Non-fiction books give you real facts about the world, like animals, places or how things work. They have special parts that help you find what you need quickly.
The helpful parts of a book
The title tells you what the whole book is about. The contents page lists the chapters and the page they start on. The glossary explains tricky words in simple language.
Scanning for a fact
Scanning means letting your eyes jump across the page to find one key word, instead of reading every word. If you want to know what a camel eats, you scan for the word "food" or "eat".
Camels live in hot, sandy deserts. A camel has a large hump on its back which stores fat, not water. Camels can go for many days without drinking. Their wide feet stop them sinking into the soft sand.
Answering literal questions
A literal question can be answered straight from the words. For example: "What does a camel store in its hump?" The text says fat, so the answer is fat.
Remember: A glossary is usually at the back of the book and the words are in ABC order.
The parts of a non-fiction book
You do not read a fact book from cover to cover. You use its parts to jump straight to what you need.
| Part | What it does | Use it when... |
|---|---|---|
| The title | Tells you what the whole book is about | You are choosing a book |
| The contents page | Lists the chapters and the page each one starts on | You want to find the right chapter |
| The glossary | Explains tricky words in simple language | You meet a word you do not know |
Match each part of the book with its job:
- Contents page
- Shows which page each chapter starts on
- Glossary
- Explains the tricky words
- Title
- Tells you what the whole book is about