How to Punctuate Book Titles

TL;DR: Book titles that are located both within the text and in reference lists are typically written in italics; however, either sentence-style or headline-style capitalization can be used to punctuate them.

In academic writing, book titles can be a little tricky or complicated to punctuate. This is particularly true when citing references for your research paper. Knowing the right format to punctuate book titles can get very thorny very quickly.

Some are sentences and phrases that must be fitted into sentences in an essay or article. So, care must be taken to avoid formatting looking awkward and falling foul of stylistic guides. In some cases, it may even be appropriate to change the format of book titles from the original in your text.

Several style guides provide guidance on how to punctuate book titles properly. They include the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS), the APA, and MLA. However, in this article, we focus on the CMOS. 

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What is covered

In this brief article, we discuss how to punctuate book titles in the text (i.e., within an article or essay) and within references, according to CMOS. Lastly, we discuss the common tips that should be followed when writing a proper book title and similar subheadings or titles.

How to write a book title in an essay

Book titles should be in italics when mentioning them in the text. They should also be written in headline-style or sentence-style capitalization. The former means all the major words of the title should be capitalized, whereas the latter means only the major words should be capitalized.

Here is an example of the two styles being used in the same book title:

One of the most useful books on research writing is How to write and publish a scientific paper.

One of the most useful books on research writing is How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper.

However, one exception to this is book titles written in foreign languages. For titles in languages other than English, sentence case should typically be used. For example:

La sombra del viento is the first adult novel ever written by Carlos Ruiz Zafón.

Sentence-style versus headline-style capitalization

As mentioned earlier, to punctuate book titles, either sentence-style or headline-style capitalization can be used. Sentence style refers to a capitalization format where only the first word of the title is capitalized, as in a sentence. Headline-style capitalization is a type of formatting where every major word is capitalized, with the exception of articles, prepositions, and conjunctions.

It is often up to your own editorial discretion to use either sentence-style versus headline-style capitalization. However, one major point to bear in mind when using sentence style for book titles is capitalization after a colon.

In addition to the first word and proper nouns, the part of the book title located immediately after the colon should be capitalized.

 Example: The digital person: Technology and privacy in the information age raises serious questions about data privacy in the digital age.

In this article, most of the rules and examples provided will be on headline-style capitalization of book titles.

Using headline-style capitalization for book titles

Proper head-line style capitalization relies primarily on what you want to emphasize and the rules of grammar. Here is a list of general rules and principles that should be considered and followed when using headline-style capitalization:

1. Capitalize the first and last words and all other major words in titles and subtitles

 Example: Deep Work is a popular book on academic productivity.

2. Lowercase articles (i.e., a, an, the)

A Little Learning Is a Dangerous Thing is a book that was published in 1994.

3. Lowercase prepositions (i.e., on, to, for)

From Homo erectus to Homo sapiens: A Brief History is an excellent summary of human prehistory.

4. Lowercase conjunctions (i.e., and, but, for)

The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II is a good recommendation for anyone interested in Greek history.

5. Lowercase parts of proper names that are normally in lowercase in text (e.g., de or von)

The Literary Works of Leonardo da Vinci are a rare look in the non-painting and non-sculpture works of the artist.

Punctuating book titles with hyphenated words

The following rules should be implemented when it comes to formatting book titles that have hyphenated words:

1. The first part or element of the compound word should be capitalized

 Example: The Three-Body Problem is set in China during the notorious Cultural Revolution.

2. Any following element in the hyphenated word should also be capitalized unless they are articles, prepositions, or coordinating conjunctions.

 Example: The Seven-Percent Solution provides a fascinating look into the unlikely collaboration between Sigmund Freud and Sherlock Holmes.

3. Avoid capitalizing the part of the title that comes directly after a prefix, unless it's a proper noun or adjective (e.g., anti, pre, post)

a. Anti-intellectual pursuits is quite a leisurely read.

b. The American Pre-Raphaelites: Radical Realists gives a succinct history of the Pre-Raphaelite movement in the U.S.

4. Capitalize the part of the hyphenated word that comes directly after a spelled-out number (e.g., Twenty-First).

Dictatorships in Twenty-First-Century Latin America is written by Osvaldo Hurtado.

Book title punctuation in reference lists

Punctuating book titles in reference lists typically follows the same rules as in text. However, normally, the title of a book should be cited according to how it appears on the title page.

Example: Calloway, Stephen, and Alan Powers. The Elements of Style: An Encyclopedia of Domestic Architectural Detail. London: Mitchell Beazley, 2012.

However, there are many other details regarding the rules governing citation format that are best left for another blog post.

When is editing or changing book titles OK?

Typically, you should strive to preserve book titles as they are on the title page of the book. However, there are cases where changes can be made. Original spelling and hyphenation should be usually preserved and reproduced faithfully both in-text and reference lists.

However, it is up to you to change to sentence style or headline-style capitalization. Other changes that can be done include: 

• Changing an ampersand (&) to "and"

• Spelling out numerals

• Including commas where applicable even if its excluded on the title page

• Including a colon to separate a title from a subtitle

• Changing a semi-colon between a title and a subtitle to a colon

• Dropping an initial "a," "an," or "the" to flow with a sentence in text

What about book chapters?

Book chapters are a separate category from books. While book titles are supposed to be in italics, book chapters should be set in roman and encased in quotation marks. We will have a separate post on how to punctuate and format book chapters, article titles, and other shorter works.

 Example: The chapter "Literacies for the digital age" in Martin's book is one of the most interesting parts of Digital Literacies for Learning.

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Final thoughts on punctuating book titles

Book titles are almost always expressed in italics. However, you can use sentence-style capitalization or headline-style capitalization based on your personal preference or the requirements of your project or assignment. Care must be taken to make sure the proper format is used for each individual case.

References

Casagrande, J. (2014). The Best Punctuation Book, Period. Ten Speed Press.

The Chicago Manual of Style 17th edition text © 2017 by The University of Chicago. https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html

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Frequently asked questions

1. Are book titles ever underlined?

In circumstances where book titles are written out on paper, then it is OK to underline a book title. However, when writing using electronic software, italics should be used. 

2. Can quotation marks be used for book titles?

Only if quotation marks are originally part of the title, then you can use quotation marks. Otherwise, always use italics. 

3. Do you capitalize book titles? 

Book titles can either be written in sentence-style or headline-style capitalization. Just remember to be consistent. For example: 

One of the most useful books on research writing is How to write and publish a scientific paper.

One of the most useful books on research writing is How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper.

4. Do you separate a book title with commas? 

Book titles shouldn't be set off with commas in a sentence. Identifying them with italics is enough.

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Cite this EminentEdit article

Antoine, M. (2024, August 21). How to Punctuate Book Titles. EminentEdit. https://www.eminentediting.com/post/punctuating-book-titles