You’re at a busy public service desk and a customer approaches you and says “I’ve read everything by author X, can you think of another author who writes like him?” How do you respond?

It’s important to interview the customer in order to determine what it is that he or she likes about that author.  Listen carefully to determine elements of appeal.  Once you’ve determined that, your challenge is to then match the customer’s reading interest with another author who has similar elements of appeal.

Try to think about books in such a way that looks for similarities and links between titles or between authors.  Group books by genres, be aware of distinctions within genres, think across genres, and utilize non-fiction, fiction and other formats.

If a library customer approaches you asking for a suggestion for a read-alike and you haven’t read anything by that author don't panic.  Be candid about your lack of knowledge, and invite the customer to provide more information.  Ask your co-workers for assistance. 

One extremely easy way of answering the customer’s question is do a simple Google search.  Type the phrase “read-alikes for author x” (try doing it both with and without quotes around the phrase) and you may be pleasantly surprised.  You may find booklists done by other librarians around the country that suggest other authors similar to the author that your customer enjoys.  These librarian-compiled booklists frequently have titles like “If You Like (Author X) ... Then Try.”

The Fiction and Young Adult Department at the State Library Resource Center has done a how-to guide called Click Now to Find Your Next Good Read.  This guide includes a section called “Read Every Book By Your Favorite Author?” which includes a number of good Web sites that you and your customers can use in your quest for read-alike authors. 

Novelist is a subscription database available to every public library in Maryland through Sailor.  It too contains a user-friendly author read-alikes section that appears on its top level page.