Library on wheels, carrying about 500 books for Grown-ups and Children, Digital ID 94732, New York Public LibraryYou may not be aware, in this age of social media and auto-generated recommendations, but librarians are usually pretty good at suggesting books that match your reading tastes and habits. The technical term for this is "Reader's Advisory," and we try to spend time getting to know a wide variety of authors and genres of writing so that we are always ready to give you a tip when you ask for one.

Librarians are not all-knowing, however, so there are a variety of tools we use to assist you in the discovery of new books. Try them yourself the next time you need something new to read!

Free with your library card

Tags for mysteries in BiblioCommonsBiblioCommons is NYPL's social catalog interface where you can manage your account as well as browse user-generated lists, tags, reviews, and more. Follow users with similar reading interests to see what they add to their shelves and find new books that way.

Fiction Connection is a database that allows a reader to search for similar or read-alikes by: title, author setting, topic, character, genre, location and timeframe.

What Do I Read Next is a database that allows a reader to search for one's next similar title to enjoy. This reader's advisory tool helps locate a book by title, author, genre, setting, character and even has Awards, Bestsellers and Other Lists Search.

Websites

No signup required

• All Readers - a tool to help one locate book reviews and may search similar-like titles by author, title, genre, plot, settings and character.
• Based on a Book - compiled by Mid-Continent Public Library in Missouri; a list of movies based on books.
• BookLamp - attempts to become the "Pandora of books" by analyzing "StoryDNA." The number of books it contains right now is slim.
• Bookmarks Magazine - book reviews from around the web; use the "Power Browser" to find books by genre, theme or era.
• The Book Report Network - reviews, online directory of author websites and newsletters to subscribe to.
• The Book Seer -  a fun way to get Amazon recommendations, with a simple interface.

• Book Spot - what to read from bestsellers to genre and where to purchase.
• Gnooks - tell Gnod what you like and in return receive suggestions for new authors. It uses the information you provide to get better at connecting similar authors.

• Overbooked - timely information of all genres including non-fiction.
• Readers Read - reviews, bestsellers, and different genres.
• What Should I Read Next? - enter a book title, immediately get a list of similar books.
• Sliders determine elements of titles that Whichbook will recommendWhichbook - British site in which readers may choose titles by mood appeal factors and traditional indexing access points.
• Your Next Read - interactive site allows you to click through covers of books that relate to one you like.

Certain features require an account

• BookYap - create a profile to tell this site what you like, and it creates recommendations based on that.
• Goodreads - add books you like to your profile and get recommendations. Also a thriving discussion community.
• LibraryThing - organize your home library or books you've read and share with the larger community.
• Shelfari - "a community-powered encyclopedia for book lovers."
• Small Demons - find new connections by exploring people, places and things that happen in books you've enjoyed.

The Small Demons page for NYPL

• TasteKid - create an account for personalized recommendations.

Books

Find out more about any of these titles on BiblioCommons.

• 100 Most Popular Genre Fiction Authors: Biographical Sketches and Bibliographies
• 1000 Comic Books You Must Read
• 1001 Books for Every Mood
• 1001 Books You Must Read before You Die
• 1001 Children's Books You Must Read before You Grow up
• Beowulf on the Beach: What to Love and What to Skip in Literature's 50 Greatest Hits
• Book Lust to Go: Recommended Reading for Travelers, Vagabonds, and Dreamers
• Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment, and Reason
• Book Smart: Your Essential Reading List for Becoming A Literary Genius in 365 Days
• Books and beyond: The Greenwood Encyclopedia of New American Reading
• Christian Fiction: A Guide to the Genre
• Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests in Genre Fiction
• Historical Fiction for Teens: A Genre Guide
• Historical Fiction: A Guide to the Genre
• More Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment, and Reason
• Read On: Crime Fiction: Reading Lists for Every Taste
• Read On: Fantasy Fiction: Reading Lists for Every Taste
• Read On: Historical Fiction: Reading Lists for Every Taste
• Read On: Life Stories: Reading Lists for Every Taste
• Read On: Science Fiction: Reading Lists for Every Taste
• Read On: Women's Fiction: Reading Lists for Every Taste
• Romance Fiction: A Guide to the Genre
• Serving Boys through Readers' Advisory
• Shelf Discovery: Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading
• The Joy of Reading: A Passionate Guide to 189 of the World's Best Authors and Their Works
• The Readers' Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction
• The Readers' Advisory Guide to Nonfiction
• The Rough Guide to Classic Novels
• The Span of Mainstream and Science Fiction: A Critical Study of A New Literary Genre
• The Western Lit Survival Kit: An Irreverent Guide to the Classics, from Homer to Faulkner
• The Whole Five Feet: What the Great Books Taught Me about Life, Death, and Pretty Much Everything Else

Are you on Twitter? Follow Ask NYPL's "Books" List for updates from publishers and reviewers. And since it is summer after all, be sure to check out our Summer Reading Lists for Adults, Teens and Kids at summerreading.org!