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Book Bingo NW 2026: Unplug
This year’s Book Bingo Unplug category can certainly be used for a physical book read distraction-free, as the board says, but since we like to make categories as broad as possible, here are some other ideas for books that play with the “unplugged” theme: hands-on hobbies, off-the-grid living, and fostering in-person connection and attention. One… 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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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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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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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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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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Book Bingo NW 2026: World Cup Country
This summer, two of the biggest competitions are in Seattle. That’s right, I’m talking about the FIFA World Cup, and Book Bingo! In a brilliant moment of crossover potential, Book Bingo has a category for FIFA World Cup Country! Read on for suggestions on what to pick up, or check out a longer list in our catalog: Book Bingo NW 2026: World Cup Country. … Continue reading
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Teen Pride Graphic Novels
Here are some fantastic new stories to enjoy during Pride, all lushly illustrated. MS = middle school In Balazs Lorinczi’s book A Bite of Pepper, a skateboarding vampire falls for a human artist whose attraction to her might be enough to make her commit to turning this human into a vampire and becoming immortal herself. Dan in Green Gables, by Ray Terciero, follows a queer teen in… Continue reading
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Book Bingo NW 2026: Honorable Mentions
Every year, dozens of excellent books that are nominated for major book awards every year, but don’t quite make it over the finish line. Just because a book didn’t win doesn’t mean it isn’t worth your time. Celebrate these also-rans and runners-up, and check off a Book Bingo square, with books that were nominated, longlisted… Continue reading
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A Peek at Peak Picks – June 2026
We’re adding ten new Peak Picks in June! In fiction, from Lisa See comes the story of three Chinese women whose unexpected friendship helps them survive and, despite the odds, thrive, in the turmoil of post-Civil War Los Angeles in Daughters of the Sun and Moon; Paul Tremblay delivers a genre-bending near-future tech nightmare that… Continue reading
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4 Recent Books from Washington Authors to Enjoy This Spring
Living in the Seattle area, readers have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to local authors. As librarians, a particular joy is recommending a local author to someone looking for their next great read. Enjoy this small selection of recently published titles by Washington authors, featuring a charming tale of an unusual pregnancy, a… Continue reading
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New Fiction Roundup, May 2026
Can you feel it? Summer reading season is right around the corner! As you plan vacations and staycations, long weekends or surprise rainy days inside, here are some new fiction releases to take along. 5/5: The Calamity Club by Kathryn StockettIn 1933 Mississippi, an orphan and two women fallen on hard times band together with… Continue reading
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Complex Characters and Epistolary Novels: More Books Like The Correspondent
I don’t know about you, but I did not see the popularity of the epistolary debut The Correspondent by Virginia Evans coming. First novels, let alone novels written entirely in letters, are not necessarily burning up the bestseller lists these days. Book trends can follow predictable arcs at times, so it can be refreshing when a book or… Continue reading
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4 Nonfiction Reads for International Workers’ Day 2026
Since the establishment of International Workers’ Day in 1889, May 1 has been an important date for labor unions, immigrant rights advocates and organizations that strive to advance the cause of workers’ rights. Ahead of International Workers’ Day, we invite readers to explore the past, present and future of the labor movement, including an overview of American labor history, a deep dive into anti-racist activism in Seattle, an interrogation of the very concept of solidarity and a… Continue reading
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Celebrate National Poetry Month
This April is the 30th anniversary of National Poetry Month! Celebrate all month long by exploring the poetry booklists below, or sign up forr a Poem-a-Day from poets.org. National Poetry Month 2026New poetry readers looking for a place to start or avid poetry lover looking for something new should explore this list of recent award… Continue reading
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Gardens in the Anthropocene: Seed Saving as Activism, Planting as Rebellion, Mutualism as Resistance
After another weird winter that gave us snow in March, Spring has officially begun: the Cherry Blossom cam at UW is live and the trees are in glorious bloom. In an era of compounding global climate crises, expanding food deserts, and catastrophic land and resource extraction in the race to build ever larger, more powerful… Continue reading
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New Nonfiction Roundup – April 2026
Spring has arrived, and April is the pinnacle of the spring publishing season. In addition a half dozen nonfiction titles featured in this month’s Peak Picks, there are dozens of new books to consider. Check out some of the highlights below! In memoir and biography, social media superstar Isabel Klee searches for true love in… Continue reading