How Can I Find a Book I Like?
Suggestions from Cathy Belben, Librarian, Burlington-Edison High School Librarian

  1. Use OPAC (the online card catalogue).  Do a “subject”:  type in the subject you are interested in (adventure, mystery, romance, etc) and push the “subject” button and a list of items in that subject will appear. Click on the topic (if you want fiction, find “adventure—fiction”) and you’ll get a list of books on that topic.
  1. Use lists.  The BEHS library has dozens of booklists that tell you about books. They are organized by topic. Many of them are available online, but Ms. Belben and Blythe have print copies, too.
  1. Ask the librarian.  The best way to do this is to say, “Excuse, beautiful and exceptionally smart librarian, I really liked (NAME A SPECIFIC BOOK OR MOVIE), can you help me find another book I might like?”  Asking Ms. Belben to recommend “a long book,” “a short book,” or “a good book” doesn’t work as well. (I don’t judge books by how long they are, and the books that are “good” to me might not meet your criteria—if I know what you think is a “good” book, I can think of other books like that).
  1. Use the school library webpage—I update my list of book reviews and lists regularly, so go here to find out about good books you can read: http://www.be.wednet.edu/Hs/library/read.htm
     
  2. Check out other webpages.  There are links on my web page, and you can "google" the word "recommended reading" or another, similar subject heading and access many web sites that recommend books.
     
  3. Look at the displays in the library.  Check out the bulletin boards and look at the books on top of the bookcases—many have “NEW” bookmarks or “GREAT BOOK REPORT READING” bookmarks. These are some of my favorites!
  4. Check out the “recommended reading” notebooks.  These are print copies of my book reviews. The notebooks sit on the front desk and you are welcome to browse them at any time.
  5. Ask your friends!  Many students tell me that their favorite books are those that have been recommended by their friends AND their parents and teachers!