Very Short Introductions

Very Short Introductions provide you with an excellent way to acquire a quick and reliable overview of your topic or get ahead rapidly in an area that’s entirely new to you. Expert authors, who include Fellows and Tutors at New College, combine facts, analysis, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make themes and concepts highly readable.

A collection of over 600 Very Short Introductions

Scope and Use of the Collection
Suggest New Resources
List of Very Short Introductions with Links to the Catalogue

Scope and Use of the Collection

Published by Oxford University Press, the Very Short Introductions (VSIs) cover a very wide range of subjects. New College Library’s Very Short Introductions Collection provides approaching 600 titles, one of the largest holdings in the University.

All the VSIs are shelved in the Group Study Room on the Library’s Lower Floor. All these books start with the shelfmark VSI/. All may be borrowed by New College students and staff.

To identify titles you need to borrow, word-search the listing below, with the name of the topic you need concise information on (using synonyms, as necessary). All VSIs are listed here alphabetically, by title:

| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |

Suggest New Resources

Is there a VSI you need that the Library does not hold? If you wish to suggest new VSI titles to be added to the Collection, you are invited to contact the Librarian.

(The University moved to a new library management system and updated SOLO in August 2023; some links to catalogue records from New College Library webpages will be unavailable for a period of time.)

List of Very Short Introductions with Links to the Catalogue

A
VSI/NEW	Abolitionism
VSI/COH	The Abrahamic Religions
VSI/NOB	Accounting
VSI/BER	Adam Smith
VSI/SMI	Adolescence
VSI/FLE	Advertising
VSI/LED	Aerial Warfare
VSI/NAN	Aesthetics
VSI/GLA	African American Religion
VSI/PAR	African History
VSI/TAY	African Politics
VSI/OLU	African Religions
VSI/PAC	Ageing
VSI/Le P	Agnosticism
VSI/GLO	Albert Camus
VSI/BOW	Alexander the Great
VSI/FRI	American Business History
VSI/BOY	American History
VSI/GER	American Immigration
VSI/WHI	American Legal History
VSI/SYM	American Naval History
VSI/CAP	American Poetry
VSI/CRI	American Political History
VSI/MAI	American Political Parties and Elections
VSI/VAL	American Politics
VSI/JON	The American Presidency
VSI/WIL	American Slavery
VSI/ARO	The American West
VSI/WAR	American Women’s History
VSI/KEM	Amphibians
VSI/O’DO	Anaesthesia
VSI/BEA	Analytic Philosophy
VSI/PRI	Anarchism
VSI/RAD	Ancient Assyria
VSI/SHA	Ancient Egypt
VSI/RIG	Ancient Egyptian Art and Architecture
VSI/CAR	Ancient Greece
VSI/TAU	Ancient Greek and Roman Science
VSI/POD	The Ancient Near East
VSI/ANN	Ancient Philosophy
VSI/SID	Ancient Warfare
VSI/JON	Angels
VSI/CHA	Anglicanism
VSI/BLA	The Anglo-Saxon Age
VSI/HOL	The Animal Kingdom
VSI/DeG	Animal Rights
VSI/WIL	Anselm
VSI/DOD	The Antarctic
VSI/ELL	Anthropocene
VSI/BEL	Antisemitism
VSI/FRE	Anxiety
VSI/FOS	The Apocryphal Gospels
VSI/GOR	Applied Mathematics
VSI/SCH	Arbitration
VSI/BAH	Archaeology
VSI/BAL	Architecture
VSI/DOD	The Arctic
VSI/DOY	Aristocracy
VSI/BAR	Aristotle
VSI/ARN	Art History
VSI/BOD	Artificial Intelligence
VSI/FRE	Art Theory
VSI/CAT	Astrobiology
VSI/BIN	Astrophysics
VSI/BAG	Atheism
VSI/PAL	The Atmosphere
VSI/CHA	Augustine
VSI/MOR	Australia
VSI/FRI	Autism
VSI/MAR	Autobiography
VSI/COT	The Avant-Garde
VSI/CAR	The Aztecs

B
VSI/BRY	Babylonia
VSI/AMY	Bacteria
VSI/GOD	Banking
VSI/CUL	Barthes
VSI/STE	The Beats
VSI/SCR	Beauty
VSI/SUT	Bestsellers
VSI/RIC	The Bible
VSI/CLI	Biblical Archaeology
VSI/HOL	Big Data
VSI/LOR	Biochemistry
VSI/LEE	Biography
VSI/BLU	Black Holes
VSI/COO	Blood
VSI/WAL	The Blues
VSI/GIV	The Book of Mormon
VSI/DIE	Borders
VSI/O’SH	The Brain
VSI/JON	Branding
VSI/COO	The BRICS
VSI/BAR	British Cinema
VSI/LOU	The British Constitution
VSI/JAC	The British Empire
VSI/WRI	British Politics
VSI/CAR	The Buddha
VSI/KEO	Buddhism
VSI/KEO	Buddhist Ethics
VSI/MAX	Business and Sustainability [on order]

C
VSI/BAL	Calvinism
VSI/WRI	Canada
VSI/JAM	Cancer
VSI/FUL	Capitalism
VSI/O’CO	Catholicism
VSI/MUM	Causation
VSI/ALL	The Cell
VSI/CUN	The Celts
VSI/SMI	Chaos
VSI/HAR	Charles Dickens
VSI/ATK	Chemistry
VSI/GOS	Child Psychology
VSI/REY	Children’s Literature
VSI/KNI	Chinese Literature
VSI/ALL	Choice Theory
VSI/WIL	Christian Art
VSI/LON	Christian Ethics
VSI/WOO	Christianity
VSI/BEL	Citizenship
VSI/MUI	Civil Engineering
VSI/HOL	The Civil Rights Movement
VSI/ALL	Classical Literature
VSI/MOR	Classical Mythology
VSI/BEA	Classics
VSI/HOW	Clausewitz
VSI/MAS	Climate
VSI/MAS	Climate Change
VIS/LLE	Clinical Psychology
VSI/PAS	Cognitive Neuroscience
VSI/McM	The Cold War
VSI/TAY	Colonial America
VSI/ADO	Colonial Latin American Literature
VSI/BEV	Comedy
VSI/HOL	Communism
VSI/HOL	Complexity
VSI/INC	The Computer
VSI/STO	Concentration Camps
VSI/GAR	Confucianism
VSI/RES	The Conquistadors
VSI/STR	Conscience
VSI/BLA	Consciousness
VSI/STA	Contemporary Art
VSI/EAG	Contemporary Fiction
VSI/CRI	Continental Philosophy
VSI/GIN	Copernicus
VSI/SHE	Coral Reefs
VSI/MOO	Corporate Social Responsibility
VSI/HOL	Corruption
VSI/COL	Cosmology
VSI/GLĂ	Creativity
VSI/ROB	Criminal Justice
VSI/BRO	Critical Theory
VSI/TYE	The Crusades
VSI/PIP	Cryptography
VSI/KRA	The Cultural Revolution

D
VSI/HOP	Dada and Surrealism
VSI/HAI	Dante
VSI/HOW	Darwin
VSI/LIM	The Dead Sea Scrolls
VSI/WEI	Decadence
VSI/TAY	Dementia
VSI/CRI	Democracy
VSI/GLE	Derrida
VSI/SOR	Descartes
VSI/MID	Deserts
VSI/HES	Design
VSI/GOL	Development
VSI/WOL	Developmental Biology
VSI/OLD	The Devil
VSI/KEN	Diaspora
VSI/MUG	Dictionaries
VSI/NOR	Dinosaurs
VSI/SIR	Diplomacy
VSI/AUF	Documentary Film
VSI/HOB	Dreaming
VSI/IVE	Drugs
VSI/CUN	Druids
VSI/DUI	Dynasty
VSI/SNO	Dyslexia

E
VSI/KEL	Early Music
VSI/RED	The Earth
VSI/GHA	Ecology
VSI/DAS	Economics
VSI/THO	Education
VSI/PIN	Egyptian Myth
VSI/LAN	Eighteenth-Century Britain
VSI/BAL	The Elements
VSI/POS	Elizabeth Bishop
VSI/NEL	Émile Zola
VSI/EVA	Emotion
VSI/HOW	Empire
VSI/CAB	Employment Law
VSI/JEN	Energy Systems
VSI/CAR	Engels
VSI/BLO	Engineering
VSI/HOR	The English Language
VSI/BAT	English Literature
VSI/WES	Entrepreneurship
VSI/SMI	Environmental Economics
VSI/ATT	Environmental Ethics
VSI/FIS	Environmental Law
VSI/ENG	Enzymes
VSI/WIL	Epicureanism
VSI/SAR	Epidemiology
VSI/BLA	Ethics
VSI/RIC	Ethnomusicology
VSI/SMI	The Etruscans
VSI/LEV	Eugenics
VSI/USH	The European Union
VSI/CHA	Evolution
VSI/FLY	Existentialism
VSI/WEA	Exploration
VSI/WIG	Extinction
VSI/LAN	The Eye

F
VSI/WAR	Fairy Tale
VSI/HER	Family Law
VSI/PAS	Fascism
VSI/ARN	Fashion
VSI/ROZ	Federalism
VSI/WAL	Feminism
VSI/WOO	Film
VSI/KAL	Film Music
VSI/NAR	Film Noir
VSI/HOW	The First World War
VSI/LAU	Fluid Mechanics
VSI/SLO	Folk Music
VSI/KRE	Food
VSI/CAN	Forensic Psychology
VSI/FRA	Forensic Science
VSI/THO	Fossils
VSI/GUT	Foucault
VSI/BER	The Founding Fathers
VSI/FAL	Fractals
VSI/WAR	Free Speech
VSI/PIN	Free Will
VSI/ONN	Freemasonry
VSI/LYO	French Literature
VSI/GAU	French Philosophy
VSI/DOY	The French Revolution
VSI/STO	Freud
VSI/RUT	Fundamentalism
VSI/GID	The Future

G
VSI/GRI	Galaxies
VSI/DRA	Galileo
VSI/BIN	Game Theory
VSI/PAR	Gandhi
VSI/CAM	Garden History
VSI/SLA	Genes
VSI/ROB	Genius
VSI/ARC	Genomics
VSI/MAT	Geography
VSI/DUN	Geometry
VSI/DOD	Geopolitics
VSI/WIX	George Bernard Shaw
VSI/BOY	German Literature
VSI/BOW	German Philosophy
VSI/CHE	The Ghetto
VSI/McG	Global Catastrophes
VSI/ALL	Global Economic History
VSI/MAS	Global Warming
VSI/STE	Globalization
VSI/BOW	God
VSI/MOO	Gödel's Theorem
VSI/GRO	The Gothic
VSI/BEV	Governance
VSI/CLI	Gravity
VSI/RAU	The Great Depression & the New Deal

H
VSI/TYL	Habeas Corpus
VSI/FIN	Habermas
VSI/RAD	The Habsburg Empire
VSI/VIL	Hannah Arendt
VSI/HAY	Happiness
VSI/SIN	Hegel
VSI/INW	Heidegger
VSI/THO	The Hellenistic Age
VSI/WAL	Heredity
VSI/ROB	Herodotus
VSI/WIL	Hieroglyphs
VSI/KNO	Hinduism
VSI/ARN	History
VSI/HOS	The History of Astronomy
VSI/NOW	The History of Cinema
VSI/BRO	The History of Chemistry
VSI/BEN	The History of Life
VSI/STE	The History of Mathematics
VSI/BYN	History of Medicine
VSI/HEI	The History of Physics
VSI/HOL	The History of Time
VSI/WHI	HIV & AIDS
VSI/TUC	Hobbes
VSI/FOX	Home
VSI/LUC	Hormones
VSI/KLE	Human Anatomy
VSI/WOO	Human Evolution
VSI/DAV	Human Physiology
VSI/CLA	Human Rights
VSI/LAW	Humanism
VSI/AYE	Hume
VSI/CAR	Humour

I
VSI/WOO	The Ice Age
VSI/COU	Identity
VSI/FRE	Ideology
VSI/KLE	The Immune System
VSI/HAM	Indian Philosophy
VSI/STE	Infinity
VSI/FLO	Information
VSI/DOD	Innovation
VSI/LEA	Insects
VSI/VAI	Intellectual Property
VSI/DEA	Intelligence
VSI/KOS	International Migration
VSI/WIL	International Relations
VSI/BRO	International Security
VSI/ANS	Iran
VSI/RUT	Islam
VSI/MAL	Islamic Finance [on order]
VSI/SIL	Islamic History
VSI/HAI	Italian Literature

J
VSI/BAU	Jesus
VSI/STA	Jewish Literature
VSI/HAR	Journalism
VSI/SOL	Judaism
VSI/STE	Jung
VSI/LER	The Jury

K
VSI/DAN	Kabbalah
VSI/ROB	Kafka
VSI/SCR	Kant
VSI/SKI	Keynes
VSI/GAR	Kierkegaard
VSI/NAG	Knowledge
VSI/COO	The Koran
VSI/SET	Korea

L
VSI/VIN	Lakes
VSI/THO	Landscape Architecture
VSI/GOU	Landscapes and Geomorphology
VSI/AND	Language
VSI/CLA	Late Antiquity
VSI/WAC	Law
VSI/ATK	The Laws of Thermodynamics
VSI/GRI	Leadership
VSI/GUE	Lincoln
VSI/MAT	Linguistics
VSI/CUL	Literary Theory
VSI/DUN	Locke
VSI/PRI	Logic
VSI/De S	Love

M
VSI/SKI	Machiavelli
VSI/SCU	Madness
VSI/DAV	Magic
VSI/VIN	Magna Carta
VSI/BLU	Magnetism
VSI/WIN	Malthus
VSI/HEN	Management
VSI/DAV	Mao
VSI/MLA	Marine Biology
VSI/Le M	Marketing
VSI/PHI	The Marquis de Sade
VSI/HEN	Martin Luther
VSI/MIT	Martyrdom
VSI/SIN	Marx
VSI/SHE	Mary Shelley
VSI/HAL	Materials
VSI/DAV	Mathematical Finance
VSI/GOW	Mathematics
VSI/COT	Matter
VSI/RES	The Maya
VSI/EAG	The Meaning of Life
VSI/HAN	Measurement
VSI/HOP	Medical Ethics
VSI/FOS	Medical Law
VSI/GIL	Medieval Britain
VSI/FOS	Memory
VSI/MUM	Metaphysics
VSI/ABR	Methodism
VSI/KNI	The Mexican Revolution
VSI/JAM	Michael Faraday
VSI/MON	Microbiology
VSI/DOU	Microbiomes
VSI/DIX	Microeconomics
VSI/RUB	The Middle Ages
VSI/ECH	Military Strategy
VSI/VAU	Minerals
VSI/NAG	Miracles
VSI/COT	Modern Art
VSI/PER	Modern Brazil
VSI/MIT	Modern China
VSI/SCH	Modern France
VSI/JEF	Modern India
VSI/PAŠ	Modern Ireland
VSI/CEN	Modern Italy
VSI/GOT	Modern Japan
VSI/ECH	Modern Latin American Literature
VSI/ENG	Modern War
VSI/BUT	Modernism
VSI/BAL	Molecules
VSI/DAV	Monasticism
VSI/ROS	The Mongols
VSI/BUS	Mormonism
VSI/BRO	Muhammad
VSI/RAT	Multiculturalism
VSI/COO	Music
VSI/KAT	Music and Technology
VSI/SEG	Myth

N
VSI/BEL	Napoleon
VSI/RAP	The Napoleonic Wars
VSI/GRO	Nationalism
VSI/BEN	Navigation
VSI/CAP	Nazi Germany
VSI/BOE	Nelson Mandela
VSI/STE	Neoliberalism
VSI/CAL	Networks
VSI/JOH	The New Testament
VSI/KEE	The New Testament as Literature
VSI/ILI	Newton
VSI/HEI	Niels Bohr
VSI/TAN	Nietzsche
VSI/HAR	Nineteenth-Century Britain
VSI/GAR	The Norman Conquest
VSI/PER	North American Indians
VSI/MUL	Northern Ireland
VSI/CLO	Nothing
VSI/IRV	Nuclear Power
VSI/SIR	Nuclear Weapons
VSI/WIL	Number Theory
VSI/HIG	Numbers
VSI/BEN	Nutrition

O
VSI/GAU	Objectivity
VSI/STO	Oceans
VSI/COO	The Old Testament
VSI/HOL	The Orchestra
VSI/PAT	Organic Chemistry
VSI/HAT	Organization
VSI/ANT	Organized Crime
VSI/SIE	Orthodox Christianity

P
VSI/DAV	Paganism
VSI/BOD	Pain
VSI/BUN	The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
VSI/McM	Pandemics
VSI/CLO	Particle Physics
VSI/SAN	Paul
VSI/RIC	Peace
VSI/KAY	Pentecostalism
VSI/SCE	The Periodic Table
VSI/WIL	Philosophical Method
VSI/CRA	Philosophy
VSI/OKA	Philosophy of Biology
VSI/WAC	Philosophy of Law
VSI/WAL	Philosophy of Physics
VSI/OKA	Philosophy of Science
VSI/EDW	Photography
VSI/ATK	Physical Chemistry
VSI/PER	Physics
VSI/SLA	Plague
VSI/ROT	Planets
VSI/WAL	Plants
VSI/MOL	Plate Tectonics
VSI/ANN	Plato
VSI/O’DO	Poetry
VSI/MIL	Political Philosophy
VSI/MIN	Politics
VSI/MUD	Populism
VSI/YOU	Postcolonialism
VSI/BUT	Postmodernism
VSI/BEL	Poststructuralism
VSI/JEF	Poverty
VSI/GOS	Prehistory
VSI/OSB	Presocratic Philosophy
VSI/WAC	Privacy
VSI/HAI	Probability
VSI/NUG	Progressivism
VSI/DAC	Projects
VSI/NOL	Protestantism
VSI/BUR	Psychiatry
VSI/BUT	Psychology
VSI/MAR	The Psychology of Music
VSI/VID	Psychopathy
VSI/BUR	Psychotherapy
VSI/BER	Public Health
VSI/BRE	Puritanism

Q
VSI/DAN	The Quakers
VSI/POL	Quantum Theory

R
VSI/RAT	Racism
VSI/TUN	Radioactivity
VSI/EDM	Rastafari
VSI/JAC	Reading
VSI/TRO	The Reagan Revolution
VSI/WES	Reality
VSI/GUE	Reconstruction
VSI/MAR	The Reformation
VSI/LOE	Refugees
VSI/STA	Relativity
VSI/BEA	Religion in America
VSI/BRO	The Renaissance
VSI/JOH	Renaissance Art
VSI/JEL	Renewable Energy
VSI/GOL	Revolutions
VSI/TOY	Rhetoric
VSI/FIS	Risk
VSI/MID	Rivers
VSI/WIN	Robotics
VSI/ZAL	Rocks
VSI/SAL	Roman Britain
VSI/KEL	The Roman Empire
VSI/FER	Romanticism
VSI/WOK	Rousseau
VSI/GRA	Russell
VSI/CON	The Russian Economy
VSI/HOS	Russian History
VSI/KEL	Russian Literature
VSI/SMI	The Russian Revolution

S
VSI/YAR	Saints
VSI/PRI	Scepticism
VSI/FRI	Schizophrenia
VSI/JAN	Schopenhauer
VSI/DIX	Science and Religion
VSI/SEE	Science Fiction
VSI/PRI	The Scientific Revolution
VSI/HOU	Scotland
VSI/MOT	Sexuality
VSI/ZUK	Sexual Selection
VSI/POS	Shakespeare’s Sonnets and Poems
VSI/WEL	Shakespeare’s Tragedies
VSI/KAH	The Short Story
VSI/NES	Sikhism
VSI/KOR	Silent Film
VSI/MIL	The Silk Road
VSI/GRE	Slang
VSI/LOC	Sleep
VSI/COB	Smell
VSI/MON	Social and Cultural Anthropology
VSI/NEW	Socialism
VSI/EDW	Sociolinguistics
VSI/BRU	Sociology
VSI/TAY	Socrates
VSI/McL	Soft Matter
VSI/GOL	Sound
VSI/LOV	The Soviet Union
VSI/GRA	The Spanish Civil War
VSI/LAB	Spanish Literature
VSI/BAY	The Spartans
VSI/SCR	Spinoza
VSI/SHE	Spirituality
VSI/CRO	Sport
VSI/KIN	Stars
VSI/HAN	Statistics
VSI/SLA	Stem Cells
VSI/INW	Stoicism
VSI/BLO	Structural Engineering
VSI/MOR	Stuart Britain
VSI/JUD	The Sun
VSI/BLU	Superconductivity
VSI/STE	Symmetry
VSI/VOI	Systems Biology

T
VSI/SMI	Taxation
VSI/UNG	Teeth
VSI/TOW	Terrorism
VSI/CAR	Theatre
VSI/FOR	Theology
VSI/EVA	Thinking and Reasoning
VSI/KER	Thomas Aquinas
VSI/BAY	Thought
VSI/KAP	Tibetan Buddhism
VSI/BOW	Tides
VSI/MAN	Tocqueville
VSI/POO	Tragedy
VSI/REY	Translation
VSI/VAN	Trigonometry
VSI/CLI	The Trojan War
VSI/HAW	Trust
VSI/GUY	The Tudors
VSI/MOR	Twentieth-Century Britain
VSI/LUN	Typography

U
VSI/HAN	The United Nations
VSI/PAL	Universities and Colleges
VSI/RIT	The U.S. Congress
VSI/BOD	The U.S. Constitution
VSI/GRE	The U.S. Supreme Court
VSI/LAZ	Utilitarianism
VSI/SAR	Utopianism

V
VSI/BLA	Vatican II
VSI/YEA	Veterinary Science
VSI/RIC	The Vikings
VSI/LEI	The Virgin Mary
VSI/BOY	The Virtues
VSI/CRA	Viruses
VSI/CRO	Voltaire

W
VSI/DUN	Weather
VSI/WEL	William Shakespeare
VSI/GAS	Witchcraft
VSI/GRA	Wittgenstein
VSI/FIN	Work
VSI/BOH	World Music
VSI/NAR	The World Trade Organization
VSI/WEI	World War II
VSI/ROB	Writing and Script

Z
VSI/STA	Zionism

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