How to Search Google Books

Google has expanded its basic search engine service over the last few years to include all sorts of useful tools. Before utilities like Google Earth and GMail took the Internet by storm, however, Google ran them through their paces in trial versions called "betas". One up-and-coming Google beta program is Google Books, which lets you search and view entire volumes of scanned fiction and non-fiction texts.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Open the Google Books homepage. From the main Google website, click on the "More" drop-down menu near the top of the page and choose "Books" from the options that appear.

2. Browse through the collection by selecting one of the genre links to the left of the page. Google offers full-text books from a variety of genres, including literature, poetry, science fiction and political science.

3. Do a basic book search by entering a title or author into the blank field on the main page. Click "Search books" when you're ready to go and Google will turn up the matching results.

4. Scan through the search results and see if your book's listed. Many of the books in the database are only available to preview. You'll need to buy them through traditional booksellers like Borders and Barnes and Noble to access the full text.

5. Conduct a more thorough inquiry by clicking on the "Advanced Book Search" link next to the main search field. This allows you to search the database not only by authors and titles, but also by their publication dates, languages, publishers and ISBNs.

Resources

• Start your search here.