SJPL Recommendation News: September 2023

Welcome, or welcome back, to SJPL's Rec News, an occasional publication featuring recreational and recommended reading from our SJPL Librarians. Now that September is here most students are back in school and pumpkin spice is returning to our lattes and baked goods. Last month had us reading Back to School reads, as well as a few fun capers, heists, and voyages over the seven seas.

This month we will be exploring Short Stories for all ages, in honor of San José Public's Fall Into Fiction contest, powered by Short Edition. Of course Short Stories aren't the only recommendations I'll pass along this month, as September also marks the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month.

Hispanic Heritage Month Picks

Hispanic Heritage Month is observed from September 15 - October 15; this heritage month uniquely starts partway through as September 15 serves as the independence day for several Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Additionally, Mexico (September 16) and Chile (September 18) follow shortly thereafter. There are many great ways to honor Hispanic Heritage Month, including at the library. We not only have reading recs for you, but we will celebrate with programs like Wee Love Art featuring the work of Frida Kahlo, special storytimes, and more.

Short Stories Picks

This month, in honor of our library's Fall Into Fiction contest, we are going to take a look at short stories. On our lists you will find differently styled collections of short stories. Some will be anthologies - different authors contributing different short stories, sometimes on a unifying theme, into one book. Others are all short works by the same author, and at times you will see characters from one story show up in another; yet, each story stands alone.

For anyone thinking of entering the Fall Into Fiction contest, these booklists will be a great place to go for some inspiration. They'll demonstrate the tremendous flexibility of works with lower word counts. The Fall Into Fiction contest is for all ages and runs through the month of September; submissions are due by September 30, 2023. Entries will be included in San José Public Library's Short Édition Portal (which is another great place to visit if you're in the mood for a short story).

SJPL Picks: Quick Links

If this month's featured reads aren't quite what you're in the mood for, or you're looking to expand your browsing further, try checking out any and all of the lists from our librarians on our SJPL Picks team. All our lists will be labeled "SJPL Picks" or "SJPL Recommends".

SJPL 5forU

If you're looking for further recommendations and aren't in the mood to browse, let us do the browsing for you! San José Public Library's 5forU team offers personalized recommendations via email. You can also fill in the profile on someone else's behalf and we can find just the right titles - perfect for caregivers looking to recommend books to their children, for book clubs stumped on what to discuss next meeting, or if you're hoping to give the gift of literature. Just fill in the profile and we'll do the rest - and remember, the more information you give us in the profile, the better and more tailored your recommendations will be! Hearing exactly why you love or hate a book gives us more clues to find your new favorite- it just so happens to be what we love to talk about, too, so don't hold back. Ready to begin your 5forU journey?
Start your 5forU Request!