I am looking for a copy of a 1938 pamphlet called "Gratitude" written by Dr. Harry L. James of Chicago. There was a copy on Ebay, but it's sold now. Any chance I could find another copy (or PDF) of this thing? [more inside]
posted by mattbucher on Jan 7, 2013 - 4 answers

BookFilter: The sketchy detail kind. This is about a young adult novel, available by the early 80s, set among a family of artists or writers in, I think, New York City. [more inside]
posted by Miko on Dec 6, 2012 - 5 answers

My boyfriend has lost his and his children's favorite version of "The Night Before Christmas". I'd love to find it for him. It featured line drawings, each of which had a cat somewhere on the page. They had fun looking for the cat in each illustration. It would have been published pre-2000. Any ideas?
posted by ridingtheranges on Nov 26, 2012 - 2 answers

Is there a book blurb search engine, or something that will let me see if someone has ever written a book blurb, and what it was? (Or some clever way of googling Amazon's Editorial Reviews sections) [more inside]
posted by sdis on Oct 11, 2012 - 3 answers

Can anyone help my 8 year old daughter remember a particular children's book that made an impression on her? I don't have much to go on, but the story seems to revolve around a boy (and possibly a dog) who live in a village(?) at a time when bombing is happening (suggesting WWII?). The boy spends a lot of time watching trains (skipping school to do so) and dreams of going to his grandmother's house until he eventually runs away on one after some problems at home (possibly involving the police). While on the train he meets a family *on the top*(?) of the train and befriends a girl who is like a servant/slave to the family. She thinks she read it in the last year or so and I guess it would be appropriate for her age. Any ideas what the book might be? Thanks in advance! (note that I suspect the book is by a British author)
posted by oclipa on Jan 28, 2012 - 9 answers

Another book-locating question: help me locate this Victorian pulp fiction! [more inside]
posted by pavane on Feb 10, 2011 - 4 answers

Looking for a book I read about a decade or a little more ago about a boy with autism. There was a dog that helped him communicate with the world, and it might have been from either his perspective or his mothers'. Any ideas what it is would be appreciated.
posted by daysocks on Feb 9, 2011 - 10 answers

About ten years ago, I read the first two books in a sci-fi trilogy involving a world that had some kind of accelerated decay problem. Also, there were giant, intelligent ants. [more inside]
posted by thehmsbeagle on Oct 16, 2010 - 5 answers

Which novel have I forgotten the name of? [more inside]
posted by topynate on Oct 11, 2010 - 3 answers

What'sThisBook-ForAFriend filter: novel about aliens that are blob-shaped and eventually come in contact with humans? [more inside]
posted by jacalata on Dec 30, 2009 - 6 answers

Looking for books where a person or people are searching for a long lost person. [more inside]
posted by reenum on Dec 18, 2009 - 23 answers

In the early 80's, I read a library book that featured a heroine stumbling into a parallel world and encountering chicken-legged vampires (not Baba Yaga) and their master. I can't recall the title nor author of this novel and you will earn my eternal gratitude if you can identify this work for me so that I can locate and read it again. [more inside]
posted by Carmody on May 19, 2008 - 6 answers

Book search with price comparison. [more inside]
posted by vincentm on Apr 16, 2007 - 10 answers

Where should I search in order to generate a list of all/most books published (in English, for the past 20 years or so) about a particular topic? I have a feeling that using Amazon plus my local library isn't giving me comprehensive results. Is there some kind of all-libraries database? Or all books that have been issued ISBN numbers?
posted by xo on Dec 2, 2006 - 6 answers

Help me identify a book. This book was so creepy that I'd classify it as horror. The protagonist was a scientist who invented a way to make people beautiful by applying layers of artificial skin to people's faces. The tale took place in modern-day California and, of course, was a statement on society's quest for perfection (but still a ripping good story). [more inside]
posted by TorontoSandy on Aug 8, 2006 - 7 answers

Okay. I have two books from my past that I would very much like to track down... but I can't recall the titles. [more inside]
posted by silusGROK on Aug 5, 2004 - 9 answers