Your Personal Readers' Advisory Librarian

 Have you ever been looking for your next book, but you don't know where to start?  What about finishing a series and you want another one like it?  You ask your friends.  You ask your librarian. Or maybe you don't want to ask because that last series you read was a a little risque and you don't want to admit how much you liked it.  Well, whatever the situation, we are here to show you how to find your next great read.  It's right at your fingertips at your library's website!

We're going to take you through this step by step and you are going to wonder where this wonderful tool has been all your life.  First, click on the link above and go to our website. 

Choose Explore  and then Novelist Plus  and then get ready to spend a little time doing what we like to call "book window shopping."  And make sure you've got your library card ready for the next step.

Type your library card number into the Patron ID box.  If you have any questions or problems with this step, call or visit your local branch.  Stop by if you don't have or have lost your library card too.  

Now that you're in, let's have some fun! Most of us have a favorite type of book that we like to read, so this is a great place to start.  Under the Recommended Reads List you can search by age and genre in fiction and non fiction.  There are even sub-genres for each one if you want to get more specific. 

There are also suggestions under I'm in the mood for books that are...  These are more specific and change periodically.  

Maybe you have a favorite author but have trouble keeping up with all of the books they have written or you can't remember the order of the books.  Just type in the name of the author in the search box on the home page and you can find all the answers you need.  Under the authors information you will see a list of their books.  Search by books and you can get them listed alphabetically or by date. Choose series and then you can see each series the author has written and the order of the books in it. This is great if you read anyone other than Janet Evanovich or Sue Grafton.  

Maybe you just finished an epic, life-changing series and are heartbroken because the next book isn't coming out for two years or worse is finished. You want to read another book or series like it ASAP. We've got you covered.  Search for the series on the home page and you will see that each book not only has Title Read-alikes but author and series also.  Plus, there are always suggestions listed on the right side of your screen.  There is bound to be something to help you out in one of those lists. 

 Here is a sample of a read-alike list.  You can even print it out and hand it to your favorite librarian along with your library card and just tell them to pick one and surprise you.  Who knows?  You might find your next favorite series.

If you are the independent type, you'll love this feature.  When you choose a book to see more about it, it tells you how many copies are available in our library system.  If you click on that blue box, it will take you right to our library system's online catalog so you can order a copy and have it sent to the library of your choice.  

Now one more thing before we finish up. If you get in this website and get lost and can't remember all of the wonderful books you found to read, this will be your best friend.  Go to the top and create an account.  Then, when you find a book you want to remember, click on the folder (where the arrow is pointing) and it will save it for you.  

So the next time you get on the Novelist Plus site, all you have to do is sign in and click on the folder in the top right corner and all those great books you want to read are right there waiting for you.  

We hope you will learn to love this site as much as we do.  It such an easy way to find your next book.  Happy reading!