the index list to browse for your favorite authors and titles.
Expand your magazine collection - instantly!
by Nicole R
Looking for that article from December’s issue of O, The Oprah Magazine? Want to see what was in Time last month? You can access the full text of these magazine articles electronically through the General Reference Center Gold database. Library cardholders can even search from home!
Find General Reference Center Gold in the General Interest section of our Research page. Once you get to the database, choose the advanced search link. Enter your search terms, and enter a magazine title in the 'limit by publication’ box.
And, as always, visit any of our branches to browse our print magazine collection.
Find a New Favorite!
by Nicole R
Read everything by your favorite author? Let the NoveList database help you find a new favorite!
Take a look at the Author Read-Alike section in NoveList -- enter an author’s name and find books from other writers with similar themes, styles, or characters.
Access the database from the Arts, Literature, & Humanities section of the Research page. Once you’re in NoveList, choose the tab labeled For Readers, then click Author Read-Alikes. You can even search the database from home with your library card.
Help for Job Hunters
by Nicole R
Whether you’re a new graduate looking for your first job or a seasoned professional making a change, the AADL has tools to help with your job search.
The ReferenceUSA database provides company descriptions, links to news articles, and corporate family trees to help you learn about potential employers. Plus, you can find mailing addresses and a management directory to help get those cover letters and resumes to the right people!
Access the database from the Business and Investment section of our Research page. From the ReferenceUSA home page, choose “US Businesses” to start searching.
And, Library cardholders can access ReferenceUSA from home!
Help for Foreign Language Learners
by Nicole R
The Library can help you brush up on your language skills while school’s out this summer - or get you started learning a brand new language - all from the comfort of home!
Library card holders can access the Online Language Learning Center (sometimes known as Rosetta Stone), which provides learners with writing, reading, listening, and speaking lessons in a number of languages from Arabic to Japanese to Welsh.
Connect online through the College, Careers, & Education section of our Research Page. Complete a one-time registration at the Online Language Learning Center site so you can save your work, and you’re ready to go!
Good luck, bonne chance, buena suerte....
Know before you buy
by Nicole R
Got your eye on a new grill? Replacing that old air conditioner? If you'd like to review the product information in Consumer Reports, the AADL can help - and you don't even need to leave home!
Library card holders can access full text articles from the magazine using the General OneFile database, accessible from the Research page. Once you're at the InfoTrac site, choose the Advanced Search screen to limit your search by publication and enter "Consumer Reports" into the publication title box.
Of course, if you’re coming to the library, you can still find the print copy of Consumer Reports at all of our branches.
What Do I Read Next?
by Nicole R
Looking for a good book set in Michigan? Or maybe a story about a zookeeper? The What Do I Read Next? database is here to help you!
Try their Who? What? Where? When? feature – select a character, setting, or time period to search the database and get a list of titles that match your selections. You can limit by age range and choose fiction and/or non-fiction titles. You can access What Do I Read Next? from the library’s Research page. (And, for a Michigan setting, check out The Lake, the River & the Other Lake. For a story about a zookeeper, try Good Night, Gorilla.)
Real People
by Nicole R
Have you watched The Queen, or read Abundance: a Novel of Marie Antoinette, or checked out other books and movies with characters based on real people?
If you want to find out more about the real lives of those portrayed on screen and in print, try the Biography Resource Center with Marquis Who's Who. The database includes narrative biographies, as well as articles and selected websites. Access it through our Research page in the Biography section.
Don’t forget you can use the database from home with a Library card!
Resources for Book Club Members
by Nicole R
If your book club is setting its summer agenda, the Library can help you -- with more than just the books!
If you’re looking for discussion questions, the Novelist database offers reading group guides for a range of titles. Need more information about an author? You can find author biographies, bibliographies, and selected websites in the Literature Resource Center.
Both databases can be accessed through the Arts and Literature section of our Research page.