Many people walk into a library wondering how to find a book. If the book is fiction (made up) then it can usually be found in alphabetical order by the author’s last name. Sometimes you will see it done differently. For example, at Newhall, Valencia, and the Canyon Country Libraries, the paperback series are listed by the first word in the title of the series. This is quite helpful as some series have many different authors and it is nice to find everything in one place.
What seems to cause a bit of confusion is the non-fiction section which is writing based on facts involving real people and events -mostly. You will find fairy tales in this part of the library. However, that is a topic for another time! Non-Fiction is organized by using the Dewey Decimal System. Melvil Dewey invented the system when he was just 21. It is the most widely used system in the world, and it is mostly used in public libraries. Books are organized not by author, but by subject. There are 10 main areas allowing someone to find the subject they are interested in all next to each other. For example, all books about bears will be all together. To see a full list of the 10 different categories, please click on the following link: http://kids.santaclaritalibrary.com/2015/03/15/our-friend-the-dewey-decimal-system/
The first category is 000-099 – Generalities (Computers, Information, and General Reference). This area provides so much amazing information. You will find everything from encyclopedias to learning about computers and various programs. Some books in this area provide fun such as the books explaining the mysteries of Bigfoot, crop circles, Atlantis and UFO’s. The city of Atlantis has been lost for thousands of years. Is it made up or real? Is their evidence of Bigfoot? How do crop circles magically appear? Other books can be entertaining as well as informational like the National Geographic Kid series: Weird But True. I learned from one such book that there is a type of owl in Australia that barks like a dog!
Under subjects (we will use computers as an example) you will find a variety of books. For example, under computers you can learn everything from how to code to learning about building apps. And, a set of books that has many subjects is the encyclopedia. Did you know that the children’s encyclopedias can be checked out?! If you do not want to carry it or the one you want is missing, feel free to go to our website at santaclaritalibrary.com. Find articles and databases and select The New Book of Knowledge http://go.grolier.com/which is an online encyclopedia resource.
The following are books that you will find in the 0-099 section of non-fiction:
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