Library News
Database of the Week: CLCD Children’s Literature Comprehensive Database
Posted on October 6th, 2017
Welcome back for another Database of the Week! This week I, your humble library writing intern, would like to present the Children’s Literature Comprehensive Database (or CLCD for short.)
You can find CLCD by navigating to ‘C’ on the database A-Z page. Or,select the ‘Research by Subject’ tab above the search bar and then click on ‘Literature/Drama.’ Scroll down to the heading “Interdisciplinary and Related” to find CLCD.
CLCD mostly applies to elementary and middle grade education majors, there are still some valuable assets to this easy-to-search site for all (especially for those avid YA readers, like myself!)
The advanced search features allow for many different ways to look for titles, authors, subject areas, or even age ranges. So, if you were to do a presentation for your children’s lit class about historical fiction, you could select an age range (anywhere from ages 1-18), a series, the scholastic reading level or even the amount of Accelerated Reading points the title is worth.
For that same presentation on historical fiction, you can search specifically for the country of publication. CLCD allows you to focus on international titles like those from the U.K. or Canada.
But what if you are really passionate about historical fiction (as I am, obviously), and you would like to focus on only acclaimed books, like award winners? There’s even a selection for that!
If you’re interested in a boarder search (or the number of options is too overwhelming when you’re buried in midterms!), ditch all the Advanced Search options, and stick to the efficient ‘Power Search’ option in CLCD (psst! ‘Power Search’ tab is on the top right, next to ‘Advanced Search.’)
With this option you can search more generally for all the options that the Advanced Search offers, just in a simpler format that is more accessible for people with sensory disorders (or people who prefer a simpler interface).
Some of the features of this database can be used for lesson planning on a certain subject… or for that special YA reader in your life who only wants to read particular subjects. The CLCD has a ‘Read and Shine’ blog, which covers reading lists based on age range, such as picture books, middle grade books, and even author interviews about their publications.
The CLCD also offers thematic reading lists, focusing on a topic and including a wide range of titles. Here’s a few to kick off your own research:
‘The Top Ten Most Challenged Books’ includes titles such as Eleanor and Park, I Am Jazz, and Make Something Up: Stories You Can’t Unread.
‘Mental Illness in YA – A Reading List’ includes titles such as It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Finding Audrey, and The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B.
‘Books to Read Aloud for All Ages’ includes titles such as Holes, Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, and Borrowers.
That’s all for this week. Check out the Ref News blog for more neat finds in our massive collection. And of course, come back next week for another Database of the Week! And happy reading!
