mla book report example

MLA Sample Pages

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When writing a paper according to the Modern Language Association (MLA) style, sample pages can help you stay on track. While your own teachers’ preferences may vary, MLA is the basic form that most teachers use. 

The parts of a report may include:

• Title page (only if your teacher asks for one)
• Appendixes if you have them
• Works cited (bibliography)

MLA Sample First Page

A title page is not required in a standard MLA report. The title and other information go on the first page of your report.

Begin typing at the top left of your page. A standard choice for the font is 12 point Times New Roman, and you should keep your text left justified. It's also recommended that you do not use automatic hyphenation features and that you only use one space after a period or other punctuation mark unless you're told otherwise. 

1. Starting one inch from the top of the page, left justified, place your name, your teacher's name, your class, and the date. Use double spacing for the lines between each item, and do not use any font treatments. 

2. Still using double spacing for the lines, type your title. Center the title, and do not use font treatments unless MLA style requires it, such as titles.

3. Double space below your title and begin typing your report. Indent with a tab. The standard format for the title of a book is italics.

4. Remember to end your first paragraph with a thesis sentence.

5. Your name and page number go in a header at the top right corner of the page. You can insert this information after you type your paper . To do so in Microsoft Word, go to V iew and select H eader from the list. Type your information in the header box, highlight it, and hit the right justify selection.

Title Page in MLA

 Grace Fleming

If your teacher requires a title page, you can use this sample as a guide.

Place your report title about one-third of the way down your page.

Place your name about 2 inches below the title, as well as the names of any group members you may have. 

Place your class information about 2 inches below your name.

As always, you should check with your teacher before writing your final draft to find out about any specific instructions that differ from examples you find.

Alternate First Page

You may use this format for your first page when your teacher requires one. 

This format is the alternate format only for papers that contain a title page and is  not  the standard presentation.

Double space after your title and begin your report. Notice that your last name and the page number go at the right top corner of your page in a header.

MLA Outline

The outline follows the title page. The MLA outline should include the small letter "i" as a page number. This page will precede the first page of your report.

Center your title. Below the title provide a thesis statement.

Double space and begin your outline, according to the above sample.

Page with Illustrations or Images

Images (figures) can make a big difference in a paper, but students are often a little hesitant about including them. 

Images should be placed near the related text and labeled as Figure, which is typically abbreviated as Fig. # to show the number of images contained within your piece. Captions and figure labels should appear directly below the image itself, and if your caption contains all the necessary information about the source, that source doesn't need to be listed in your works cited list unless it's cited elsewhere in the text.

Sample MLA Works Cited List

A standard MLA paper requires a works cited list. This is the list of sources you used in your research. It is similar to a bibliography. It comes at the end of the paper and on a new page. It should include the same header and pagination as the main text. 

1. Type Works Cited one inch from the top of your page. This measurement is pretty standard for a word processor, so you shouldn't have to make any page set-up adjustments. Just start typing and center.

2. Add a space, and start typing the information for your first source starting one inch from the left. Use double spacing the entire page. Alphabetize the works by the author, using the last name. If there is no author or editor mentioned, use the title for first words and alphabetizing.

Notes for formatting entries:

• Order of information is author, title, publisher, volume, date, page numbers, access date.
• If there is more than one author, the first author name is written Last, First name. The subsequent author names are written First name Last name.
• Book titles are italicized; article titles are put inside quotation marks.
• If you can’t find a publisher name for an online source, insert the abbreviation n.p. If you can’t find a publication date, insert the abbreviation n.d.

3. Once you have a complete list, you will format so that you have hanging indents. To do this: highlight the entries, then go to FORMAT and PARAGRAPH. Somewhere in the menu (normally under SPECIAL), find the term HANGING and select it.

4. To insert page numbers, place your cursor on the first page of your text, or the page where you want your page numbers to begin. Go to View and select Header and Footer. A box will appear at the top and the bottom of your page. Type your last name in the top header box before the page numbers and right justify.

Source: Modern Language Association. (2018). 

• Title Page Examples and Formats
• Lining Up Dots in a Table of Contents
• Formatting Papers in Chicago Style
• MLA Bibliography or Works Cited
• Margin (Composition Format) Definition
• How Long Should Your Web Page Be?
• Tips for Typing an Academic Paper on a Computer
• What Is a Citation?
• MLA Style Parenthetical Citations
• What is a Printer-Friendly Web Page?
• Turabian Style Guide With Examples
• Creating a Table of Contents
• Formatting APA Headings and Subheadings
• Bibliography: Definition and Examples
• How to Format a Biology Lab Report
• What Is a Bibliography?

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The MLA Style Center

What is mla style.

Building confidence in the information and ideas we share with one another is perhaps more important today than ever before, and for nearly a century it has been the driving principle behind MLA style, a set of standards for writing and documentation used by writers to find and evaluate information, alert their audience to the trustworthiness of their findings through citation, and shape the expression of their ideas in conversation with others. 

Resources for MLA Style

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MLA Handbook , 9th Edition

The ninth edition of the MLA Handbook , published in spring 2021, builds on the MLA's unique approach to documenting sources using a template of core elements—facts common to most sources, like author, title, and publication date—that allows writers to cite any type of work, from books, e-books, and journal articles in databases to song lyrics, online images, social media posts, dissertations, and more. With this focus on source evaluation as the cornerstone of citation, MLA style promotes the skills of information and digital literacy so crucial today. The new edition offers

• New chapters on grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, numbers, italics, abbreviations, and principles of inclusive language
• Guidelines on setting up research papers in MLA format with updated advice on headings, lists, and title pages for group projects
• Revised, comprehensive, step-by-step instructions for creating a list of works cited in MLA format that are easier to learn and use than ever before
• A new appendix with hundreds of example works-cited-list entries by publication format, including websites, YouTube videos, interviews, and more
• Detailed examples of how to find publication information for a variety of sources
• Newly revised explanations of in-text citations, including comprehensive advice on how to cite multiple authors of a single work
• Detailed guidance on using notes in MLA style
• Instructions on quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, and avoiding plagiarism
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The MLA Style Center offers free online resources on MLA style, including an interactive MLA format template, answers to common questions on Ask the MLA, advice from the MLA editors, and more. Get updates by signing up for The Source newsletter, and follow us on Twitter @MLAstyle .

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / MLA Format / How to Cite a Report in MLA

How to Cite a Report in MLA

Citing a report.

Report – A document containing the findings of an individual or group. Can include a technical paper, publication, issue brief, or working paper.

Report Citation Structure

Last, First M. Report Title . Publisher, date published, URL (if applicable).

Note: If the author and publisher of the report are the same, start your citation with the title of the report instead. 

First Page of Report

Report Citation Example:

Gorbunova, Yulia and Konstantin Baranov. Laws of Attrition: Crackdown on Russia’s Civil Society After Putin’s Return to the Presidency . Human Rights Watch, 2013.

Report In-text Citation Structure:

(Author Last Name(s) Page #)

Report In-text Citation Example: 

(Gorbunova and Konstantin 4)

MLA Formatting Guide

MLA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Sample Paper
• Works Cited
• MLA 8 Updates
• MLA 9 Updates
• View MLA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all MLA Examples

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To cite a report in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author or the organization name, title of the report, and publication year. The templates for in-text citations and works-cited-list entries of a report, along with examples, are given below:

Report created and published by the same organization

In-text citation template and example:

Use the organization’s name in both prose and parenthetical citation.

Citation in prose: Pew Research Center

Parenthetical: (Pew Research Center)

Works-cited-list entry template and example:

Title of the Chapter . Organization Name, Publication Date.

Audio and Podcasting Fact Sheet . Pew Research Center, July 2018.

Different authors and publisher

Use the below template when the author and publisher are different. For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues.” In subsequent citations, use only the surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues.” In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the first author followed by “et al.”

Citation in prose:

First instance: Kim Parker and others . . . Or Kim Parker and colleagues

Subsequent occurrences: Parker and others . . . Or Parker and colleagues

Parenthetical:

. . . (Parker et al.)

Surname, First Name, et al. Title of the Report . Organization Name, Publication Date, URL.

Parker, Kim, et al. About Half of Lower-Income Americans Report Household Job or Wage Loss Due to COVID-19 . Pew Research Center, Apr. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/ 04 /21/about-half-of-lower-income-americans-report-household-job-or-wage-loss-due-to-covid-19/ .

To cite a government document in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author or the organization name, title of the document, and publication year. The templates for in-text citations and works-cited-list entries of a government document, along with examples, are given below:

For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the author in the first occurrence. In subsequent citations, use only the surname. In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the author.

First mention: Ferdinand Hayden . . .

Subsequent occurrences: Hayden . . .

. . . (Hayden)

Surname, First Name. Title of the Government Document . Organization Name, Publication Date.

Hayden, Ferdinand. Preliminary Report of the United States Geological Survey of Montana and Portions of Adjacent Territories . Government Printing Office, 1872.

MLA Citation Examples

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MLA citation style guide

How to cite a book chapter

How to cite a book, how to cite a foreword, how to cite a play, how to cite a preface, how to cite a textbook, how to cite a translated book, how to cite an afterword, how to cite an ebook, how to cite an edited book, how to cite an introduction in a book, computer programs.

How to cite a video game

How to do in-text citations with multiple authors in MLA

How to cite a BrainPOP video

How to cite a c-span video, how to cite a documentary, how to cite a film, how to cite a hulu video, how to cite a lynda video, how to cite a netflix show, how to cite a podcast, how to cite a song, how to cite a tv show episode, how to cite a tv show, how to cite a youtube video, legal documents.

How to cite a court case

How to cite a graph

How to cite a photo, how to cite a table.

How to cite a magazine article

How to cite a newspaper article, how to cite a personal interview, how to cite an online magazine article, how to cite an online newspaper article.

How to cite a 10-k report

How to cite a 10-q report, how to cite a financial report, how to cite a government report, how to cite a report, how to cite a un report, how to cite an annual report, how to cite an online report, research articles.

How to cite a journal article

How to cite an online journal article.

How to cite a dissertation

How to cite a master's thesis, how to cite a phd thesis, how to cite an honors thesis, how to cite an undergraduate thesis.

How to cite a blog post

How to cite a facebook post, how to cite a government website, how to cite a reddit post, how to cite a tweet, how to cite a website, how to cite an instagram post.

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

MLA Sample Works Cited Page

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Note: We have chosen to include the date of access for the online sources below. The latest MLA guidelines specify that this is optional, but strongly recommended for sources whose date of publication is unavailable.

Note also: The citation for  An Inconvenient Truth  below assumes the film has been cited by its title in the text. If it had been cited by the name of its director, the citation would need to begin with Guggenheim's surname. MLA guidelines specify that both styles are acceptable (see, e.g., this  "Ask the MLA" page ).

Works Cited

Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." The New York Times , 22 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/science/earth/22ander.html?_r=0. Accessed 29 May 2019.

Ebert, Roger. Review of  An Inconvenient Truth , directed by Davis Guggenheim.  Ebert Digital LLC , 1 June 2006, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/an-inconvenient-truth-2006. Accessed 15 June 2019.

Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-Organized Extinction: Toward a Co-Evolutionary Economics of Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology, vol. 14, no. 1, 2007, pp. 27-36.

Harris, Rob, and Andrew C. Revkin. “Clinton on Climate Change.”  The New York Times , 17 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/video/world/americas/1194817109438/clinton-on-climate-change.html. Accessed 29 July 2016.

An Inconvenient Truth . Directed by Davis Guggenheim, Paramount, 2006.

Leroux, Marcel. Global Warming: Myth or Reality?: The Erring Ways of Climatology . Springer, 2005.

Milken, Michael, et al. "On Global Warming and Financial Imbalances." New Perspectives Quarterly , vol. 23, no. 4, 2006, p. 63.

Nordhaus, William D. "After Kyoto: Alternative Mechanisms to Control Global Warming." American Economic Review , vol. 96, no. 2, 2006, pp. 31-34.

---. "Global Warming Economics." Science, vol. 294, no. 5545, 9 Nov. 2001, pp. 1283-84, DOI: 10.1126/science.1065007.

Regas, Diane. “Three Key Energy Policies That Can Help Us Turn the Corner on Climate.” Environmental Defense Fund , 1 June 2016, www.edf.org/blog/2016/06/01/3-key-energy-policies-can-help-us-turn-corner-climate. Accessed 19 July 2016.

Revkin, Andrew C. “Clinton on Climate Change.” The New York Times , 17 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/video/world/americas/1194817109438/clinton-on-climate-change.html. Accessed 29 July 2016.

Shulte, Bret. "Putting a Price on Pollution." US News & World Report , vol. 142, no. 17, 14 May 2007, p. 37. Ebsco, Access no: 24984616.

Uzawa, Hirofumi. Economic Theory and Global Warming . Cambridge UP, 2003.