How to quote a quote from a book

Use double quotation marks (“”) around a direct quote. A direct quote is a word- for-word report of what someone else said or wrote. You use the exact words and punctuation of the original.

Rule: Use single quotation marks inside double quotation marks when you have a quotation within a quotation. Example: Bobbi told me, “Delia said, ‘This will never work. ‘ ” Notice that what Delia said was enclosed in single quotation marks.

Use a parenthetical citation.

You need to cite the author, year of publication, and page number (preceded by “p.”) The best way to do this is to use a signal phrase with the author’s name in it, followed by the date of publication and the page number in parenthesis.

In-text citations include the last name of the author followed by a page number enclosed in parentheses. “Here’s a direct quote” (Smith 8). If the author’s name is not given, then use the first word or words of the title. Follow the same formatting that was used in the Works Cited list, such as quotation marks.

In-text citations include the last name of the author followed by a page number enclosed in parentheses. “Here’s a direct quote” (Smith 8). If the author’s name is not given, then use the first word or words of the title. Follow the same formatting that was used in the works cited list, such as quotation marks.

Quoting a portion of dialogue: If you quote something a character says, use double quotation marks on the outside ends of the quotation to indicate that you are quoting a portion of the text. Use single quotation marks inside the double quotation marks to indicate that someone is speaking.

To cite the book in the text of the discussion, put the author’s last name and the year the book was published in parentheses: (Case-Smith, 2017). To quote directly from the book, include the page number of the quote: (Case-Smith, 2017, p. 42).

When making reference to the spoken words of someone other than the author recorded in a text, cite the name of the person and the name of the author, date and page reference of the work in which the quote or reference appears.

The basic form for a book citation is: Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Date.

If you are citing a book within your blog post, you will want to include the author, the title of the book, and their statement in quotation marks like the example below. When in doubt, include as much information about the author as possible. It doesn’t hurt to over credit, but it does to under credit.

Using In-text Citations

When citing sources in the body of your paper, list the author’s last name only (no initials) and the year the information was published, like this: (Dodge, 2008). (Author, Date).

In American English, use double quotation marks for quotations and single quotation marks for quotations within quotations.

Quotation marks and other punctuation marks

Sentence-ending punctuation is a whole different story. In the United States, the rule of thumb is that commas and periods always go inside the quotation marks, and colons and semicolons (dashes as well) go outside: “There was a storm last night,” Paul said.

Sometimes an author of a book, article or website will mention another person’s work by using a quotation or paraphrased idea from that source. (This may be called a secondary source.) For example, the Kirkey article you are reading includes a quotation by Smith that you would like to include in your essay.

Place a parenthetical citation either immediately after the quotation or at the end of the sentence. For a narrative citation, include the author and year in the sentence and then place the page number or other location information in parentheses after the quotation.

Direct quotations always use quotation marks.

Direct quotations are when the writer is telling exactly (word for word) what a person or character said. These statements are always enclosed with quotations. Indirect quotes are summaries or paraphrasing what a character or person said.