Locate the library card catalog at your public library. At most libraries this is now a computerized card catalog system.
Search for the book(s) you want by entering the title of the book, the author of the book or a keyword about the topic you are researching.
Identify the call number of the book you found listed in the library card catalog. For children's books, both fiction and nonfiction there will be a notation stating "Juvenile" or simply a "J." For adult fiction there will be "FIC" and for adult nonfiction, the call number will begin with a three-digit number that represents the Dewey Decimal System. For reference collections, such as encyclopedias, the call number will begin with "REF."
Write down the call number, the title of the book and the author's name before trying to find the book in the library.
Find the section of the library that houses your book based on the call number you found using the card catalog. Most libraries have very distinct areas for their children's collection, their adult fiction collection and their adult nonfiction collection.
Use the rules of the Dewey Decimal System to locate nonfiction books in both the children's area and the adult area. The Dewey Decimal System starts each call number with a at least a three-digit number and all the books are located in chronological order. A book with number 450.5 would be found in the middle of the 400s section. The call number for this book would then be followed by a few letters which stand for the author's last name and will be located in alphabetical order among all the books with 450.5 call numbers.
Locate the letters following the "J-FIC" or the "FIC" on the call number for a fiction book. These letters represent the first three letters of the author's last name and will be used because all fiction books are shelved in alphabetical order by the author's last name.
Ask for help if needed.