In all, there are 8*7*6*5 = 1680 different arrangements. It is the product of 4 integer factors, in descending order, starting from the biggest factor 8. The standard mantra to solve this (and many other similar problems) is THIS : There are 8 ways to select the first book; then there are 7 ways to select the second book from 7 remaining books; then there are 6 ways to select the third book from 6 remaining books; and finally, there are 5 ways to select the fourth book from 5 remaining books.