As the Brooklyn Public Library prepares to turn the page on 2024, it’s looking back on the last year in literature and taking stock of which books Brooklynites loved most.
Locals checked out millions of books, electronic media, and more this year, according to BPL’s website, even as the library dealt with budget cuts and reduced operating hours. The borough’s most popular titles for adults reflected last year’s tastes, with some new additions. In 2024, readers were after romance novels, pop culture memoirs, and stories from both far-off lands and nearby neighborhoods.
“I am delighted to see the wide range of items New Yorkers are borrowing including stories about immigrants and outsiders, cities and small towns, friends, family and love,” said Nick Higgins, BPL’s chief librarian, in a statement. “Books play a critical role in everyday life — especially now — helping us to understand ourselves, one another, and the world around us.”
BPL’s Top Ten Adult Titles from 2024:
- “Happy Place” by Emily Henry, a bestselling romance that follows newly-broken-up Harriet and Wyn as they pretend, for the sake of their friends, that they’re still together during an idyllic, important trip to coastal Maine. Henry’s title “Book Lovers” sat at #5 on BPL’s most-popular list in 2023.
- “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow” by Gabrielle Zevin, a heart-wrenching look at a pair of lifelong friends as they move through life, loss, love, and videogames. This title was the most popular book across New York City’s three library systems in 2024, and ranked #3 for BPL in 2023.
- “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros, a popular choice on literary TikTok. “Fourth Wing” follows a young woman, Violet, as she breaks from her quiet life in the face of a massive war and trains to become an elite dragon rider, and was a favorite among Brooklynites in 2023, too.
- “The Woman in Me” by Britney Spears, a 2023 memoir by the pop sensation. For the first time, Spears shares the details of her “incredible journey” through massive fame, a controversial guardianship, and the public trial watched by the world.
- “I’m Glad My Mom Died” by Jennette McCurdy, another title appearing for the second time on BPL’s most-checked out list. In her memoir, child star McCurdy discusses her complicated relationship with her mother, child stardom, eating disorders, addiction, and how she took back control of her life.
- “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus, a novel that tells the story of a chemist as she turns away from the lab and toward a career in television — teaching women the science of cooking. The novel inspired a 2023 TV show by the same name, and has been one of BPL’s most popular titles for the last two years.
- “Yellowface” by R. F. Kuang, a witty, bestselling novel that follows a white author who adopts a pseudonym and a fake racial identity to publish a stolen novel after her own literary failures.
- “Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett, a “moving” novel about a mother who recalls a long-lost story from her past to her two daughters, who reexamine their own lives and the life of their mom.
- “Pineapple Street” by Jenny Jackson, a sharp novel about three women hailing from one local Brooklyn Heights family. Jackson’s debut takes place in nabes familiar to Brooklynites and features some familiar – and unfamiliar — familial woes and triumphs.
- “The Guest” by Emma Cline, another local-ish book by a local author. In “The Guest,” protagonist Alex, choosing not to return to New York City after a summer on Long Island, instead roams the island, often taking advantage of people for her own sake.
Brooklyn’s teens were voracious readers this year, too. Teens and young adults dove into fantasy worlds spun by Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Ross, picked up beloved manga like “Demon Slayer,” and revisited an old YA classic, “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins — perhaps inspired by the 2023 film based on a newer Collins book, “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.”
BPL’s Top 10 YA Titles from 2024:
- “A Court of Thorns and Roses” by Sarah J. Maas
- “Throne of Glass” by Sarah J. Maas
- “Crown of Midnight” by Sarah J. Maas
- “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” by Suzanne Collins
- “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins
- “If He Had Been With Me” by Laura Nowlin
- “Demon Slayer” by Koyoharu Gotoge
- “Divine Rivals: A Novel” by Rebecca Ross
- “A Court of Mist and Fury” by Sarah J. Maas
- “Heartstopper” by Alice Oseman
Last but not least, there were the youngest readers in the borough, the kids. Brooklyn’s little ones enjoyed a lot of longtime classics this year, and a lot of touching graphic memoirs.
Jeff Kinney, the author of the beloved “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series, which has 19 installations released since 2007, features prominently on the list, as does the “Dog Man” series by Dav Pilkey. Raina Telgemeier’s graphic memoirs, “Guts” and “Ghosts,” came ranked #6 and #8 on the list, respectively.
BPL’s Top 10 Kids’ Titles of 2024:
- “Diary of A Wimpy Kid: No Brainer” by Jeff Kinney
- “Cat Kid Comic Club #5: Influencers” by Dav Pilkey (words, illustrations, and artwork), with digital color by Jose Garibaldi & Wes Dzioba
- “Dog Man: Unleashed” by Dav Pilkey
- “Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea” by Dav Pilkey
- “Diary of A Wimpy Kid: Diper Överlöad” by Jeff Kinney
- “Guts” by Raina Telgemeier
- “Dog Man: A Tale of Two Kitties” by Dav Pilkey
- “Ghosts” by Raina Telgemeier
- “Dog Man: Brawl of the Wild” by Dav Pilkey
- “Dog Man: Mothering Heights” by Dav Pilkey
