The only time I feel like a detective is when I have this vague description stuck in my head, and I can’t remember the book’s name. I just cannot describe the agony of the moment when you are squeezing your brain to its extreme, and it would still not spill out the name of the book. And honestly, it keeps happening with me. I consume a lot of book-related content all over the internet. And sometimes, I only pick up half the information.
How To Find A Book’s Name When You Can’t Remember?
So, I end up remembering only a little bit about the characters, or the theme of the book. That’s when the book turns into a puzzle that I desperately try to solve. But the internet is like magic. There is nothing that you cannot find on the internet. It solely depends on your efforts. If you search at the right place, with the right prompts, then you will definitely succeed. Now, let me share some ways that I use to find books and novels I barely remember using vague descriptions.
1. Search it on Google Books!
Google is the first name that pops into our heads when we need to find something. It’s almost like Google has all answers to our questions. But what happens when we ourselves don’t know what we are trying to search for? Now, rather than searching on Google, I recommend using Google Books in order to find a book. Google Books is an amazing service that Google Inc. provides to us, wherein we can search full texts of books. Apparently, Google scans and converts books to save in their digital database.
And if the book is in Google’s database, then we can easily find a book by typing in prompts. Personally, I have found many books with the help of Google Books. I remember there was this one time I was mindlessly searching for the book ‘Let It Snow’. And the only description I had was a one-line quote from the book. I tried searching it on Google but nothing helped. That’s when I typed the quote on Google Books and voila! I found the book’s name. So, if you are stuck with a quote or a character name, or whatsoever, just search it on Google Books, and thank me later!
2. Search it on Goodreads!
Goodreads is a social site and book lovers around the globe use this platform to discover books and talk about them with other fellow book lovers. Goodreads maintains a database of books, reviews, and annotations. It’s quite a wholesome website. You can create polls and surveys as well to find your book. Goodreads also has lists of books that are classified according to their genres. So, in case you have an idea about the genre of the book, then finding it will be pretty easy on Goodreads. You can connect with us on Goodreads for more book updates.
3. Ask it on Facebook Book Communities!
Honestly, Book groups are my favorite thing ever! A bunch of bookworms, talking about books – absolute bliss! And we also have a community of book lovers and authors on Facebook who loves to talk about books and recommend rare pieces of literature to one another. And if you are trying to find a book with a vague description, then you can write a post in the group where you pour in everything that you know about the book. There are high chances that someone or the other will know about the book. And even if no one knows about the book, they can try to search it for you as well. That’s why book communities are so important. You can join our exclusive community for book discussions and more such queries! BookWritten is one of the Top 25 Book Review Blogs in India according to Feedspot.
4. Make use of Quora and Reddit!
Quora and Reddit are two such platforms that are specially designed for people to find solutions. There are so many amazing people on these two platforms, and if you are trying to find a book with vague descriptions, then I am sure many cool book lovers will come out to help you. It’s worth a try. Personally, I used Quora to find a book named All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai. I only knew this much that the book was about chrononauts and the guy chrononaut ends up destroying the girl chornonaut’s life by getting her pregnant. I tried searching for the book name everywhere but somehow nothing helped. That’s when I put up a post on Quora, and I got my answer from there. So, definitely give Quora and Reddit a shot if nothing is working out for you. You can connect with us on Quora and Reddit as well for more book-related updates.
5. Use our BookWritten app!
You can also download the BookWritten app from Google Play Store. The app is specially designed for you to remember books. You can maintain a ‘Read-list’ where you can add all the books that you want to read. Next, you can create your ‘Read-in’ list where you can add the books you are reading or have already read. My personal favorite has to be the ‘My Books’ library section where you can add all the books that you own to your collection. It’s like a virtual register of all your books. Moreover, it also has a search option where you can type keywords, and the app will present all the books accordingly. The app’s minimal look makes the entire experience incredibly soothing to the mind and eyes.
6. Last but not least, visit a Library!
This has to be a classic solution, right? When all else fail, visit a library to find a book. Our generation has become so tech-savvy that we cannot even imagine finding anything without the aid of the mighty internet. But before the internet came into existence, people researched and found their answers in the libraries. Make friends with the librarian and get in a conversation about the book that you are trying to find so desperately. Librarians are amazing humans. They spend so much time looking after books, arranging them and of course reading them. Hence, when nothing works out, and you are completely hopeless, I am definitely sure, a librarian will help you find your book!
I am pretty sure that you will be able to find your book if you use any of these platforms and tips. I have personally found multiple books with very little and vague descriptions through these platforms. Don’t give up. Keep looking. After all, some books are worth the effort. Have you forgotten any book’s name? You can share the details with us and we’ll try to help you out. Happy reading!
Are there any people who hunt down lost books for a living?All the search engines and groups haven’t been successful. Thank you