How to Alphabetize Your Books

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Rachel Yatuzis and I'm going to show you how to alphabetize your books. It's not as simple as it sounds. There are a lot of rules you need to go by, and you need to figure out what, you know, how you're going to sort your books. You can sort 'em into genres, you can sort 'em into authors, or you can just try to alphabetize them by the title. I advise either sorting them into genres or authors. And you're going to start off by making piles in the floor. You're going to need a lot of room to do this, and it's going to take a lot of time, but it'll be so much easier to find the book you're looking for if you have a lot. Don't count the very first word of the title if the word is The, An, A. Use the first, you know, major word, the first main word, the first most descriptive word in the title. And go by that. This would go under P, not T. So, once you've had them, you know, you need to arrange them in piles, and put, maybe, if you're doing genres, put sci-fi here, and non-fiction here, and fiction here. And then make a row for your non-fiction, a row for your fiction, a row for your kid's books. To keep in mind that bigger books, like this, may not sit up in your bookcase. So have a place for books like that, also. And, you may want to have the alphabet written out on a piece of paper in front of you. It sounds ridiculous, but some people do better visually being able to look at the alphabet, and they can alphabetize things quicker. So, my tips are separate it into genres or authors. Don't count the first word if the word is the, and, but, a, you know, use the first major word in the title, and take your time. Oh, and make sure that your books are stored in a very dry place. Don't put them somewhere that may collect moisture, in a garage or something like that. I'm Rachel Yatuzis, and that is how you alphabetize your books."