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How to find a book in BHCC Library

This web file goes with the Library workshop session that you have had in the library while working with one of the librarians. Your instructor has asked you to locate a book in the library and write a review of it, using articles that you have found that talk about the book you are reading. The best source for details about how to summarize a book for a class assignment is, of course, your instructor. This web file is designed to lend some support while you move through the steps required to deliver the finished assignment in time to meet your deadline.

First, let's review what you need to do by breaking it down into simple steps.

• Step 1 -- Decide what book you want to read
• Step 2 -- Use the online catalog or browse the shelves to see what books the library has available
• Step 3 -- Check out the book at the Lending Services Desk
• Step 4 -- Look for reviews written by other people about the book and how they like or don't like it

Today we focus on Steps 1,2, and 3. Let's get started!

Think about what you want to read

1. Browse the shelves -- There's an art to finding the right book at the right time. Sometimes, looking through the lens of the PC isn't as useful as looking at the books displayed on the library shelves. For this exercise let's take a look at what is available in the BHCC Library's Reading Enrichment Section. To visit the shelves you'll need to locate the Reading Enrichment Section on the Library Map.

   Also be aware of how books are ARRAGNED on the shelf. The BHCC Library uses the LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CALL NUMBER SYSTEM. Every book has a CALL NUMBER, which is used to arrange books by subject. A novel would have a call number in the P's. For example PR is English Literature and PS is American Literature. Here's the complete list of call numbers and the subjects that have been assigned to them: http://www.noblenet.org/bhcc/LCSH.htm.

2. Consider sample titles -- Libraries often provide lists of suggested readings for various topics. The BHCC Library has made such a list of suggested novels for ESL students at http://www.noblenet.org/bhcc/esl-list.htm

   Here are some additional titles from the Reading Enrichment section to consider: (These titles link to their corresponding records in the BHCC online catalog.)

   Call of the Wild

   Cry the Beloved Country

   Emma

   Five Folk Tales

   Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

   The Gold Bug

   Great Gatsby

   Lord Jim

   Murders in the Rue Morgue

   The Pelican Brief

   Red Badge of Courage

   Seawolf

   Tales From the Arabian Nights

   Treasure Island

   Two Years Before the Mast

   Women Who Made a Difference
   

3. Use the online book catalog -- This resource is most helpful if you already have a book in mind, because it will tell you if the BHCC Library has the book in its collection. It takes practice. There's an online tutorial that you can try but there's no substitute for doing it together.

   BE SURE TO WRITE DOWN A BOOK'S CALL NUMBER IF YOU WISH TO FIND IT ON THE SHELF!

Check out the book at the Lending Services Desk

 Once you find a book that you want to read, remember that you cannot take it out of the library until you check it out. In order to do that you need a Bunker Hill Community College ID [which you can get in the library at no cost to you.] Check with the Lending Services desk for the times the ID station is open.