SJPL Staff Picks

Summer Learning: Summer Athletics

Are you an avid summer athletics fan? Gear up by spending time with these sporty reads!

Summer Learning: Shark Week

Lurking on the shelves of your local library is a curious creature. Misunderstood by some, beloved by others, I'm talking about shark books!

Summer Learning: Amusement Park Adventures

Take a spin through stories set in amusement parks. Selected by SJPL Staff.

Summer Learning: Fabulous Facts

A list of books for all ages on all sorts of facts ranging from the common to the obscure to keep your brain focused and your mind spinning.

Monthly Staff Picks

SJPL Picks: Red White & Blue!

Read these books about parades, fireworks, picnics and apple pie while honoring America as it celebrates the Fourth of July!

SJPL Picks: YA Lit with Disability Representation

For these reads, characters with physical, intellectual, or developmental disabilities take center stage.

Bilingual (English/Spanish) Picture Books for Kids

Recommended bilingual (English & Spanish) picture books for preschooler to lower elementary grade levels selected by SJPL Librarians.

SJPL Picks: Graphic Novels for Adults

These are graphic novels for adults (not adult graphic novels). Also, no superheroes or capes to be found (for the most part).

Personalized Staff Picks

Looking for your next read? Request a personalized reading list, and a staff member will email you five book recommendations selected just for you.

Picture Books

SJPL Picks: Learning to Love Swimming

Bobs, bubbles, back floats, and bathing suits! Pre-k to early elementary reads about learning to swim, and loving it, too.

SJPL Picks: Picture Books for Train Lovers

These train-themed books will capture your child's attention and occupy them for long periods of time. They were selected by SJPL Librarian.

SJPL Picks: Great Picture Books About Grandparents

Grandparents are important people in every culture. These picture books celebrate the special bond between grandparents and grandchildren.

SJPL Picks: Feelings

What are they? How do you control how you feel? Stories about those pesky emotions.

Kids

SJPL Picks: Books for the very beginning reader

A list of books for our very earliest readers. Small sentences and pictures will keep your newest reader engaged!

SJPL Picks: Mysteries (~Grades 3-7)

Gather 'round book sleuths and let me clue you in to the latest mysteries for kids! Selected and curated by SJPL Librarians.

SJPL Picks: Heroes and Super Heroes

Here is a list of Graphic Novels and Books all about Super Heroes who you probably haven't seen before!

SJPL Picks: Historical Fiction (~Grades 3-7)

While these novels are works of fiction, they draw heavily from what we do know about certain time periods to guess at some lost tales.

Teens

SJPL Picks: YA Completed Series

Each of these reads is the first book in a completed duology, trilogy, or longer series.

SJPL Picks: Short & Sweet: Books Under 200 Pages

Check out these Short but Sweet books that are 200 or less pages. Include Fiction, Nonfiction, In-Verse, and Poetry.

SJPL Picks: YA Horror

Do you have a hankering for hauntings, or a passion for the paranormal? Check out these creepy new additions to the SJPL teen collection.

SJPL Picks: YA Books with Male Protagonists

Only 22% of YA titles feature a male protagonist. If you've been craving a book with a male lead, this list is for you.

Adults

SJPL Picks: Sports Romances

Sports Romances, selected and curated by SJPL Librarians.

SJPL Picks: Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Focus

These staff-selected reads examine how AI is transforming society, including its affects on jobs, ethical questions, and everyday life.

SJPL Picks: Romantasy

Looking for fantasy with a heavy dose of spice? Selected and curated by SJPL Librarians.

SJPL Picks: Mysteries

Gather 'round book sleuths and let me clue you in to the latest mysteries for adults.

More Reading Recommendations

Want more ways to discover your next favorite read? Check out these recommendation tools.

Additional Reading Lists

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