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Find Your Library Books

Search the Library Catalogue

Search the library catalogue for books and other materials in the library's collections. When you find what you're looking for, make a note of the item's availability, collection, and call number:

Screenshot of the book's brief record highlighting availability, collection in library, and call number. These are explained in more detail in the next sections.

Availability

 

Available means the book is in the library and on the book shelves, ready for anyone to sign out.

Checked out means that someone else has signed out the book. You are welcome to submit a hold request so that you can borrow the book next. Follow these steps for requesting books online.

Collection in Library

 

Books and journals are shelved in different collections, located in different locations in the library. Most of our books are in the Main Stacks, but many are in Reference, the Chinese Language Collection, the Education Curriculum Collection, and other collections.

Call Number

 

Every book has a unique call number or "shelf address" that tells you where the book is located on the shelves. Ask a library staff member for help finding your book, or refer to this information on how to read call numbers.

Head to the Bookshelves

Now that you know which collection your book is in, use the library map to see where collections are located. Books in each collection are arranged alphabetically by call numbers. Look for signs on the ends of the bookshelves that tell you what range of call numbers is on each row of shelves:

Photo of the ends of the bookshelves with call number labels for each section of book shelves.Close-up photo showing a call number label on a specific book shelf. The label includes the range of call numbers available on the corresponding section of book shelves.

Books are arranged left-to-right on the shelf, and top-to-bottom in a column of shelves:

Photo of book shelves with red arrows demonstrating how the books are arranged. Each shelf is read left-to-right. Shelves are read in columns. When you reach the bottom of a column, books continue at the top of the next column.

Book call number labels are usually near the bottom of the spine. Thin books have the label on the front cover, so you'll have to pull the book off the shelf a little bit to see it.

Photo showing that the spine label appears on the front of a thin book.Photo showing that the spine label appears near the bottom of the spine of books that are wide enough to have the label on the spines.

Sign out your book!

Head to the library's Circulation Desk to sign out your book.

If you can't find what you're looking for, please ask a library staff member; we are here to help!