From A Storehouse of Knowledge

The First and Second Books of Samuel are two of the books of the Old Testament. They contain the account of the period of Jewish history during which the prophet Samuel lived; this era began with the calling of Samuel to God's service, took in the reign of King Saul, the first Jewish king, and ended with the death of King David and his succession by Solomon.

The First Book of Samuel (or 1 Samuel or I Samuel) begins with the calling of Samuel and ends with the death of Saul.

The Second Book of Samuel (or 2 Samuel or II Samuel) begins with the events following Saul's death, leading to David becoming king, and recounts almost the whole of David's reign. The First Book of Kings follows on directly from the end of this book.

The book is placed after the Book of Judges and the Book of Ruth. The calling of Samuel marks the end of the era of Judges in Israelite history, and the beginning of the era of kings and prophets that lasted until their conquest by the Babylonians.

Books of the Bible
Old Testament
Pentateuch (Torah)	Genesis • Exodus • Leviticus • Numbers • Deuteronomy
History	Joshua • Judges • Ruth • I Samuel • II Samuel • I Kings • II Kings • I Chronicles • II Chronicles • Ezra • Nehemiah • Esther
Wisdom Literature	Job • Psalms • Proverbs • Ecclesiastes • Song of Solomon
Major Prophets	Isaiah • Jeremiah • Lamentations • Ezekiel • Daniel
Minor Prophets	Hosea • Joel • Amos • Obadiah • Jonah • Micah • Nahum • Habakkuk • Zephaniah • Haggai • Zechariah • Malachi
New Testament
The Gospels	According to Matthew • According to Mark • According to Luke • According to John
History	Acts of the Apostles
Pauline Epistles	Romans • I Corinthians • II Corinthians • Galatians • Ephesians • Philippians • Colossians • I Thessalonians • II Thessalonians • I Timothy • II Timothy • Titus • Philemon
General Epistles	Hebrews • James • I Peter • II Peter • I John • II John • III John • Jude
Prophecy	The Revelation to John