Katie's parents never told her "no" when she asked for a book, which was the start of most of her problems. She has an MLIS from the University of Illinois and works full time as a Circulation & Reference Manager in Illinois. She has a deep-rooted love of all things disturbing, twisted, and terrifying and takes enormous pleasure in creeping out her coworkers. When she's not at work, she's at home watching the Cubs with her cats and her cardigan collection. Other hobbies include scrapbooking, introducing more readers to the Church of Tana French, and convincing her husband that she can, in fact, fit more books onto her shelves.
Twitter: @kt_librarylady
Keeping up with the buzzy books your patrons are hearing about in the news and on social media is one of the key elements of library service. I’ve rounded up a few titles that your patrons may have seen over the last few weeks.
Before we jump in, I want to highlight this article that Rioter Danika Ellis published, where she notes that all 50 of the most-read books on Goodreads for the week of July 25th were written by white authors. Part of this is a publishing problem, but as library workers, we have an opportunity and an obligation to purchase, hand sell, and display books by authors of color.
Here are four recent titles you can feature right now on your displays, book lists, and social media posts.
Nothing More of This Land: Community, Power, and the Search for Indigenous Identity – Joseph Lee
Award-winning journalist Joseph Lee tells the story of his own life growing up Aquinnah Wampanoag on Martha’s Vineyard and ties it into the modern day experiences of Indigenous activists fighting colonialism around the world.
Featured in New York Times, Washington Post.
The Bewitching – Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Minerva grew up listening to her great-grandmother’s stories of witchcraft. Now, she’s a graduate student researching the life of Beatrice Tremblay, an obscure horror author from decades past who attended the same university as Minerva. When Minerva learns that Tremblay’s most famous novel may have been inspired by a true story, she’s drawn further and further into Tremblay’s past until she begins to fear that the dark force that followed Tremblay may still be present on the campus. Moreno-Garcia’s latest is a multi-generational horror saga of dark spirits and witchcraft.
Featured in New York Times, Star Tribune.
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The Tiny Things Are Heavier – Esther Ifesinachi Okonkwo
Sommy, a Nigerian graduate student in the United States, is feeling out of place in a new country. She’s also feeling extremely guilty for leaving her brother behind just two weeks after he attempted suicide. Before long, she finds herself involved in complicated relationships with her new roommate, Bayo, as well as Bryan, a biracial Nigerian American man. But when Sommy and Bryan use their summer break to travel to Nigeria together, a shocking event will expose the cracks in Sommy’s relationships and force her to reconsider everything about her life.
Featured in NPR.
Archive of Unknown Universes – Ruben Reyes Jr.
Ana and Luis are in a rocky relationship and each has their own complicated family history. In her search for answers, Ana uses an experimental device known as The Defractor that allows her to see alternate versions of her life. What she sees leads her and Luis through Havana and San Salvador as they learn what happened to their mothers when they fled El Salvador during the war. This is a genre-bending debut novel about fate, history, and the perseverance of love.
Featured in Washington Post.
Keep up with both the latest releases and backlist gems by authors of color with our In Reading Color newsletter. Then, read your way into the best BIPOC books of 2025 so far and dive into the best BIPOC books hitting shelves this summer.
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