APA Format: Typical Book

The Center for Writing Studies, The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

A typical bibliographic entry for a book will appear as follows:

Arnheim, R. (1971). Art and visual perception. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

The author's name is listed first. It is followed by the date of publication, in parentheses, ended with a period.

Next is the book title, which should be in italics. Capitalize only the first word of the title (and the first word of the subtitle, if any) and any proper names. Include any additional information necessary for retrieving the book (such as "3rd ed." or "Vol. 4") in parentheses, immediately after the title. Close with a final period.

The publication information comes last. Identify the city and, if the city is not well known or could be confused with another city, the state where the publisher is located. States should be named using their two-letter abbreviations in all caps (e.g. IL, VA, MD). Place a colon (:) after the city name, then identify the name of the publisher, clearly and briefly. Spell out the names of associations and university presses, but omit superfluous terms such as "Publishers," "Co.," or "Inc." Keep the words "Books" and "Press." If two or more locations are given, give the location listed first or the publisher's home office. Close with a period.

For more specific information, consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (Fifth Edition) or see the APA style website.