Biblio File

Finding a Book When You lot've Forgotten Its Title

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Library books lined up on a shelf Check out selected results from NYPL Championship Quest 2019, held August 2, 2019, likewise as Title Quest 2018.

This is an update of a previous post by Sharon Rickson.

Information technology can be tough to remember the title and author of a book you read a long fourth dimension agone—even if it was a book that was really important to you lot. Fiction is cataloged by author and title, not past subject or plot line, which makes identifying books by only their storyline hard.

Readers often ask librarians for help finding these kinds of books. And we can't figure out the mystery every single fourth dimension, but nosotros do have a few tricks to assist discover the reply.

First, pivot down everything you lot tin can remember about the book, plot, graphic symbol names, time menstruation in which the book may have been published, genre, etc. All these details are clues in identifying the championship and author of the volume.

Online resources can help with your search for a half-remembered volume, fifty-fifty if all you lot have is a basic plot line. Searching yourself is a good place to commencement; then, you tin can post to a listserv or discussion forum, where someone might recognize it. Or, last just non to the lowest degree, exit a comment on this mail!

Earlier You Start

Effort Google! Type in everything you can retrieve about the book — as in, "motion-picture show book rabbi animals advice yiddish" — and scroll through the results. (That'southward a real-life example of a book a patron was request for: It Could Always Be Worse by Margot Zemach.)

You can also effort googling ane key detail you remember from a volume. One of our librarians solved a book mystery by searching "USS Yous-Know-Who" — the name of a gunkhole in the story that the patron happened to remember. (Another real-life instance: She Flew No Flags by Joan Manley.)

Crowdsourcing

  • What'due south the Name of That Book?
    A Goodreads group with searchable word posts and thousands of questions and answers.

  • Name That Volume
    A LibraryThing grouping of ~3K members — many of whom are librarians or library-adjacent — who assist solve volume mysteries via threaded discussions.

  • The Fiction_L listserv
    Stumpers! Search athenaeum of by questions, answered past an intense book-ish community, or subscribe and postal service a new ane.

  • Reddit's whatsthatbook thread
    A nearly endless thread of users trying to help other users recollect book titles, including several frequently requested books. Particularly good for science fiction and fantasy.

  • "Stump the Bookseller" blog
    A cool indie bookstore in Ohio that maintains all-encompassing, searchable athenaeum — and offers a $4 service for personalized help. Lots of children's books here.

  • Large Volume Search
    If you can simply think what the encompass looks similar, attempt this cover-search tool.

Library Databases (log in with your library card)

  • Books & Authors

  • Books in Print

  • The New York Times databases

  • NoveList and NoveList Thou-8 (in-library use only)

More Suggestions

  • If you lot can remember just 1 word, use the search part on Goodreads or Library Affair to notice long lists of titles with a particular give-and-take.

  • Goodreads' browse-able lists of titles that readers take shelved in unique categories, such as authors' professions or decades of publication, is also be helpful.

  • For recently published books, the reviews in Booklist Online are cleaved down by detailed genre.

How to Motility On

Sometimes, it'south just not going to happen, and you can't find that elusive book you've been searching for. It's okay! Great news: The world is full of keen books! Hither are a few ways to notice more than...

  • Check out recommendations from our book experts here at NYPL. Nosotros offer suggestions via blog posts, the Staff Picks book finder, The Librarian Is In podcast, and more.
  • If you lot'd similar a personalized recommendation, find us on Twitter or fill out our What Should I Read Next? email form.
  • Want a brand-new read? Check out our favorite New and Noteworthy titles.

Feel free to leave a comment and tell usa almost a book y'all're trying to remember! Our library staff members will pop in and cheque it periodically, and readers of this post are welcome to make guesses and suggestions.