1. This is your first day on the job as Head Librarian and Media Specialist for the Forgetfullville library. It is early on a foggy morning and the library has just opened. Soon there are several people browsing the library's many book shelves. The rotund Mrs. Welles waddles up to the circulation desk with her son Orson and daughter Amber in tow. She needs help. "I'm looking for a really magnificent read," she says in an aristocratic tone. "Something about change, something that speaks to the struggle between old and new things. I like books that are part of a series, too. My husband told me about such a book, but I can't recall the name or author." What book is she after? 'The Prince and the Pauper' by Mark Twain 'The Nine Princes of Amber' by Roger Zelazny 'The Magnificent Ambersons' by Booth Tarkington 'The Wisdom of Carnac the Magnificent' by John William Carson

2. It is not long before two more people show up at the circulation desk. They are Eve and Adam Exelixi. Eve is chewing on an apple and Adam has on his favorite Smaug cap. "I'm interested in a book that speculates on what we are and how we think and how we came to be that way," says Adam adjusting his cap so that Smaug is better displayed. "Yes, me too," choruses Eve taking a healthy bite from her apple. "Our slimy snake of a lawyer recommended a book to us, but we can't remember what it is." "I think I might know," you say and give them instructions on where to find which book? 'The Red Dragon' by Richard Harris 'The Dragons of Eden' by Carl Sagan 'East of Eden' by John Steinbeck 'The White Dragon' by Anne McCaffrey

3. A tall giant of a man ambles up to the desk. It is Marion M. Morrison, Forgetfulville's famous ornithologist. He lives alone on a ranch just outside of town. "I'm lookin' for a rip-roarin' epic of a yarn, pardner," he says in a deep voice. "It's somethin' with lotsa memorable characters. Somethin' historic. I can't remember what the wife said its name was. Well, pardner, do you think you can 'steer' me towards somethin' like that or am I just waitin' fer a blue moon?" You nod. "I think so," you say and point him to which book? 'The Eagle Has Landed' by Jack Higgins 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull' by Richard Bach 'Lonesome Dove' by Larry McMurtry 'The Heart is a Lonely Hunter' by Carson McCullers

4. Mr. Bu Who, a rather short fellow, peers over the edge of your desk and asks, "A friend said I'd like reading a novel about a famous conflict and the people who fought it, but I can't remember the name of the book. One of my ancestors fought in the War Between the States, doncha know." His large pet dog Chamberlain pants expectantly next to him. "I really like historical fiction," he adds. You know just the book. You ask him to leave the dog outside the library next time and point him to which book? 'The Second World War' by Sir Winston Churchill 'The Butter Battle Book' by Dr. Seuss 'In Cold Blood' by Truman Capote 'The Killer Angels' by Michael Shaara

5. You are amazed to see a man dressed as Admiral Adama from Battlestar Galactica walk up to you. "I asked the A.I. that I'm working on to recommend a good book to read. By the Lords of Cobol, I can't remember what HAL said. I would like a good read about the birth of something. It's really old hat now, but I really like RPG. Do you C? Can you help me?" You nod and hand him which book? 'The Soul of a Citizen' by Paul Loeb 'The Soul of a Poet' by Andrew Merchant 'The Soul of a Bishop' by H. G. Wells 'The Soul of a New Machine' by Tracy Kidder

6. Henry Higgins approaches. The whole town is buzzing with the news that Henry was recently accepted into the Naval Acadamy at Annapolis when everyone thought he was going to go to Harvard to study law. "Got any good yarns about the Navy I can read? I heard of one about a less than stellar naval officer but I can't recall what it is." You nod and point him toward which book? 'The Caine Mutiny' by Herman Wouk 'Moby Dick' by Herman Melville 'Mutiny on the Bounty' by Charles Nordhoff 'Beat to Quarters' by C. S. Forester

7. Eva Elaine Ellyfant, the high school math teacher, is searching the shelves and is getting quite perturbed. "I can't find it! If I saw the title, I'd remember! I'm looking for a book that's about many things I think - or is it three people? --or is it both? I hear it's a splendid read. I remember a quote from the author saying the book was 'a metaphorical fugue on minds and machines in the spirit of Lewis Carroll.' I only wish I could find it! Did I mention that I like clever word play and puns?" You know just the book she is talking about and direct her to which book? 'Godel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid' by Douglas R. Hofstadter 'Ford, Peckinpah, and Eastwood: Western Film Icons' by Horace Greely 'Winken, Blinken, and Nodd: Bedtime Heroes' by Dr. Azi Mauve 'Rock, Paper, Scissors: Battles of the Id, Ego and Super Ego' by Sigmund Freud

8. Trish Tanz is trying to remember the title of the book she needs to read for her English class. "I remember it's about prejudice and growing up, and that it's a really famous book, but that's about it. Oh, and it has an honest lawyer in it. I didn't think there was such a thing." You smile and tell her where to find which book? 'Exodus' by Leon Uris 'Watershipdown' by Richard Adams 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee '1984' by George Orwell

9. Tyler C. Beagle, a doctor who is very much interested in 19th century medicine states, "I'm looking for a book set in the south during the Civil War. I remember one of the many central characters is a doctor. I think it might have been made into a movie. Can you help?" You nod and give him instructions to find which book? 'Gone With the Wind' by Margaret Mitchell 'Andersonville' by MacKinlay Kantor 'The Last Unicorn' by Peter S. Beagle 'Lincoln' by Gore Vidal

10. It's been a long day, but you think you like your new job. The townspeople seem nice and friendly, albeit a bit forgetful. As you close up the library, you realize that each book you recommended today had a common link. You wonder if the townspeople know or care that they are all reading books that have what in common? All the books were originally serialized in magazines. All the books won the Nobel prize. All the books won the Pulitzer prize. All the books were made into movies.