Āwhina Putumōhio - Catalogue help
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How to locate items on the shelf?
If you're struggling to find items in our branches from their catalogue locations, we have some suggestions.
Key points
- Fiction is shelved alphabetically under the author's surname.
- Non-fiction is shelved by Dewey number.
- Our Biographies section is arranged alphabetically by the subject's surname. Check the catalogue in case the biography you are after has a Dewey number — some are shelved with their Dewey Decimal subject number rather than placed in the Biographies section
- There are separate Reference collections at every library. Catalogue records say 'Ref' at the beginning of an item's Call number, and 'Not for loan' under the Status.
Finding non-fiction — the Dewey Decimal system
We shelve our non-fiction books according to the Dewey Decimal Classification system, which uses numbers to represent subjects. Almost any subject you can think of has a corresponding Dewey number — from dinosaurs (567.91) to dessert recipes (641.86).
But it isn't there
Ask a staff member for assistance, sometimes a second pair of eyes helps — and we're always here to help!
Some things to check are:
- Check the size in case it is 28 cm or over — this means we class it as a Large Book. Some of our locations shelve these separately — check with library staff if Large Books are shelved separately at your branch.
- Check display shelves.
- When was the book last returned? Staff can check to see when the item was last returned and retrieve it for you if it hasn't been shelved yet.