Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Our stories:
A query about a performance of Gustav Mahler’s The Song of the Earth (Das Lied von der Erde) leads librarian Walter Struve on an evocative journey into the Library’s rich Theatre Programmes Collection.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Fashion, Our stories, Such was life:
Watch the wonders of fashion unfold with this informative and visually stunning peak into the history of clothing. This video database, with companion articles, explores historical contexts, materials, and construction methods, enabling you to see how different garments were worn, and the function that each item served.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Our stories, Painting, Photography, Recently digitised, Victorian history, Visual arts:
John Hinds, an artist, photographer and active ROAR member from 1986 to 1992 spent time capturing artists he personally knew and the spaces that they used to create their works. His photographs captured a unique and often unseen time and place, creating an invaluable insight into the art scene in Melbourne.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:
Do you want to do a deep dive into medical folklore? Have you ever wondered why people make fun of Jazz? What were the building blocks of modern horror movies? Have you wondered why Asperger’s syndrome was removed from the DSM? Or thought about the social impact of the human papillomavirus vaccine? Do you need a primer on literary theory? On climate hazards? On planetary systems? And just what did Herman Melville’s short stories reveal about his thoughts on slavery? Oxford Academic has you covered.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Fashion:
Fashion! Fascinating, addictive, rejected, embraced. Take a closer look at all the layers that make up this phenomenon in the Fairchild Books Library database.
Arts & literature, Collection spotlights:
Proquest’s Early English Books Online database features page images of almost every work printed in the British Isles and North America, as well as works in English printed elsewhere, from 1470-1700. More than 200 libraries worldwide have contributed to this comprehensive database, which covers literature, art, architecture, philosophy, religion, politics, history and linguistics. The collection has everything from the first book printed in English through to the ages of Spenser, Shakespeare and the English Civil War.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:
Through five collections, the ‘History of Disabilities’ database provides an insight into how society viewed disability and difference from the seventeenth century through to today. While some of the practices and terminology may no longer be acceptable, inclusion of challenging content is important to understand how the landscape has changed over time.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, Our stories, Rare Books & Arts:
To celebrate Trans Awareness Month 2025, we turn our attention to one of the fascinating volumes in State Library Victoria’s Rare Books Collection: Leslie Feinberg’s ‘Stone butch blues.’ The book brings with it stories of struggle — both within and beyond it’s pages — along with questions about control, artistic ethics and the ways we find (and too often don’t find) the stories we seek: stories of people like us.
Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights:
Where can I find more information about the Australian labour movement? What was political ephemera like in the 1970s? Which former world leader excels at cleaning toilets…and what’s the best dish to make with flank of U.S. President? All these questions and much more are answered in this month’s Online Collection Spotlight on Gale’s Power to the People database!
Collection spotlights, Research tips:
Delve into the vast array of online resources in our multi-subject category.
