# Build shelves

> Group related books into shelves, by suggestion or by describing what you want, and find similar books.

A shelf is a note that lists a group of books. Shelves are found by meaning, so they need one **vector** per book, made through Model Hub.

## Make the book vectors

1. Open **Settings → Books & Shelves → Shelves**.
2. Under **Book vectors**, select **Embed…**. Or run **Books & Shelves: Embed books (vectors for shelves and similar books)**.

Each book's vector is made from its title, authors and a sample of its text. This costs a little through Model Hub; the run shows its cost. If you already have vectors, **Import…** brings them in as they are.

## Let it suggest shelves

1. Select **Suggest…**, or run **Books & Shelves: Suggest shelves**.
2. The library is grouped and each group is named. The suggestions arrive as review notes in `Books/Review`.
3. Accept, rename, split or reject each one.
4. Select **Apply…**, or run **Apply shelf suggestions**. Accepted suggestions become shelf notes in `Books/Collections`.

## Describe a shelf

- **Make a shelf from a description** gathers the books that match what you describe, and a model keeps the ones that belong.
- **Split a subject into shelves** takes a broad subject and proposes several shelves within it.

## Add a book by hand

Run **Add a book to this shelf** from a shelf, or use the Shelf view: it has search to add a book, and removes one from a shelf in a click.

## The Shelf view

Shelves show as cards with covers in the **Shelf** view, a view for Bases. Existing `.base` files that used the view keep working.

## Find similar books

Run **Books & Shelves: Find similar books**, or select **Find…** under **Similar books**. Each book note gets links to its five nearest books.

All of these can be undone.

## Related

- [Keep a reading list](reading-list.md)
- [Packs](packs.md)