A Quick Way to Find Out of Print Books

Annie asked me for help finding a book that is out of print:

There is a book, now out of print, that traces my family history back centuries.  It's called the Stapletons of Drom. Do you have a resource for finding such books, long out of print?

Annie, the first thing I do is search Google books. Then I try WorldCat

Trying WorldCat I found 11 Libraries that have this book. Since I don't know where you live, you will need to go to WorldCat and type in your postal or zip code.

If you want to purchase a copy, Amazon has it

Don't Miss My E-Books on Ontario Genealogical Society Website

Olive Tree Genealogy is pleased to announce that several of my e-books are now being offered for sale on the Ontario Genealogical Society Website.

Visit my author page to see what is available and drop a couple into your shopping cart for holiday reading!

As of December 7, 2017 there are 5 of my e-books available, and two more are coming soon! 

Remember, you don't need a Kindle to read an e-book. Amazon has free Kindle Reading apps you can download.

Guide to Fiinding Your Loyalist Ancestor in Upper Canada

I'm excited to announce I have just published a new genealogy guide "Guide to Finding a Loyalist Ancestor in Upper Canada (Ontario)" It is available in paperback or as an e-book on Amazon.com and on Amazon.ca

When the American Revolution began in 1775, individuals living in the 13 British colonies had to decide whether to remain loyal to the British King or to fight for independence. Loyalist is the term used to describe those who supported the King and who later fled to Canada with their families. You may sometimes see Loyalists referred to as Tories but this is not the commonly accepted term. 

Most Loyalists fled to Canada and helped settle that country, particularly in what is now Ontario and Nova Scotia. Guide to Finding a Loyalist Ancestor in Upper Canada (Ontario) will help genealogists find their Loyalist ancestor. Explanations are given for each of the set of records available for research. The reader will learn how to manoeuver through the more challenging obscure records.

Top 100 Genealogy Books

Did you know that Amazon has books on Genealogy? There are technical genealogy books, fiction genealogy books (mysteries, adventure, historical and more), DNA for genealogists, tutorial and helpful genealogy books and so on.

I like to start at Amazon's list of the Top 100 Genealogy Books which is updated hourly. That's right - hourly. Spoiler Alert! My mystery novel "Death Finds a Way: A Janie Riley Mystery" is at the Number 25 spot as of August 20, 2017 at 11 am EDT. And since I kind of love co-incidences, notice that my book has 25 4 1/2 star reviews :-)

I'd love to get it to Number 1! Failing that, if I could get it to the first page (#1-20) that would be super!

"Organize Your Genealogy in Evernote in 10 Easy Steps" (by yours truly) is not doing as well. It's in Number 68 spot!

So even though I'd love for my readers to boost my book by purchasing a copy OR giving it a decent review if you already own it, my main goal with this blog post is to encourage you to take a peek on Amazon for genealogy books you might like to read!

12 Christmas Gifts for a Genealogist

Here's a list of a dozen gifts your favourite genealogist might like for Christmas. Maybe you could even sneak one or two for yourself!

1. Ancestry.com subscription
2. DNA Kit 10% off AncestryDNA Nov 29-Dec 14 in U.S.A. or Ancestry DNA in Canada
3. Echo Smart Pen by Live Scribe for recording Family Stories and Memories. I love my SmartPen which I bought on Amazon. I use it to record my 93 year old auntie's stories of her childhood, then I plug it into my laptop and the digital record transfers. Using the pen while auntie speaks, I make jot notes in the special notebooks. Then I can play the recorded stories by touching any word in the notebook. Very cool!
4. Legacy Family Tree Webinars subscription
5. Rootstech 2017 Registration
6. A loupe for magnification so you can scrutinize old photos and documents for clues.
7. A Kindle Fire, Kindle Paperwhite, Nook, or other e-reader so you can purchase genealogy books and read them in airports, waiting rooms, on the beach or pretty much anywhere
8. A subscription to the Genealogy Magazine of your choice. I like Family Tree Magazine, but the one you drool over could be very different.
9. A beautiful journal for writing your own memoirs. I love Iona Handcrafted Books and have asked my hubby to buy me another one this Christmas as I'm on my last one. Tip: If the checkout won't accept a non-USA order, just email or phone as they do accept international orders.
10. A Shutterfly gift certificate  I love Shutterfly for creating family photo books or calendars. It's also great for simply getting copies of your family photos so you can share them with family members
11. Acid Free Storage boxes for your treasured family photos and original documents
12. A copy of the Genealogical Mystery Novel "Death Finds a Way: A Janie Riley Mystery" by Lorine McGinnis Schulze, available in Paperback or E-Book. In this debut novel, middle-aged Janie Riley is off to Salt Lake City to research her ancestors. Little does she know that murder and mysteries await her!

The Problem of Family Not Wanting Your Genealogy Research

Several years ago I came to the realization that no one in my immediate family wants my 40 plus years of research on our genealogy. A few are mildly interested in hearing the more exciting stories of blacksheep ancestors or famous relatives or an intriguing mystery. No one but me does actual research into our ancestors. 

That means that my binders and file folders full of documents and charts are not something anyone is going to take and preserve when I'm gone. I'm sure many of you are facing the same problem. So...what to do?

My solution has been to create family books for each surname. I keep them short, no more than 30 pages for each book. Some surnames have multiple volumes and each volume is for one generation including children. These books are what I call "Coffee Table" books, meant to be picked up and thumbed through casually. Not all documents are included because that would turn into a book consisting of hundreds of pages! 

After publishing them on Shutterfly I give them as gifts at Christmas. That is one way the family stories and research might be preserved for future generations. If you are unfamiliar with Shutterfly I have a tutorial on using it on my Olive Tree Genealogy YouTube Channel.

Creating a Memory Book in Shutterfly (Tutorial 1)

Creating a Memory Book in Shutterfly (Tutorial 2)

Creating a Memory Book in Shutterfly (Tutorial 3)

Another solution I use is to create books for sale to other descendants. Since I tend to research all siblings in a family I can often provide details, facts and documents on a large number of family members for each generation. I use Createspace for those books which then are made available on Amazon. See my list of books I have published here.  Money I make from these sales helps offset my expenses in subscribing to online companies for their databases. 

I also donate a copy of any books I create to local archives or libraries where the family settled.  This helps ensure that even more descendants will have access to my research in the future.

How have you overcome the problem of your family not wanting your genealogy records?