Do you underline titles of books in an essay?

You don't underline titles of books in an essay. You use italics for titles of books.

Here's why:

* Underlining was a pre-computer era practice: It was used to distinguish titles from regular text when typewriters could only use one font.

* Italics are the modern standard: With computers and word processors, italics are the preferred way to highlight titles of books, movies, plays, albums, and other long works.

Example:

Instead of writing: _"The Catcher in the Rye" is a classic novel._

You would write: *"The Catcher in the Rye" is a classic novel._

Here's a quick guide for titles in essays:

* Books: *Title of Book*

* Movies: *Title of Movie*

* Plays: *Title of Play*

* Albums: *Title of Album*

* Articles, Poems, Short Stories, Chapters: "Title of Article"

Let me know if you have any other questions about formatting!