Finding Books

Sadly we don't have every book published. We have many, many books. Somewhere around 145,000 items! But what do you do if we don't have the book you want? Or if you can't remember the book you are looking for? Or if you want books like that great book you just read, but don't know where to start?

Luckily, we have several great resources to answer all of these questions. Let's start with the first question:

What to do if the book isn't on the shelf
Place a hold online! You can head on over to our library catalog: Bibliocommons and log in. If this is your first time, your password is patron. Search for the book (titles are the best to search with). If you don't get any results at first, check the "Search all Libraries" box and search again.

Now, hopefully, a listing for the book has appeared. If we own the book and you didn't have to check "Search all Libraries", you'll see something that looks like this:

Just below the call number, 576.8 DAR, it says "All copies in use" in red. If we don't own the material, and you checked "Search all Libraries", that area may have the red message or a green one. Either way, click "Place a Hold" and "Confirm". There. You've just put your name on the list and, when one becomes available*, you will be called or emailed to pick it up!
    *Small caveat: if it is a DVD or Video Game that we own, this will not work. If you found the book by searching our library and the text is a green "Available Now", give the librarian a call at (847) 234-0648 to place a Phone Hold.

What to do if you can't remember the book
This is where things get trickier. If you can't remember the exact title of the book and can't track it down to where you first heard about it, try Amazon. Make sure you switch their search to only Books and enter a few of the key words and, if possible, the author's last name. For example: if you know the author is Tom Wolfe and it has something to do with vanity, search "wolfe vanity". If you still are having trouble with different combinations, give us a call!

What to do if you want more books like the one you just read
If you are looking for similar books to a recent read, we have plenty of options. Firstly, our librarians are always happy to talk books and make recommendations. If you are at home, try our resource NoveList Plus.

NoveList Plus has a handy option for finding, what we call in the library 'biz, Read-alikes. Just find the entry for that great book you just finished and look to the right to see suggested books. Don't like any of those? Scroll down a bit to search by the unique themes of the book. For example, here are the themes for Hemingway's classic, The Sun Also Rises:

Check the box for any number of these and see the books that incorporate the same subjects, tones, etc. Make sure to try different combinations for plenty of options!

And, if all else fails, ask a librarian!