Authors & Books
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Book Groups: What to Read Next
Welcome to a semi-regular series that answers the question: What should my book group read next? The titles featured were chosen for their complexity and ability to sustain a discussion, as well as for having enough copies at the Seattle Public Library (as of this posting) for a book group of 8-12 members to place… Continue reading
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Mid Summer Staff Book Bingo Recommendations
It should come as no surprise that library staff love Book Bingo as much as patrons do. Many of us also read along during the summer, seeking out great titles to fill each category. In that spirit, I asked staff for some of their favorites so far this summer. You can find a full list… Continue reading
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7 Summer Book Bingo Recommendations
Book Bingo season is a time to reconnect with reading for joy and discovery. To help readers across King County find great picks for their Book Bingo board, the owners of West Seattle’s Paper Boat Booksellers join a Seattle Public Library Reader Services librarian with suggestions for three bingo categories. Learn about Book Bingo and get… Continue reading
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Carceral Injustices: Beyond Living with Conviction
If you wind your way up the famous book spiral at the Central Library in downtown Seattle, you’ll often find interesting exhibits in The Gallery on level 8. The current exhibit, Living with Conviction: Sentenced to Debt for Life in Washington State, with its moving visual stories of dealing with overwhelming debt incurred from incarceration,… Continue reading
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Book Bingo NW 2026: HEA/HFN
‘Happily Ever After’ or ‘Happy For Now’, HEA/HFN, might make you think of romance, but it doesn’t always have to be. It can be the calm at the end of a horror book, a biography where a person details finding contentment, or even the end of a dystopian novel where the big bad has been… Continue reading
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Book Bingo NW 2026: Women’s Sports
I’ve become an avid women’s sports fan over the past few years. I dedicate most of my time and interest to women’s soccer, but I’m proud to call myself a casual WNBA and PWHL fan, too. I’m super excited that women’s sports is a Book Bingo category this year! Part of what hooks me is the storylines and personalities… Continue reading
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New Nonfiction Roundup – July 2026
Welcome to July! This month is typically quiet for nonfiction publishing, but there are some excellent releases to consider for your TBR pile in addition to this month’s Peak Picks. In current events, Ben Wikler details how to end America’s meltdown and save democracy in This Is the Plan while Brian Tyler Cohen shows how… Continue reading
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Adventure Romance for Summer
Summer is the perfect time to go into the great outdoors in pursuit of treasure (and romance)! As with all genres, there are many possible sub-genres to be had here; adventure romance can be modern, historical, set in a desert, a jungle, or on the sea! What matters is the journey. Let’s set the scene with movies! Romancing the Stone is a classic romantic comedy from… Continue reading
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Book Bingo NW 2026: PNW Black, Indigenous, or POC Author
Every year readers request Local Authors of Pacific Northwest as a general category, because reading about this place we call home can be so inspiring. But let’s be honest—not all local authors get the same attention and broad readership as others, and this is especially the case for authors of color. Here are some PNW Black, Indigenous, or POC titles to try: Red Paint:… Continue reading
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Historical Fiction for Teens – July 2026
Historical fiction reminds us of where we came from and shows how young people lived through challenging times of their own. Here are some new titles that speak to our past. (MS = middle school) In And the Trees Stare Back by Gigi Griffis, Vik has lost her little sister to a cursed forest in Soviet… Continue reading
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Listen Up: Looking at Seattle’s Love of E-Audiobooks
Have you become an e-audiobook convert in recent years? Perhaps you’ve discovered the appeal of full-cast recordings, the satisfaction of making your way through a book while walking or weeding, or the joy of being read to by Meryl Streep. If so, you’re in good company. The Seattle Public Library’s e-audiobook checkouts have more than… Continue reading
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A Peek at Peak Picks – July 2026
We’re adding ten new Peak Picks in July! In fiction, from Valeria Luiselli (Lost Children Archive and Tell Me How It Ends) comes her most powerful and page-turning novel yet: Beginning, Middle, End, the tale of a mother and a daughter starting over and searching for a new story; two-time Pulitzer winner Colson Whitehead returns with Cool Machine,… Continue reading
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Book Bingo NW 2026: Queer/Trans Voices
We love reading books by queer and trans voices all year round, but here are some to finish out Pride Month and count towards your Book Bingo reading goals! Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar is a meditative, slyly comic novel about a poet and recovering addict, Cyrus Shams, who ruminates on grief, sacrifice, and art in the… Continue reading
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Summer 2026 Author and Community Events
Stay cool and cultured by attending one of the Library’s author and community events this summer, including a conversation between KUOW’s Katie Campbell and cabin-builder Patrick Hutchison, an evening with science fiction author with Rebecca Roanhorse, and a Book Bingo silent reading party at the Seattle Center’s Mural Amphitheater. Also check out Summer Quest, our… Continue reading
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Lambda Literary Award Winners
The Lambda Literary Awards, highlighting LGBTQ+ writers across genres, identities, experiences, age ranges, and categories, are the perfect blend of Pride Month and the library, showcasing the best in queer books. The 2026 winners were just announced, and any of these would be great options for your Queer/Trans voices Book Bingo square! With 26 categories… Continue reading
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LGBTQ+ Books Worth Seeking Out This Pride Month
This June, we’re going beyond the bestseller lists with books we keep pressing into people’s hands because we can’t stop thinking about them. “Hurricane Envy” by Sara Jaffe Portland writer Jaffe’s collection of short stories finds her characters caught in liminal moments. Jaffe deftly captures the palpable tension when all options feel like a compromise. Her… Continue reading
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Aging Protagonists in Fiction
As May (Older Americans Month) has just passed, I’ve been thinking about the many books being published that feature older protagonists. It’s been exciting to see this shift—possibly a result of the American population living longer, and hence, reading longer. The publishing industry must be paying attention as the number of Americans 65 and older is projected… Continue reading
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Start Your Summer Quest: Read, Do, Go, and Win
Summer has a new name at the Library! Launching today, Summer Quest is an all-ages program that encourages reading, discovery, and exploration all summer long. Head to your closest Library location, or to www.spl.org/SummerQuest, to pick up your Summer Quest activity tracker, which challenges kids, teens, and adults to log 30 days of Read, Do,… Continue reading