The NoveList Story

In the late 80s Duncan Smith, an avid readers' advisor, struggled with the fact that readers' advisory services were only as good as the individual librarian's memory and ability to read a wide range of genres. Although there are many librarians with an impressive knowledge of books, genres and reader needs, Duncan felt that their effectiveness could be increased if there was a database that allowed them to search for additional titles based on level, subject, title or author. In 1990, he formed a small company with two programmers, Roger Rohweder and John Strickler. They began creating NoveList part-time while maintaining their "day jobs."

In 1994, they sold their first copy of NoveList and shortly after, Duncan and Roger joined CARL Corporation, quitting their other jobs and working full-time on NoveList. NoveList launched as a DOS product with 20,000 adult titles and 1,200 reviews!

NoveList continued to grow and in 1999, EBSCO Publishing acquired NoveList from CARL. At that time, NoveList had five employees, counting Duncan and Roger.

In 2000, NoveList changed strategic and philosophical direction by becoming a data creator instead of just a data aggregator. Feature Articles, BookTalks, and Book Discussion Guides were added first, with Author Read-alikes, Readers' Advisory training content and a variety of other reader and staff materials added later.

The NoveList division of EBSCO Publishing has grown from its three founders to a dedicated group of more than 40 professionals who love to read, and from a single fiction database to a suite of products and services geared toward helping librarians reach out to readers in their communities.

NoveList Timeline

1990
Duncan Smith forms NoveList with Roger Rohweder and John Strickler and begins creating NoveList part-time while maintaining their "day jobs".

1994
First copy of NoveList sold as a DOS product with 20,000 adult titles and 1200 reviews

1994
Duncan Smith and Roger Rohweder join CARL Corporation and begin working on NoveList full-time.

1999
NoveList is acquired by EBSCO Publishing from CARL Corporation. At the time NoveList consisted of 5 employees.

2000
NoveList changes strategic and philosophical direction by becoming a data creator instead of just a data aggregator.

2002
NoveList launches NoveList K-8, a fiction resource geared toward schools and those working with young readers.

2003
NoveList introduces Book Index with Reviews, a reference database that provides information on over 4 million book titles.

2005
NoveList first 5-year growth plan developed and approved and the NoveList staff began to grow.

2006
NoveList launches the email newsletter tool, NextReads, that empowers libraries to do outreach and provide reading recommendations to patrons via email.

2007
NoveList enters the world of catalog enhancement with its first version of NoveList Select, which was available for the Polaris Integrated Library System.

2008
NoveList launches 2 new products: NoveList Plus and NoveList K-8 Plus, which added coverage of narrative nonfiction to the original NoveList and NoveList K-8 databases.

2009
The first non-Polaris Integrated Library System version of NoveList Select goes live at Houston Public Library.

2010
NoveList databases get a new look and added functionality, including a carousel of book recommendations, reading recommendations for all titles, and appeal factors.

2011
NoveList introduces connection to Goodreads, delivering community recommendations and reviews alongside the professional content.