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Check it Out: Open the Doorway into Your Next Good Book

Submitted by B. Wood on

We library staff are surrounded by books all day, but one of the most challenging questions will always be “Can you recommend a good book?” Here’s an insight, readers: we know a lot of books, but we don’t know what YOU like. Nancy Pearl, a retired Seattle librarian who has written several books on us - the library staff - helping you - the library patron - to find books, says that “any good book is a book that you enjoy.”

So, after you ask us to recommend a book, we’re going to ask you a few questions to try to figure out what “a good book” means to you. In Libraryland, this process is known as reader’s advisory. Nancy Pearl described the Four Doorways into reading fiction: story, character, setting and language. The doorway that you enjoy the most often determines the type of book you will love.

Story doorway

These books are often described as 'page-turners'; readers will say “I couldn’t put it down” or “I kept leaving my chores to read another chapter.” The story drives the book, and readers are driven to see how the book ends. Books with story doorways might include:

Character doorway

With a character doorway, it’s the people who intrigue you. You want to be friends with them, maybe be romantically involved with them. You wish they were real, feel like you know them, and mourn the end of the book. Character doorway books might include:

Setting doorway

Setting refers to location, and writers of these books describe a place so beautifully - real or fictional - that you want to be there. Readers may have one preferred setting, or just be drawn to any beautifully described place.  Here are some setting doorway books:

Language doorway

Language doorways spotlights the craft of writing. Readers who like language will read slowly, reread key paragraphs and share them with others, and generally savor the telling of the story in terms of word choices, style, and feelings evoked. Language doorway books might include:

While most authors tend to write strongly toward one doorway, occasionally there are books that are strong in all four, like the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Not surprisingly, these books often become bestsellers because of their wide appeal. Whichever doorway appeals most to you, being able to identify it may help you find the types of books that you like best.

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