Library offers a peek at what the city’s reading
People in Edmonton’s Abbottsfield neighbourhood are interested in hygge, the amorphous Danish concept of living well.
In Clareview, readers want to learn more about the life story of new Daily Show host Trevor Noah.
And large-print John Grisham novels are in high demand in Callingwood.
Those are a few facts gleaned from hold data from the Edmonton Public Library (EPL), which offers a neighbourhood-byneighbourhood glimpse of what Edmontonians are reading this summer.
Each week, the library releases data on the most popular books at each branch by the number of holds.
The Journal had a look through the branch-specific numbers for the week of July 17, and they’re revealing.
Raquel Mann, digital public spaces librarian with the EPL, said the data helps the library distribute its collection.
“It’s kind of neat to see the trends between branches,” she said. “It can definitely give us a picture of what’s of interest in different areas of the city.”
For example, librarians might request large-print titles if an area has lots of seniors.
Or large populations of new immigrants might require more books in a specific language.
In immigrant-heavy Mill Woods, for example, the most-requested title was a practice book for the IELTS, an English-language testing system which Immigration Canada accepts for permanent residency applications.
And a large number of holds on Harry Potter books (they still chart) could indicate a large school-age population in the area.
As for the most sought-after book at any branch? That’s Paula Hawkins’ new novel Into the Water, with a whopping 569 hold requests at the Woodcroft (Westmount) branch.
While holds are one way of measuring a book’s popularity, they should not be confused with actual checked books. As of June 30, the most checked-out book in the EPL system was Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, with 554 checkouts.