Digital Reference

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The reference section has gone digital! You can access these reference materials any time, day or night, with the links below. Some services may require your Villa Park library card number when you access their sites.

Not sure where to find what you’re looking for? Search all the collections.

View Reference Collections: By Category | A-Z List

Books and Authors

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Booklist Online
Read book reviews, create lists of titles you want to read, discover blogs about reading and book groups, and more, with this online version of the American Library Association's trade journal, Booklist.
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Books & Authors
Looking for a good book, but not sure where to start? Books & Authors allows readers to search genre fiction and essential non-fiction by character, subject, location, and time period. Based on data from the popular What Do I Read Next? collection, this easy-to-use tool offers readalikes and other recommendations.
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NoveList K-8 Plus
Novelist K-8 assists young fiction readers in finding new authors and titles. This resource is filled with recommended reading lists. Check here for lexile levels for most titles.
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NoveList Plus
Electronic readers' advisory resource which assists fiction readers of all ages in finding new authors and titles.
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Online Book Clubs
Join our Online Book Clubs and start reading books in your email. Each day you will receive a 5-minute portion of a book. Sign up today and start reading tomorrow.
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Scribner Writers Series
Scribner Writers Series includes 15-20 page signed essays on more than 2,000 authors and literary genres drawn from the acclaimed Scribner print series.
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WorldCat
WorldCat is the closest thing there is to a nationwide online library catalog. If we cannot find an item for you locally, we can extend the search throughout the State of Illinois, and even beyond Illinois to the entire United States. Note: Some InterLibrary Loans may come with a postage charge, depending on the location of the lending library.
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Business

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AtoZdatabases
The Premier Job Search, Reference, and Mailing List Database. The database includes 2.3 million job listings, 30 million business & executive profiles, 1.1 million healthcare professionals, and much more. Ideal for sales leads, mailing lists, market research, employment opportunities, finding friends and relatives, and much more!
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Business Source Premier
The Industry's Most Used Business Database for Full Text Business Publications.
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Encyclopedia of Associations
Available through the Gale Directory Library, the Encyclopedia of Associations: National Organizations of the U.S. covers over 25,000 U.S. membership organizations of a national scope.
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Financial Ratings Series
Offers online financial strength ratings and financial planning tools covering banks, credit unions, and insurance companies. Provided by Weiss Ratings and TheStreet Ratings
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Morningstar Investment Research Center
Includes stock and mutual fund reports and screeners to help find investments by particular criteria. Offers an extensive Online Investing Classroom. The Portfolio X-ray feature enables investors to analyze holdings diversity.
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Record Information Services
Scroll through Chicagoland's public records. Real estate transactions, mortgages, foreclosures, and more. Keep an eye on housing values in your community and help safeguard your biggest investment - your home. Sort by name, city, zip code, and more. Record Information Services is a 17 year old data compiler of public records serving the Chicagoland area.
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Education & Careers

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Brainfuse JobNow
JobNow provides a host of services to help in every step of the job search process. Job coaches are available to help with any and all job search related questions. In addition to helping beginning job seekers pinpoint their desired career field, coaches can also provide constructive suggestions on resumes, help write a professional cover letter, and give live interview practice and feedback.
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LearningExpress Library
Based on official tests, LearningExpressLibrary.com provides online practice examinations for the SAT, ACT, ASVAB, GED, and Civil Service careers, along with Adult Basic Skills quizzes covering reading, grammar, and math. Tests are scored immediately and evaluations highlight strengths and weaknesses.
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Mango Languages
Mango is an online language-learning system teaching practical conversation skills for a variety of popular languages including Spanish, French, Japanese, Brazilian, Portuguese, German, Mandarin Chinese, and more.
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Genealogy

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America's Obituaries
America's Obituaries & Death Notices consolidates records from hundreds of newspapers nationwide into a single, fully searchable database. This comprehensive resource features more than 34 million listings-approximately 90% of all recent obituaries and death notices published in the United States.
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Ancestry Library
Search from over 2 billion names in US Census and Genealogy records.
Ancestry Library is only available from within the Library
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HeritageQuest Online
Combines digital, searchable images of U.S. federal census records with the digitized version of the popular UMI Genealogy and Local History collection. This online database is an essential collection of unique material for both genealogical hobbyists and professionals.
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ProQuest Obituaries
The ProQuest Obituaries collection is a premier resource for genealogical and historical research. You can use the collection to search obituaries and death notices from prominent newspapers, such as The New York Times (dating back to 1851). Also included is the Atlanta Constitution (1868-1922), Boston Globe (1872-1922), Chicago Defender (1921-1975), Chicago Tribune (1852-1984), Los Angeles Times (1881-1984), and the Washington Post (1877-1950)
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Health

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Health and Wellness Resource Center
Provides instant access to carefully compiled and trusted medical reference materials. Includes nearly 400 health/medical journals, numerous reference volumes, over 700 health videos from partner Healthology, Inc., hundreds of pamphlets and health-related articles from 2,200 general interest publications in addition to a broad collection of Gale reference titles. Material contained in this Resource Center is intended for informational purposes only.
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Recursos en Espanol

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CatÃ¡logo en lÃ­nea
Localiza, reserva materiales y revisa tu cuenta de la biblioteca para renovar prÃ©stamos con nuestro catÃ¡logo en espaÃ±ol.
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Enciclopedia Juvenil
Bienvenido a la Enciclopedia Juvenil. Utiliza este recurso para investigar o navegar en busca de informaciÃ³n en la enciclopedia o para encontrar palabras en el diccionario.
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Learning Express Library: Recursos para hispanohablantes
Desde mejorar su lectura, escritura y habilidades matemÃ¡ticas hasta la preparaciÃ³n del examen GED, los recursos que encontrarÃ¡ aquÃ­ lo ayudarÃ¡n a lograr sus metas. (Se necesita un usuario y codigo para ingresar al sitio)
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Research, Newspapers, and Magazines

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Argus, Villa Park
Date Range: (1/26/2009 - Current)
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AtoZdatabases
The Premier Job Search, Reference, and Mailing List Database. The database includes 2.3 million job listings, 30 million business & executive profiles, 1.1 million healthcare professionals, and much more. Ideal for sales leads, mailing lists, market research, employment opportunities, finding friends and relatives, and much more!
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Chicago Sun-Times
Date Range: (1/1/1986 - Current)
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Chicago Tribune
Comprehensive coverage back to 1985 is available for the Chicago Tribune through ProQuest.
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Chicago Tribune Historical Archive
Included are * Obituaries and Death Notices (2.5 million) - very unique data covering 1860-1984, including front-page obituaries for notables from Chicago and worldwide. * Chicago Tribune Morgue clippings file (nearly 3 million) - major stories covering events and issues clipped and indexed by the Chicago Tribune staff at time of publication. Coverage is from the 1920's through 1984. * Front pages (16,614 pages containing over 155,000 articles) - image of entire front page as it appeared when published from the early 1900 through 1984.
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Consumer Reports
Known as one of the most trusted resources for information and advice on consumer products, this award-winning website contains information that enables consumers to make better purchasing decisions on the products they are shopping for.
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Daily Herald
Date Range: (1/1/1995 - Current)
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Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Encyclopedia of Associations
Available through the Gale Directory Library, the Encyclopedia of Associations: National Organizations of the U.S. covers over 25,000 U.S. membership organizations of a national scope.
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FirstSearch (OCLC)
Several separate databases covering fulltext magazine articles, Medline, ERIC educational resources, conference proceedings, and a very large database of library holdings in the United States.
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InfoTrac Web
A general interest database that integrates a variety of sources in one easy-to-use interface, including Contemporary Authors; Contemporary Literary Criticism; Scribner Writers Series; Health & Wellness Resource Center; and General Reference Center.
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MasterFILE Complete
MasterFILE Complete provides full text for magazines covering an extensive range of subject areas including business, health, education, fitness, sports & leisure, personal finance, general science, multicultural issues, DIY, fashion and much more. In addition, MasterFILE Complete also provides full text for thousands of general reference publications, reference books, primary source documents, an extensive image collection and more.
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Newspapers (Newsbank)
Chicago Area Newspapers including the Chicago Sun Times, Daily Herald, and Villa Park Argus.
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Spanish Resource Center
Este portal le ofrece recursos de referencia en espaÃ±ol para todas las edades en dos interfaces exclusivos â€” cada uno con una enciclopedia adaptada al lector: Enciclopedia Universal en EspaÃ±ol para High School (edad de 14+) y la Enciclopedia Juvenil para edades de 6-12 aÃ±os.
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Youth and Homework

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BookFlix
BookFlix is a fun reading program that you and your child can access from home or at the library. Scholastic BookFlix pairs classic video storybooks with related nonfiction eBooks. This engaging resource for children in grades PreK-3 will help early readers develop and practice essential reading skills and introduces students to a world of knowledge and exploration. BookFlix includes 50 books that can be listened to in Spanish.
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Brainfuse HelpNow
Brainfuse provides online homework help to elementary and high school students through HelpNow. HelpNow offers one-to-one homework help, as well as state-aligned skills building practice, test preparation, and writing assistance.
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Enciclopedia Juvenil
Bienvenido a la Enciclopedia Juvenil. Utiliza este recurso para investigar o navegar en busca de informaciÃ³n en la enciclopedia o para encontrar palabras en el diccionario.
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Encyclopaedia Britannica for Kids
Encyclopaedia Britannica For Kids is an essential homework helper. Find relevant encyclopedia articles, learning activities, games and videos for grades 1 through 9. Subjects covered include Math, English, Science, Social Studies, and the Arts.
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Kids Search
A fun way for students in elementary and middle school to find information and do research. Includes historical documents, newspapers, science topics, and much more. Includes an image collection of photos, maps and flags.
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NoveList K-8 Plus
Novelist K-8 assists young fiction readers in finding new authors and titles. This resource is filled with recommended reading lists. Check here for lexile levels for most titles.
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Searchasaurus
A place for kids to explore things they are interested in with an easy-to-follow graphical interface. Works well for first school assignments too.
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Spanish Resource Center
Este portal le ofrece recursos de referencia en espaÃ±ol para todas las edades en dos interfaces exclusivos â€” cada uno con una enciclopedia adaptada al lector: Enciclopedia Universal en EspaÃ±ol para High School (edad de 14+) y la Enciclopedia Juvenil para edades de 6-12 aÃ±os.
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TrueFlix
TrueFlix brings true books on people, places, history, science and nature to life. Each topic on TrueFlix includes an introductory video and a flip-through True Book, filled with information and illustrations. Each topic is supported by links to related content and primary sources. This resource can be accessed from the library or at home.
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