Browsing by Category
Categories let you find books by broad topics like Fiction, Theology, or Children’s. Every book on Agathos Books is automatically assigned categories based on its metadata, so you don’t tag them yourself — you use them to discover books.
For a quick overview of how categories compare to collections and tags, see How books are organized.
Where Categories Appear
Section titled “Where Categories Appear”In a Library
Section titled “In a Library”Tap Library and scroll past the Collections strip. Each library has its own set of category rails so you can see what’s available in that specific library, organized by topic. Tap a category’s title to see all of its books in that library.
Across All Your Libraries
Section titled “Across All Your Libraries”If you belong to more than one library, tap the library’s name at the top of the Library tab and choose All my libraries. Above the category rails you’ll see Featured by your libraries (admin-curated picks) and Recently added (books members recently shared), then category rails for Fiction, Biography, History, and so on — all pulled from every library you belong to and your own books.
Tap a category title or a book inside it to see all matching books. The number beside a category is how many books you’ll see when you open it, subcategories included. To look at just one library again, tap All my libraries at the top and pick it.
When Filtering Your Books or a Library
Section titled “When Filtering Your Books or a Library”- Go to My Books (or open a library)
- Tap Filters
- Pick one or more categories — books in any of the chosen categories appear
Combine categories with other filters (recommended, ownership, reading status, collections, your own tags) to drill down further. The same Filters button is available in the Library tab — for one library or all of them.
Why a Book Might Show Up in an Unexpected Category
Section titled “Why a Book Might Show Up in an Unexpected Category”Categories come from book metadata, so a single book often belongs to several at once — a Christian biography may show up under both “Biography” and “Christian Living,” for example. If you can’t find a book where you expect it, try a related category.
Categories vs. Collections vs. Tags
Section titled “Categories vs. Collections vs. Tags”Quick refresher — they’re easy to confuse:
- Categories (this article) — automatic, platform-wide, topic-based
- Collections — curated by a library admin, scoped to one library
- Tags — your personal labels on your own books
See How books are organized for the full comparison.
Related Articles
Section titled “Related Articles”Still Need Help?
Section titled “Still Need Help?”If a book isn’t showing up in the category you expect, contact support and we’ll take a look.