Make a Request

REQUEST AN ITEM

REQUEST AN ITEM (PLACE HOLDS)

It is difficult to get textbooks and we cannot get them for you in time for your class. Once it does come in, it can only be kept for a short period of time. Scroll down to the bottom of the webpage for an alternative solution.

FIRST, CHECK OUR CATALOG

You may request items from our catalog in the SPLASH system using steps below.

Log in with your library card # (no spaces), last name, and last 4 digits of your phone number.
Find the item you would like and click on the title to bring up the record.
Click Place Hold.
You can click on the HOLD button in the title list, in the record, or on the All COPIES button.

If you have any problems, Ask Us for help.

To get a Library Card

IF NOT IN OUR CATALOG, TRY LINK+

Link+ Catalog

Link+ items take 2-4 weeks to arrive.
Search for your item in Link+.
Request it.
Select Benicia Public Library.
Select the library where you want to pick up your item.
If requesting a title again because it has not arrived, check your account first.

If you get a "Sorry, no copies available for requests" message, hold on to the title and try again at another time. Need a place to remember the titles you want, try saving your list in The Storygraph or Goodreads.

More important info before you borrow from Link+.

IF NOT AVAILABLE IN LINK+, TRY ZIP BOOKS

Request the item using the Zip Books program. The item will be shipped directly to your home! See below for details.

Zip Books are free for SPLASH cardholders in good standing.
Must be returned to the Benicia Library Public Services Desk and staff told it is a Zip Book within 6 weeks.
Zip Books ship directly to your address via Amazon.com.

Items requested:

must NOT be currently owed by the SPLASH Library System including Benicia, Solano, and St. Helena Libraries.
must be a physical book or audiobook including large print and foreign language and available in Amazon. Not allowed: DVDs, music CDs, workbooks, textbooks, and prepublication items.
cannot be popular bestselling authors or titles, as we will already be in the process of buying them.
cannot exceed $50.
must be SHIPPED and SOLD from Amazon.

At this time, two Zip Books can be requested each calendar month per patron.

To request a Zip Book, complete the Book Request Form.
A staff member will review the request and send you an email update within a week.
If your Zip Book request is approved, you will receive the item in the mail.
When you are finished with your Zip Book or within three weeks, please return the item to the Benicia Library Customer Service Desk and inform staff that you are returning a Zip Book.
You may have two Zip Books per calendar month, provided all your Zip Books are returned to the library.

Zip Books may be added to the Benicia Public Library collection, if they meet our collection development needs. If you have any questions about Zip Books, please email the library.

This project was supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library.

IF NOT IN OUR CATALOGS, CHECK WORLDCAT

WorldCat Catalog

WorldCat items take 6 weeks to arrive.

Search WorldCat for your item. If it is in a library in the United States we can attempt to borrow it for you. If it can only be found in New Zealand libraries and it is out of print, we cannot get it.

To use the Boolean operators, OR, AND, or NOT, you must capitalize them in the search.

IF IN WORLDCAT, IN US LIBRARIES, THEN MAKE A REQUEST

Filling out the Book Request form allows you to request an item to be borrowed from another library outside of California but within the United States or to request the library purchase a new item. It will take 6-8 weeks to come, if we can get it.

You need to fill out one form per item. Do NOT put multiple requests on one form. For example: Season 1 is one item, Season 2 is a second item. If you put more than one item per request, we reserve the right to delete the request.
If the item is in Link+, your request will be denied.
You are allowed 5 requests per month.

Inter-Library Loan Policy

See Click Fix can be used for other City Departments.

TEXTBOOKS

We usually cannot get current textbooks nor can we get textbooks in time for your class. It take 6-8 weeks to borrow a book outside the system. And because we are a public library and not an academic library, we do not buy textbooks.

Try Direct Textbook. They will search tons of online bookstores and publishers, find new, used, rental and ebook options, and get free 2-day shipping on millions of books.