Before you dive into a research paper, it can be a good idea to do some background research. This will help you figure out a topic that is interesting to you, and introduce you to the major players in your particular area.
Many people do background research through sources like Wikipedia or general Google searching. You can also use a variety of specific encyclopedias that are available through the MSU Libraries.
Here are some suggestions for references that may be related to topics in African American studies through the Harlem Renaissance. These are eBooks; if you prefer print, many are available on the library shelves or in the Reference collection on 1 East.
If these are not the sources you are looking for, you can search for other reference sources. Do a keyword search using "reference", "black", "African-American" or "Harlem renaissance", and perhaps another more specific key word such as "activism" or "literature" or whatever your more specific topic is. When you look through your list of results, look for buzzwords like encyclopedia, almanac, or handbook. Those often denote reference sources.
