Books

What are the contents of a book?

Basic parts of a book include front matter (title page, copyright page, dedication, acknowledgments, foreword, table of contents, etc.); body matter (prologue and chapters or other contents); and end matter (bibliography, glossary, index, author biography, etc.).

The Chicago Way

Tables of contents for printed nonfiction books are traditional for obvious reasons. Readers of a guide to wildflowers or a history of Angola can consult the TOC both for a concise overview of the entire book and to locate specific information. Reviewers and scholars may use the contents to find their way back to passages they want to quote or cite. CMOS 1.38 (17th ed.) lays out the conventions for compiling and placing a contents page.

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When a Table of Contents Is Helpful in a Novel

In some novels, especially series fiction, the plot and chronology can be so intricate that devoted fans appreciate having a guide to the action. Such books may include maps of the imaginary world, as well as family trees or lists of characters. Many readers appreciate a table of contents that will take them to the chapter they want to read and reread.

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When a Table of Contents Is Helpful in a Novel

When chapters are stories in themselves

Sometimes a novel consists of linked stories, in which each chapter can stand alone and may have even been published previously in a literary journal or the like. A reader might well consult the table of contents seeking a specific chapter. Brandon Taylor’s novel Filthy Animals (Riverhead Books, 2021) is a good example: The hardcover edition features a TOC with chapters like “Potluck” and “Proctoring.” The copyright page acknowledges which chapters were previously published elsewhere.

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To communicate locations in a book

Sometimes a publishing decision has less to do with what readers “like” and more to do with practicalities. Any writer who hopes their book will be talked about, reviewed, quoted, cited, judged, or taught has reason to help reviewers find and share memorable passages in any way they can. Reviewers and teachers also check for a TOC when wishing to refresh their memory of a book. Providing a list of the contents is one way to make their job easier.

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Publishers of e-book and audiobook fiction routinely require a table of contents to aid readers in navigating the chapters, even if the hardcover and paperback editions don’t have one. In e-books, the TOC consists of hyperlinks that jump to coded locations, not to page numbers. Even if an author or publisher decides not to display a contents “page” at the front of an e-book, a table of contents will be generated for the e-book’s menu so readers will still have a way of getting to different sections in the book. Audiobook narrators tend to skip the front matter of novels (other than an epigraph or dedication), but like e-books, audiobooks normally include a contents menu to help readers move to different chapters or other sections in the book.

When to Omit the Table of Contents

Many if not most novels that feature a table of contents in the e-book edition omit it in print. This is especially true when the chapter labels reveal nothing aside from location in the book. Angela Jackson-Brown’s When Stars Rain Down (Thomas Nelson, 2021) is a good example. The chapters are numbered simply 1, 2, 3, etc., without titles. Accordingly, the paperback edition of the book has no TOC, but the e-book edition does.

Introduction

What are the contents of a book?

The Chicago Way

When a Table of Contents Is Helpful in a Novel

When chapters are stories in themselves

To communicate locations in a book

When to Omit the Table of Contents

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The Chicago Way

When a Table of Contents Is Helpful in a Novel

When chapters are stories in themselves

To communicate locations in a book

When to Omit the Table of Contents