READERS’ ADVISORY ADVICE
Your job is to get books into patrons’ hands. The Readers’ Advisory interview
will help you do this. You want to find out what kind of books the patron likes
to read, what they don’t like, and match the reader to the book. The interview
process is something of an art, since you have to get the information you need
without it sounding like an interrogation. Don’t worry, you’ll get the hang of
it, and enjoy it, too.
Start off simply: if the patron came in looking for the latest John Grisham
book and it wasn’t in, find out if they had read his other books and suggest
them. Or you may suggest other authors that write similarly to Grisham – William
Bernhardt, John Lescroart, Paul Levine, Steve Martini, Perri O’Shaughnessy,
Richard North Patterson, Lisa Scottoline, Scott Turow. Use the lists that are
available to you.
If the person is looking for “a good book” ask them for the name of the last
good book they read. After all, your idea of a good book may be very different
from my idea of a good book and most important of all, their idea of a good
book. Ask if they would like something by that same author, or something like
that. Maybe they are looking for a change and want something completely
different. Ask them what they liked about it. Maybe they like historical
settings, or maybe it was the strong female character they liked. Suggest some
books of interest by pulling the book from the cart or shelf if it is in the new
area and handing it to them. You might ask if they have read such-and-such a
title or so-and-so author, then go pull it. It is always better to have the book
in hand instead of a list. The lists we have are mainly for you. If the patrons
want to see them, by all means let them, but just a title or author may not let
them know much about the book.
How will you find these patrons wanting your help? Once they know you’re out
there, they’ll find you. Also, you can usually tell when someone needs a
suggestion. They wander around the book carts several times, but don’t come away
with anything. You can, if you feel comfortable, go up to someone and ask if
they found the book they were looking for.
Your personal reading experience will be useful, but you cannot read
everything, and you don’t read every type of book. Listen to the patrons in the
new book area. They are always talking about what they liked and what they
didn’t like. “Several people have told me this was a good book,” or “This book
has been very popular” are good ways to suggest books that you haven’t read.
Remember: just because you liked a book doesn’t mean everyone will. Even if
The Da Vince Code has been on the best seller list for 138 weeks, if the patron
wants a romance, they probably won’t want to read it.
Always respect a person’s reading tastes. Some people don’t like Science
Fiction, and others can’t get enough of it. The same goes for every other genre
and for nonfiction as well. Don’t be disappointed if your favorite book gets
passed over. And every now and then, you will find a patron that you just can’t
satisfy. In that case, you can turn them over to me or to the Reference desk, or
you’ll just have to invite them to browse through the books at their leisure if
you have tried everything and they’ve either already read your suggestions or
don’t think they’d like them.
GUIDELINES FOR ASSISTING PATRONS IN BOOK SELECTION
Be familiar with current and popular books:
• Know your collection.
• Be aware of and read popular review sources like the New York Times Book
Review Section, Publisher’s Weekly, People Magazine, Time Magazine, the Oprah
Winfrey Show and the Today Show.
Role of the Readers’ Advisor:
• Be observant.
• Be accessible to your patrons. Make eye contact right away and smile!
• Assess patron’s taste in reading by asking open ended questions.
• Try not to be judgmental. Everyone has the right to read books that appeal
to them.
• Recommend reading material suitable to a patron’s age, taste, and reading
ability.
• Ask patrons you know to read and report back on new titles.
THE READERS’ ADVISORY INTERVIEW
Think of the process in three steps.
Initial Listening Period
a. Opens a channel of communication between the library user and the RA
librarian and sets up an expectation of readers= advisory service
b. Ask one question to start the reader sharing their likes with you. ATell me
about a book you have read and enjoyed@
i. Open in form, avoids assumptions about reading tastes, allows the librarian
to understand the reading experience from the patrons= perspective
c. Use active listening
d. Treat the reader with respect
e. Things to determine during the initial listening period
• Books a patron has read and enjoyed
• Requirements of the suggestions (reading level, format (i.e. large type, book
on tape), content issues (such as sex, language, violence, etc.)
• Prior reading history (are there any authors or books a patron has already
read and either liked or dislikedB this also supplies more useful information in
making suggestions.)
• Appeal elements
Suggesting Titles
a. Creates a context where the user can ask other questions
b. Walk patrons around the stacks and pull books as you discuss them
c. May be performed either by the Readers’ Advisor, by the user, or together
Offering ongoing assistance
a. May involve referral B ask other staff about reading suggestions
b. Should invite future book conversations
c. Make the user aware of additional resources that may be useful to them
d. Ease any feeling of intimidation the user may have about talking about books
e. Inquire about the effectiveness of the conversation, usefulness of the
suggestions, etc.
Many thanks to David Wright of the Seattle Public
Library for these suggestions.
READERS’ ADVISORY OVERVIEW
1. Station: Desk at the computer station in the new books area.
2. Equipment: Computer Catalog, NY Times Best Seller lists, Name Tag,
Readers’ Advisory Manual, Readers’ Advisory Resources
3.Duties:
• Answer library questions
• Bring out new book carts
• Check availability of books
• Find books for patrons
• Keep stats on reserves and questions
• Keep list of unavailable items
• Keep displays filled
• Straighten new book area
• Suggest books
• Teach patrons to use Catalog & Novelist
4. Training:
• Volunteers go through regular orientation
• Trained in building layout, hours, procedures, etc.
• Staff & volunteers learn resources
• Role playing for practice
• Readers’ Advisory Interview to understand process involved
READERS’ ADVISORY ONLINE RESOURCES
ALL READERS.COM
http://www.allreaders.com/
Choose from hundreds of plot, theme, character, and setting options to find
precisely what you’re looking for.
BOOKLIST CENTER
http://home.comcast.net/~dwtaylor1/
The Booklist Center bills itself as “The Web's Largest Collection of Book Lists”
and includes lists of award winning and recommended books.
BOOKSPOT
http://www.bookspot.com
Book reviews, book awards, poetry, literary criticism, authors and more.
BOOK TV
http://www.booktv.org
This is the companion web site to the television show “Book TV”, which airs
programs about nonfiction books on C-Span2 all weekend. The web site includes
additional information such as bestseller lists, author chats, information on
upcoming programming and background information on authors and publishers.
DEAR READER
http://www.dearreader.com
Sign up for any of these email book clubs and every day you’ll receive a
5-minute sample from a book. By the end of the week, you'll have read 2-3
chapters. A great way to sample lots of new books effortlessly.
JANUARY MAGAZINE
http://www.januarymagazine.com
Reviews of popular fiction & nonfiction as well as author interviews.
NONFICTION REVIEWS
http://www.nonfictionreviews.com
Reviews divided by genres such as “Medicine & Psychology,” “Biography,”
“Religion,” “Paranormal & Fringe Science,” “Entertainment & Sports,” “Politics,”
and “True Crime.”
ONLINE BOOKSTORES
Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/
Barnes & Noble - http://www.bn.com/
Powells Books
http://www.powells.com/
Something that is very helpful in keeping up with what’s out there is the
Powells review-a-day, which offers reviews from a variety of sources on a
variety of genres and can be accessed on the site or via free subscription,
http://www.powells.com/review.
OVERBOOKED
http://www.overbooked.org
Overbooked specializes in literary and genre fiction information. Overbooked
Originals include author web pages, annotated lists of nonfiction, fiction and
mystery books which received starred reviews, themed booklists, featured titles
lists and hot lists of hard cover US fiction releases.
READING GROUP CHOICES
http://www.readinggroupchoices.com
Offers a mixture of fiction and nonfiction and includes reviews, comments,
reading group guides and discussion questions.
READERS SERVICE DESK
http://www.webrary.org/rs/rsmenu.html
From the Morton Grove Public Library, includes information about the Fiction_L
readers’ advisory listserv and links for fiction fans.
USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/front
USA Today posts a weekly list of the top 150 best selling books. What makes this
list unique is that there is only one list and it is based on actual sales, so
the list is inclusive of fiction, nonfiction, adult, children, hardcover and
paperback.
READERS’ ADVISORY PRINT RESOURCES
General/Miscellaneous Fiction
What Do I Read Next? R016.813Wha
Fiction Catalog 016.8Fic
Genreflecting R016.813R00
Fiction 1876-1983 R016.80883Fic
Sequels: An Annotated Guide to Novels in Series R016.80883
Florida Fiction 1801-1980 R016.813Gar (has subject index)
What Inspirational Literature Do I Read Next? R200.16Wha
Historical Fiction
What Historical Novel Do I Read Next? R808.83016Bur
American Historical Fiction R813.008Ada
Gothic Novels of the Twentieth Century R016.823Rad
Mystery & Horror
What Mystery Do I Read Next? R808.83872Sti
Detecting Men R813.087209Hei
Detecting Women R813.087209Hei
Cloak & Dagger Fiction: An Annotated Guide to Spy Thrillers R016.823Smi
Horror Literature R016.823Hor
Who Done It? A Guide to Detective, Mystery and Suspense Fiction R016.80883Fic
Romance
Romance Reader's Advisory R813.085Bou
North American Romance writers R813.08509Nor
Twentieth Century Romance & Gothic Writers R823.085Twe
Twentieth Century Romance & Historical Writers R823.085Twe
Love Lines: The Romance Reader=s Guide to Printed Pleasures R813.085Gui
Sci-Fi
Reader's Guide to 20th Century Science Fiction R809.38762Rea
Westerns
Encyclopedia of Frontier & Western Fiction R813.0874Enc
Twentieth Century Western Writers R810.9Twe
READERS’ ADVISORY PRINT REVIEW SOURCES
Most Current
Kirkus Review
Publisher’s Weekly
Most Authoritative
Library Journal
Booklist
Additional Resources
Bookmarks Magazine
Mystery News
New York Review of Books
New York Times Book Review
Pages
Romantic Times
Sources for Early Recognition of New Titles (no reviews)
Publishers Weekly Prepub Alerts & Mystery Prepub Alerts
Forecast (Baker & Taylor)
Ingram Advance
McNaughton
Get Ready Sheet
READING FOR THE READERS’ ADVISOR
General questions to think about while reading:
• What is the book about? What is the theme?
• What are the main ideas? What is the point the author is trying to make?
• Is the book believable? Consider if the author’s message is valid.
• If the book gives information, what is its significance? Is it
entertaining? Enriching?
• How does it compare to others in its genre or in the same subject?
• Is the author’s style detailed? Light and breezy? Hard-hitting?
Matter-of-fact? Understated? Ponderous? Action-packed? Is it a page turner?
• What other books does this remind you of?
Who would enjoy this book? Who most likely would not?
Adapted from HOW TO READ A BOOK by Mortimer J. Adler and
Charles Van Doren, by Mary Ann Cassell, edited by Stacy Alesi, SWC 11/05
HOW TO READ A BOOK IN TEN MINUTES
BASICS OF SPEED “READING”:
1. Select a book to “read”
2. On a card, sheet of paper, or form provided: record the Author, Title, Genre,
Series Info, and Call Number. As you “read”, jot down notes about items listed
below that seem pertinent.
3. Hold the book & look at its basic features
• Is it heavy?
• When you open it, do the pages lie flat?
• Look at the typeface, the space between lines, the general layout - How easy
to read is it? Is there much white space? Is it densely printed?
4. Look at the cover - What does it tell you about the book (or what the
publisher wants you to think about the book)
5. Read the Blurb - Does it give you an idea of the storyline; does it tell
“everything” (or maybe it doesn’t tell you anything). Is it inviting, teasing,
ominous?
6. Read the first chapter - Does it pull you right into the story or is there a
slow build-up? If it’s a series title, how smoothly does it deliver background
info?
7. Skim and read bits and pieces here and there throughout the book - Does it
seem to flow? What’s your general impression of the book?
8. Read the end (sorry, but this is important!). If it has an epilogue, read a
couple of sections before the epilogue. Is there a conclusion or is it
open-ended? Does the ending read like a checklist, wrapping up all loose ends?
9. What can you tell about
• Style: humorous; serious; length of sentences, sections, or chapters;
dialogue?
• Pacing: leisurely or action-oriented
• Format: straight-line narrative, flashback, single or multiple points of view
(how smooth are transitions)
• Characters: many or few; are they a recognizable “type”; does it seem
character or action-oriented
• Setting: time; place; integral or wallpaper
• Story-line: character or plot driven
• Genre: does it follow genre conventions?; sub-genre?
FROM THE READERS’ ADVISOR’S VIEWPOINT:
1. Does this bring to mind any other authors or titles as possible read-alikes?
2. Which readers could enjoy this? Why would they?
3. Think about how you would phrase a recommendation based on speed reading vs.
cover-to-cover reading vs. what you might have learned from reviews or other
readers.
BECOMING PROFICIENT AT SPEED READING (and learning its value and
limitations):
1. Practice; set a goal (5 books an hour; 30 books a week, etc.)
2. Speed read 5 books you read and enjoyed a long time ago (at least several
years). How much comes back to you? How much of what you are “speed reading”
reminds you of what you so enjoyed the last time you read the book? Are you
getting a “feel” for the book? Does it seem like the same book you read before,
or does it seem different?
3. Speed read 5 books that you haven’t read, but would be at the top of your “I
want to read” list. Then read the books from cover to cover as you normally
would. How different are your impressions of the book: speed reading vs.
“regular” reading?
4. Find people (preferably some knowledge of readers’ advisory) who read in a
genre you do not read. Ask them to select 5 newish books in the genre that they
have read and enjoyed. Speed read the 5 books and discuss each with the person
recommending the title. How well have you “read” these?
5. Get together with several others and speed read and the same book. Have a
mini book discussion to compare your impressions and notes. What is similar and
different in the various readings of the book? How does this compare with the
usual book discussion experience?
REVIEW
RA is all about communication. Your goal is to open a channel of
communication between yourself and the patron/reader.
You want to ask open-ended questions:
**Tell me about a book you have read and enjoyed**
You need to really listen to what the patron is saying.
Paraphrase what they’ve said so you both know you are on the same page
Use neutral questioning – as difficult as it can be at times, now is not the
time to be judgmental
Start with a brief interview - not generally a question and answer session,
but a conversation about books
Things to determine during the initial listening period –
• Books a patron has read and enjoyed
• Requirements of the suggestions (reading level, format (i.e. large type, book
on tape), content issues (such as sex, language, violence, etc.)
• Prior reading history (are there any authors or books a patron has already
read and either liked or disliked)
• Appeal elements
Avoid making assumptions about the question, about the book, or about the
patron.
You do not have to read a book to recommend it.
The measure of success is not finding the Aright@ answer. You are successful
when "readers perceive, based on the service that they receive, that the library
is a place where they can talk about books and obtain suggestions and resources
to meet their needs."
You are not seeking the “one perfect answer”, but rather offering
possibilities.
RA is an art, not a science.
The only way to conquer your fear is to face it!
WOMEN’S FICTION
Charlotte Vale
Allende, Isabel
Alvarez, Julia
Berg, Elizabeth
Binchy, Maeve
Blume, Judy
Bradford, Barbara Taylor
Collins, Jackie
Cookson, Catherine
Dailey, Janet
Dallas, Sandra
Delinsky, Barbara
Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee
Dubus, Andre III
Eden, Dorothy
Escandon, Maria
Flagg, Fannie
Gaffney, Patricia
Gibbons, Kaye
Goldsmith, Olivia
Hamilton, Jane
Hannah, Kristen
Hegi, Ursula
Heller, Jane
Hendricks, Judith R.
Hinton, J. Lynne
Hoffman, Alice
Hyde, Catherine Ryan
Irving, John
Karon, Jan
Kay, Terry
Kingsolver, Barbara
Krantz, Judith
Lamb, Wally
Landvik, Linda
Letts, Billie
McMillan, Terry
Medlicott, Joan
Michael, Judith
Miller, Sue
Mitchard, Jacquelyn
Patchett, Ann
Pilcher, Rosamunde
Plain, Belva
Proulx, Annie
Quindlen, Anna
Ray, Jeanne
Reynolds, Sheri
Ross, Ann B.
Shreve, Anita
Steel, Danielle
Stolz, Karen
Tan, Amy
Trigiani, Adriana
Van Slyke, Helen
EPIC FANTASY
(Vast, sweeping, multi-volume sagas)
Anthony, Piers
Bradley, Marion Zimmer
Brooks, Terry
Burroughs, Edgar Rice
Card, Orson Scott
Carroll, Lewis
Donaldson, Stephen R.
Eddings, David
Gabaldon, Diana
Hickman Tracy
Jordan, Robert
Kurtz, Katherine
Lackey, Mercedes
McCaffrey, Anne
McKiernan, Dennis
Moorcock, Michael
Norton, Andre
Pournelle, Jerry
Saint Exupery, Antoine de
Swift, Jonathan
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Weis, Margaret
Williams, Tad
Zelazny, Roger
FAMILY SAGAS
Allen, Charlotte Vale
Archer, Jeffrey
Auchincloss, Louis
Auel, Jean
Bailey, Hilary
Barber, Noel
Barclay, Tessa
Battle, Lois
Binchy, Maeve
Birmingham, Stephen
Bradford, Barbara Taylor
Briskin, Jacqueline
Caldwell, Taylor
Cato, Nancy
Coleman, Lonnie
Conroy, Pat
Cookson, Catherine
Courter, Gay
Dailey, Janet
Delderfield, R. F.
Doctorow, E. L.
Duncan, Pamela
Eden, Dorothy
Ellis, Julie
Fast, Howard
Freeman, Cynthia
Gaskin, Catherine
Godden, Rumer
Godwin, Gail
Goldreich, Gloria
Gouge, Elizabeth
Gross, Joel
Hailey, Elizabeth Forsythe
Haley, Alex
Howatch, Susan
Jakes, John
Kaye, M.M.
Krantz, Judith
L'Amour, Louis
McCullough, Colleen
McMurtry, Larry
Michener, James A.
Oates, Joyce Carol
Pearce, Mary E.
Pilcher, Rosamunde
Plain, Belva
Price, Eugenia
Puzo, Mario
Rayner, Claire
Shaw, Irwin
Sheldon, Sidney
Smith, Wilbur
Steel, Danielle
Stewart, Fred Mustard
Stubbs, Jean
Tennenbaum, Silvia
Undset, Sigrid
Waugh, Evelyn
Wouk, Herman
HISTORICAL FICTION
Anthony, Evelyn
Auchincloss, Louis
Barrett, Andrea
Bierce, Ambrose
Bonner, Cindy
Byrd, Max
Caldwell, Taylor
Chevalier, Tracy
Clavell, James
Coleman, Lonnie
Cornwell, Bernard
Coulter, Catherine
Dailey, Janet
Delderfield, R. F.
Diamant, Anita
Doctorow, E.L.
Doig, Ivan
Dunnet, Dorothy
Eden, Dorothy
Elegant, Robert S.
Fast, Howard
Ferber, Edna
Fraser, Antonia
Frazier, Charles
Gabaldon, Diana
George, Margaret
Gordon, Noah
Gurganus, Allan
Harris, Marilyn
Harrison, Harry
Holland, Cecelia
Holman, Sheri
Jakes, John
Jennings, Gary
Kennedy, William
Lent, Jeffrey
McCullough, Colleen
Michener, James A.
Mitchell, Margaret
O’Brien, Patrick
Penman, Sharon Kay
Poyer, David
Reasoner, James
Renault, Mary
Sabatini, Rafael
Safire, William
Shaara, Jeff
Shaara, Michael
Smith, Wilbur
Stegner, Wallace
Stewart, Fred Mustard
Stone, Irving
Tsukiyama, Gail
Turnbull, Agnes
Turtledove, Harry
Veryan, Patricia
Vidal, Gore
Vreeland, Susan
Weir, Alison
West, Jessamyn
Wicker, Tom
HORROR
Andrews, V.C.
Anson, Jay
Anthony, Piers
Arensberg, Ann
Bachman, Richard
Barker, Clive
Beagle, Peter S
Blatty, William Peter
Bloch, Robert
Bradbury, Ray
Cadnum, Michael
Cady, Jack
Campbell, Ramsey
Child, Lincoln
Cook, Robin
Coyne, John
Danielewski, Mark Z.
Devon, Gary
Farris, John
Foster, Alan Dean
Fraser, Anthea
Grant, Charles
Haining, Peter
Hall, Karen Lynne
Hamilton, Laurel K.
Harris, Marilyn
Harris, Thomas
Herbert, James
Jackson, Shirley
King, Stephen
Koontz, Dean
Levin, Ira
Lofts, Nora
Lovecraft, H. P.
Matheson, Richard
McCammon, Robert
McDowell, Michael
Monahan, Brent
Rice, Anne
Saul, John
Sheffield, Charles
Shelley, Mary
Stoker, Bram
Straub, Peter
Tessier, Thomas
Tryon, Thomas
Wilson, F. Paul
Wood, Bari
HUMOR
(Nonfiction)
Allen, Woody
Armour, Richard
Baker, Russell
Barry, Dave
Bombeck, Erma
Buchwald, Art
Buckley, Christopher
Burns, George
Carlin, George
Cerf, Bennett
Cosby, Bill
Geist, William
Grizzard, Lewis
Ivins, Molly
Leacock, Stephen
Letterman, David
Levenson, Sam
Marquis, Don
Martin, Steve
Miller, Dennis
Nash, Ogden
O’Reilly, Bill
Perelman, S. J.
Rackoff, David
Reiser, Paul
Rivers, Joan
Rogers, Will
Rosten, Leo
Sedaris, David
Seinfeld, Jerry
Stern, Howard
Thurber, James
Twain, Mark
Wilde, Oscar
Wodehouse, P. G.
INSPIRATIONAL FICTION
ARVIN, REED
BAER, JUDY
BLACKSTOCK TERRI
BLY, STEPHEN
BUNN, T. DAVIS
BROUWER SIGMUND
BUNYAN, JOHN
CALDWELL, TAYLOR
CARD, ORSON SCOTT (WOMEN OF GENESIS SERIES)
CHAIKIN, LINDA
CHESTERTON, G.K. (FATHER BROWN SERIES)
COELHO, PAULO
COPELAND, LORI
EVANS, RICHARD PAUL
FISCHER, JOHN
GIRZONE, JOSEPH
GULLEY, PHILIP
GUNN, ROBIN JONES
HATCHER, ROBIN LEE
HILL, GRACE LIVINGSTON
HOFF, B.J.
HOLMES, MARJORIE
HUNT, ANGELA ELWELL
JENKINS, JERRY
KARON, JAN
LAHAYE, BEVERLY
LAHAYE, TIM
LAWHEAD, STEPHEN
LEWIS, C.S.
MACDONALD, GEORGE
MANDINO, OG
MARSHALL, CATHERINE
MILLTER, CALVIN
MORRIS, GILBERT
MORRIS, LYNN
MYERS, BILL
OKE, JANETTE
PEART, JANE
PELLA, JUDITH
PERETTI, FRANK
PETERSON, TRACIE
PRICE, EUGENIA
RIVERS, FRANCINE
SNELLING, LAURAINE
SPRINKLE, PATRICIA
STOKES, PENELOPE J.
THOENE, BODIE
THOENE, BROCK
TRAYLOR, ELLEN GUNDERSON
WANGERIN, WALTER
JEWISH LIFE
Pearl Abraham
Saul Bellow
Gay Courter
Alan Dershowitz
Dykewomon, Elana
Marjorie Edelson
Nathan Englander
Michael Gold
Myla Goldberg
Rebecca Goldstein
Allegra Goodman
Batya Goor
Gross, Joel
Susan Isaacs
Alan Isler
Erica Jong
Elinor Lipman
Faye Kellerman
Bernard Malumud
Tova Mirvis
Cynthia Ozick
Jacqueline Park
Chaim Potok
Naomi Ragen
Anne Roiphe
Jonathan Rosen
Henry Roth
Ellen Schiff
W. G. Sebald
Segal, Erich
Isaac Bashevis Singer
Milton Steinberg
Aryeh Lev Stollman
Leon Uris
Lewis Weinstein
Herman Wouk
LEGAL THRILLERS
Bernhardt, William
Burke, Alafair
Connors, Rose
Coughlin, William J.
Diehl, William
Ellis, David
Fairstein, Linda
Fyfield, Frances
Gardner, Earle Stanley
Grisham, John
Guterman, Amy
Lescroart, John T
Levine, Paul
Margolin, Phillip
Maron, Margaret
Martini, Steve
Meltzer, Brad
O’Shaughnessy, Perri
Parker, Barbara
Patterson, Richard North
Rosenberg, Nancy Taylor
Rosenfelt, David
Sanders, Lawrence
Scottoline, Lisa
Siegel, Sheldon
Tanenbaum, Robert K.
Turow, Scott
LITERARY FICTION
Austen, Jane
Baldwin, James A.
Bellow, Saul
Bronte, Charlotte
Bronte, Emily
Brookner, Anita
Buck, Pearl S.
Burgess, Anthony
Butler, Samuel
Camus, Albert
Collins, Wilkie
Conrad, Joseph
Dickey, James
Doctorow, E.L.
Dostoyevsky, Fyodor
Dreiser, Theodore
Dumas, Andre
DuMaurier, Daphne
Eliot, George
Ellison, Ralph
Faulkner, William
Ferber, Edna
Fitzgerald, F. Scott
Flaubert, Gustave
Forster, E.M.
Fowles, John
Golding, William
Graves, Robert
Greene, Graham
Hammett, Dashiell
Hardy, Thomas
Heller, Joseph
Hemingway, Ernest
Hesse, Herman
Hughes, Richard
Hugo, Victor
Huxley, Aldous
Irving, John
James, Henry
Joyce, James
Kennedy, William J.
Kipling, Rudyard
Koestler, Arthur
Lawrence, D.H.
Lewis, Sinclair
Lowry, Malcolm
Mailer, Norman
McCullers, Carson
Melville, Herman
Miller, Henry
Murdoch, Iris
Nabokov, Vladimir
Naipaul, V. S.
Oates, Joyce Carol
Orwell, George
Pasternak, Boris
Plath, Sylvia
Rand, Ayn
Rhys, Jean
Rushdie, Salman
Salinger, Jerome David
Shelley, Mary
Singer, Isaac B.
Smith, Betty
Snow, C.P.
Steinbeck, John
Stegner, Wallace
Stoker, Bram
Stone, Irving
Styron, William
Tolstoy, Leo
Twain, Mark
Updike, John
Uris, Leon
Voltaire
Vonnegut, Kurt
Walker, Alice
Warren, Robert Penn
Waugh, Evelyn
Wells, H.G.
Welty, Eurdora
Wharton, Edith
Wilde, Oscar
Williams, Tennessee
Woolf, Virginia
Wright, Richard
COMIC CAPERS
Barry, Dave
Batholomew, Nancy
Beaton, M.C.
Cannell, Dorothy
Churchill, Jane
Cooper, Susan R.
Crider, Bill
Dorsey, Tim
Estleman, Loren D.
Evanovich, Janet
Friedman, Kinky
George, Ann
Hart, Carolyn G.
Hayter, Sparkle
Haywood, Gar A.
Hess, Joan
Hiaasen, Carl
Kahn, Sharon
Kaminsky, Stuart
Leonard, Elmore
Levinson, Robert S.
McCrumb, Sharyn
Peters, Elizabeth
Shankman, Sarah
Strohmeyer, Sarah
Thomas, Ross
Trocheck, Kathy H.
Westlake, Donald
ENGLISH MYSTERY
Atherton, Nancy
Beaton, M..C.
Bowen, Rhys
Braun, Lilian Jackson
Brett, Simon
Cauldwell, Sarah
Chesterton, G.K.
Christie, Agatha
Crispin, Edumnd
Cross, Amanda
Davidson, Diane Mott
George, Elizabeth
Grimes, Martha
Hart, Carolyn
Lovesey, Peter
McCrumb, Sharon
Perry, Ann
Peters, Elizabeth
Peters, Ellis
Pickard, Nancy
Robinson, Peter
Sayers, Dorothy L.
Spencer, Sally
Wentworth, Patricia
POLICE / DETECTIVE
Bannister, Jo
Block, Lawrence
Burke, James Lee
Burke, Jan
Butler, Gwendoline
Cannell, Stephen J.
Caunitz, William
Cleary, Jon
Connelly, Michael
Crais, Robert
D'Amato, Barbara
Deaver, Jeffery
Glass, Leslie
Griffin, W.E.B.
Goor, Batya
Hall, Parnell
Harrington, William
Hoag, Tami
Kaminsky, Stuart
Kellerman, Faye
Krich, Rochelle
Lehane, Dennis
Maron, Margaret
Mayor, Archie
McBain, Ed
McGown, Jill
Parker, T. Jefferson
Pearson, Ridley
Pelecanos, George
Qiu, Xiaolong
Rankin, Ian
Straley, John
Wambaugh, Joseph
HISTORICAL
Adams, Harold
Alexander, Bruce
Barron, Stephanie
Bastable, Bernard
Carr, Caleb
Davis, Lindsey
Dams, Jeanne M.
Day, Dianne
Doherty, P. C.
Dunn, Carola
Emerson, Kathy Lynn
Frazer, Margaret
Furutani, Dale
Gregory, Susanna
Herman, George
Knight, Alanna
Marston, Edward
Meyers, Maan
Monfredo, Miriam G.
Newman, Sharon
Paige, Robin
Penman, Sharon Kay
Perry, Anne
Peters, Ellis
Robb, Candace
Robinson, Lynda S.
Ross, Kate
Saylor, Steven
Tremayne, Peter
AMATEUR SLEUTH
Barnes, Linda
Barr, Nevada
Block, Lawrence
Box, C. J.
Braun, Lillian Jackson
Buchanan, Edna
Cannell, Dorothy
Chittenden, Margaret
Coben, Harlan
Cornwell, Patricia
Cussler, Clive
Davidson, Diane Mott
Deaver, Jeffery
Dunning, John
Gilman, Dorothy
Hart, Carolyn G.
Hayter, Sparkle
Jorgensen, Christine T.
Kahn, Sharon
Kellerman, Jonathan
Lupica, Mike
McCrumb, Sharyn
McDermid, Val
Patterson, James
Pears, Iain
Peters, Elizabeth
Peters, Ellis
Reichs, Kathy
Sandford, John
Smith, Martin Cruz
Stabenow, Dana
Standiford,Les
White, Stephen
OUTDOOR FICTION
-- writers with a sense of place
BARR, NEVADA
BORLAND, HAL
BURROUGHS, EDGAR RICE
COOPER, JAMES FEN.
DILLARD, ANNIE
FOREMAN, DAVE
FORESTER, C.S.
FRASIER, CHARLES
HEMINGWAY, ERNEST
HUDSON, W.H.
JEWETT, SARAH ORNE
KINGSOLVER, BARBARA
LAMBDIN, DEWEY
LONDON, JACK
MACLEAN, ALLISTAIR
MACLEAN, NORMAN
MATTHIESSEN, PETER
MCCARTHY, CORMAC
MELVILLE, HERMAN
MICHENER, JAMES
MOWAT, FARLEY
POYER, DAVID
RAWLINGS, MARJORIE K.
SCHULMAN, AUDREY
STABENOW, DANA
STEVENSON, ROBERT L.
THEROUX, PAUL
WOUK, HERMAN
HISTORICAL ROMANCE
-- additional romance novels available in the paperback section
Balogh, Mary
Blake, Jennifer
Brandewyne, Rebecca
Cameron, Stella
Carr, Philippa
Cartland, Barbara
Chesney, Marion
Cookson, Catherine
Coulter, Catherine
Deveraux, Jude
Feather, Jane
Garlock, Dorothy
Garwood, Julie
Henley, Virginia
James, Eloise
Joyce, Brenda
Laurens, Stephanie
Lindsey, Johanna
Mason, Connie
McKinney, Meagan
McNaught, Judith
Miler, Linda Lael
Quick, Amanda
Putney, Mary Jo
Rogers, Rosemary
Smith, Joan
Whitney, Phyllis
Woodiwiss, Kathleen
CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
Brown, Sandra
Cameron, Stella
Coulter, Catherine
Crusie, Jennifer
Delinsky, Barbara
Deveraux, Jude
Hannah, Kristin
Howard, Linda
Krentz, Jayne Ann
Lowell, Elizabeth
Macomber, Debbie
McNaught, Judith
Michaels, Fern
Phillips, Susan Elizabeth
Rice, Luanne
Robards, Karen
Roberts, Nora
SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
Adams, Douglas
Anderson, Poul
Anthony, Piers
Asimov, Isaac
Benford, Gregory
Bova, Ben
Bradbury, Ray
Brooks, Terry
Bujold, Lois
Burgess, Anthony
Burroughs, Edgar
Card, Orson Scott
Cherryh, C. J.
Crichton, Michael
Clarke, Arthur C.
Dick, Philip
Dickson, Gordon
Donaldson, Stephen
Ellison, Harlan
Goodkind, Terry
Heinlein, Robert
Herbert, Frank
Hubbard, L. Ron
Jordan, Robert
Lackey, Mercedes
Le Guin, Ursula
Martin, George R. R.
McCaffrey, Anne
Modesitt, L. E.
Niven, Larry
Norton, Andre
Orwell, George
Pohl, Frederik
Pratchett, Terry
Sawyer, Robert
Silverberg, Robert
Stephenson, Neal
Sterling, Bruce
Tolkien, J. R. R.
Turtledove, Harry
Vance, Jack
Verne, Jules
Wells, H. G.
Zelazny, Roger
THRILLERS & SUSPENSE
Abrahams, Peter
Andrews, V. C.
Baldacci, David
Brown, Dan
Brown, Sandra
Buchanan, Edna
Caunitz, William J.
Child, Lee
Clancy, Tom
Coben, Harlan
Condon, Richard
Connelly, Michael
Connolly, John
Coulter, Catherine
Cussler, Clive
Crais, Robert
Cray, David
Deaver, Jeffrey
Deighton, Len
Diehl, William
Dorsey, Tim
Ellis, David
Follett, Ken
Forsythe, Frederick
Freedman, J. F.
Freemantle, Brian
Frey, Stephen
Gardner, John
Garwood, Julie
Gerritsen, Tess
Gifford, Thomas
Gilman, Dorothy
Haig, Brian
Harris, Thomas
Hawksley, Humphrey
Hecht, Daniel
Hiaasen, Carl
Higgins, Jack
Hillhouse, Raelynn
Holt, A. J.
Howard, Linda
Hunter, Stephen
Iles, Greg
Joyce, Graham
Kaminsky, Stuart
Keneally, Thomas
Kling, Christine
LeCarre, John
Lehane, Dennis
Leonard, Elmore
Lustbader, Erich V.
Lynds, Gayle
Massey, Sujata
Mathews, Francine
Meltzer, Brad
Morrell, David
Parker, Robert B.
Patterson, James
Patterson, Richard North
Pearson, Ridley
Perry, Thomas
Reichs, Kathy
Reilly, Matthew
Rose, M.J.
Rosenberg, Joel
Rosenfelt, David
Rucka, Greg
Sanders, Lawrence
Sanford, John
Siegel, Sheldon
Siler, Jenny
Sloan, Susan
Smith, Martin Cruz
Stone, Robert
Woods, Stuart
WESTERNS
--additional westerns may be found in the paperback & large print areas
Alexie, Sherman
Anaya, Rudolfo
Bly, Stephen A.
Bonham, Frank
Borland, Hal
Boyle, T. Coraghessan
Brown, Sam
Carter, Forrest
Castillo, Ana
Chavez, Denise
Clark, Walter
Combs, Harry
Conley, Robert J.
Crider, Bill
Crane, Stephen
Doig, Ivan
Erdrich, Louise
Gorman, Edward
Grey, Zane
Grove, Fred
Hogan, Ray
Johnston, Terry C
Jones, Douglas C.
Kelton, Elmer
L'Amour, Louis
Martin, Larry Jay
McCarthy, Cormac
McMurtry, Larry
Patten, Lewis B.
Querry, Ron
Schaefer, Jack
Sharpe, Jon
Sherman, Jory
Stegner, Wallace
Watson, Larry
Welch, James
Wisler, G. Clifton
The 100 best English-language novels of the century, as chosen by the
editorial board of the Modern Library
Ulysses by James Joyce
Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man by James Joyce
Lolita by Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov
The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
Catch-22 by Joseph L. Heller
Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler
Sons and Lovers by D. H. Lawrence
Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Under the Volcano by Malcolm C. Lowry
1984 by George Orwell
I, Claudius: From the Autobiography of Tiberius Claudius, Born 10 B.C., Murdered
and Deified A.D.by Robert Graves
To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
Slaughterhouse Five or the Children's Crusade : A Duty Dance With Death by Kurt
Vonnegut Jr.
Invisible Man by Ralph Waldo Ellison
Native Son by Richard Wright
Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow
Appointment in Samarra by John O'Hara
U.S.A.: The 42nd Parallel, 1919, the Big Money
Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson
Passage to India by E. M. Forster
Wings of the Dove by Henry James
The Ambassadors by Henry James
Tender Is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion by Ford Maddox Ford
Animal Farm: A Fairy Story by George Orwell
Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser
Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren
Howards End by E. M. Forster
Go Tell It on the Mountain by James A. Baldwin
Heart of the Matter by Graham Greene
Lord of the Flies by William Gerald Golding
Deliverance by James Dickey
A Dance to the Music of Time: First Movement by Anthony Powell
Point Counter Point by Aldous Huxley
Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
Nostromo by Joseph Conrad
Rainbow by D. H. Lawrence
Women in Love by D. H. Lawrence
Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller
Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer
Portnoy's Complaint by Phillip Roth
Pale Fire by Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov
Light in August by William Faulkner
On the Road by Jack Kerouac
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Zuleika Dobson by Max Beerbohm
The Moviegoer by Walker Percy
Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
Wapshot Chronicle by John Cheever
Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
Main Street by Sinclair Lewis
House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
Alexandria Quartet: Justine/Balthazar/Mountolive/Clea/Boxed Set by Lawrence
Durrell
High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes
A House for Mr. Biswas by V. S. Naipaul
The Day of the Locust by Nathanael West
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
Kim by Rudyard Kipling
Room With a View by E. M. Forster
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow
Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner
Bend in the River by V. S. Naipaul
The Death of the Heart by Elizabeth Bowen
Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
Ragtime by E. L. Doctorow
The Old Wives' Tale by Arnold Bennett
Call of the Wild by Jack London
Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
Tobacco Road by Erskine Caldwell
Ironweed: A Novel by William J. Kennedy
The Magus by John Fowles
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
Sophie's Choice by William Styron
Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles
Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain
Ginger Man by J. P. Donleavy
Magnificent Ambersons by Booth Tarkington
This document has been produced by Stacy Alesi.
