Understanding Book Approval

When you add a book to a library, it may need approval before other members can see it. This helps library admins keep their collections curated and organized.

Why Books Need Approval

Libraries can require approval for books submitted by members. This gives admins control over what appears in the library’s collection — similar to how a traditional library decides which books to put on the shelves.

Not all libraries require approval. Your library’s settings determine what happens.

What Happens When You Add a Book

After you scan or search for a book and add it to a library, one of three things happens:

Auto-Approved

Your book appears in the library immediately. This happens when:

You’re a library admin or owner
The library is set to “Auto-approve everything”, OR
The library is set to “Auto-approve from trusted sources” AND one of the following applies:
- You’re a trusted member (your library admin has added you to the trusted members list)
- The book’s publisher is on the library’s trusted publishers list
- One of the book’s authors is on the library’s trusted authors list

Waiting for Admin

Your book is submitted and waiting for a library admin to review it. You’ll see Waiting for admin under that book’s Sharing section. Tap the status for a short explanation of who reviews it and what happens next.

Not accepted

Occasionally a book may not fit a library’s collection guidelines. If an admin declines it, the book’s Sharing section shows Not accepted and you’ll receive a notification with the admin’s reason (when one is provided). The book stays in My Books either way — a decline only affects its visibility in that library.

Checking Your Pending Books

To see which books are waiting for library admin approval:

Tap Shared at the top of My Books, then use the Pending filter
In My Books, tap the ⋮ button on a book’s row to check its status in each library

You’ll get a notification when a library admin approves or declines a submission that was pending review. Auto-approved books don’t send an approval notification — they simply show up in the library.

Note: The catalog review / not approved link on My Books is for books in catalog review — Agathos Books reviewing new books for the platform-wide catalog (or books recently not approved). It is separate from library submission approval — use Shared and the Pending filter there for library submissions.

How Long Does Approval Take?

It depends on how active your library’s admins are. Most approvals happen within a few hours to a day. If your book has been pending for a while, it’s fine to reach out to your library admin directly.

Two Levels of Approval

Agathos Books has two layers of quality control:

Catalog review (platform approval) — Agathos Books reviews books added to the platform for the first time to ensure they meet curation standards. Most books are auto-approved; others enter a review queue and show a Catalog review status on the book. Tap the status for an explanation of the process — including when a book will be submitted to your libraries after approval. You’ll be notified either way: when the book is approved, or with a “Catalog review complete” notification if it wasn’t added — why it wasn’t added, and any note from the review, is in Catalog submissions (open My Books and tap the catalog review link).
Library approval — Individual libraries can choose to review member submissions before they appear in the library’s collection. These show as Waiting for admin on the book’s Sharing section, and you’ll receive a notification when a library admin approves or declines your submission.

If a Book Isn’t Approved for the Catalog

Occasionally a submitted book doesn’t fit our curation standards. When that happens:

You’ll find why in Catalog submissions — open My Books, tap the catalog review link, and look under Not approved. Each entry says why the book wasn’t added in one plain sentence, followed by any note from the review.
The book isn’t kept on the platform. A book that isn’t approved for the catalog isn’t added to My Books or any library — the entry in Catalog submissions is a record of the review, and you can remove it whenever you like.
You can ask us to take another look. If you believe the decision was mistaken — for example, the listing we reviewed describes a different book than the one you own — tap Request another look on the entry (available for 90 days after the review). Tell us what you think we missed, and a member of our team will personally re-review the book. You’ll be notified of the outcome either way: if we approve the book on second look, it’s added normally; if the original decision stands, you’ll see a note explaining why.

Every “request another look” is decided by a person, not by an automated system.

Still Need Help?

If you have questions about book approval, contact support.