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Northfield Public Library: How to Use the Library: Finding Books

Locating Books on the Shelves

Reading Book Labels

Books in the library are organized by call numbers, which are found on the spine of library materials.

Some Important Elements of our Call #s

Fiction

  • All fiction is labeled by the first 3 letters of the author's name
  • Children's items all have call numbers that start with J
  • Young Adult items all start with YA
  • Fiction books start with FIC
  • Mysteries start with MYS

Non-Fiction

  • Non-fiction books will have a number followed by three numbers as its call number.
    • The number represents the books subject & content.
    • The letters stand for the author's name. 

Using the Catalog

The catalog holds info on all of our library materials

You can use the catalog to:

  • Find Where an item is
  • Learn If it is available
  • Check When it is due
  • See what Format it is in
  • Request the item

Search for an item by its title, author, keyword, or subject