The Most Popular In-Demand Books in U.S. Libraries: August

Each quarter, Panorama Picks takes a deep dive into the data about ebook use at libraries across the U.S. It’s a fascinating look at not just the most popular ebooks in public libraries — they don’t stray too far from what you’d expect of the bestseller lists — but also at the books that are seeing uniquely high demand at libraries.

These are books which are seeing a lot of interest but haven’t necessarily stayed atop bestseller lists for months and/or books with particular interest locally. The data looks at adult fiction, adult nonfiction, and young adult books (which includes fiction, nonfiction, and comics). Panorama Picks groups public libraries by coordinating American Bookseller Association (ABA) regions, which allows for a really neat way of exploring interest on a regional level. A book might be especially popular in California but less so in the Midwest, and looking at that data provides a real opportunity for local bookstores and libraries.

A major goal is to help independent bookstores identify unique opportunities to reach the unmeet needs of local readers for these books.

“We compile and publish Panorama Picks on a quarterly basis and we endeavor to promote our findings to local booksellers as well as to publishers and authors,” said Daniel Albohn, Panorama Project’s lead.

Data for the books on these lists comes from anonymized ebook requests at libraries between August and October 2021, and books are narrowed down by their publication dates. All of the books published between August 2020 through March 2021, a nine-month window. As will be seen, some of the books included were published well before this time frame, but their ebooks became available in that window. In some cases, the ebook may be a new or updated edition.

What makes Panorama Picks unique is that these books have notably longer wait lists for local library patrons, showcasing unmet demand. This is where both libraries and local booksellers come in: the opportunity to meet the demand unique to their region.

The lists below showcase the most uniquely popular books in U.S. libraries, divided category and by ABA regions. The ABA regions are as follows, and yes, there are some overlapping states among them: California, Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan), Hawaii, Midwest (Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin), Mountains and Plains (Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wyoming), New Atlantic (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia), New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont), Pacific Northwest (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington), and Southeast (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia).

The Most Uniquely Popular Books in Public Libraries, August–October 2021

Here are the top 10 most uniquely popular books across the country, followed by the most uniquely popular books by region. The methodology behind Panorama Picks involves pulling the top ten national titles identified by holds and then regional lists are created, with those top ten titles removed from the final data. The top 50 titles within each region are identified, then sorted by the number of holds and number of those titles available (AKA: high demand books with a lower number of books available). Books without a print version, so ebook only titles, are pulled from the data. The remaining titles are sorted into a top 25.

Using that methodology, these are the top 10 most popular books across the country, in order, followed by the most uniquely popular titles in each region. The full lists of 25 titles each are available on the Panorama Project website.

The Most Uniquely Popular Adult Fiction Titles (U.S.-Wide)

The Thursday Murder Club–A Novel by Richard Osman — all 9 regions
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer Armentrout — all 9 regions
The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa — 8 regions
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano — 8 regions
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn — 8 regions
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn — 7 regions
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood — 7 regions
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray — 7 regions
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner — 6 regions

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — California

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
Fresh Water for Flowers by Valérie Perrin
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Land of Big Numbers by Te-Ping Chen
The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
At Night All Blood Is Black by David Diop
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan)

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — Hawaii

The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson
Hidden Star by Nora Roberts
Midwinter Murder by Agatha Christie
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
Who is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews
The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — Midwest (Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin)

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
The Palm Beach Murders by James Patterson

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — Mountains and Plains (Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wyoming)

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
The Best-Laid Plans by Sarah M. Eden
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
The Orphan Collector by Ellen Marie Wiseman

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — New Atlantic (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia)

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
The Ministry For The Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont)

The Quiet Girl by S.F. Kosa
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Land of Big Numbers by Te-Ping Chen
The Ministry For The Future by Kim Stanley
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — Pacific Northwest (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington)

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
The Ministry For The Future by Kim Stanley Robinson
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood

Most Popular Adult Fiction Titles — Southeast (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia)

The Quiet Girl by S. F. Kosa
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 2 by Julia Quinn
Bridgerton Collection, Volume 3 by Julia Quinn
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan
The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
The Palm Beach Murders by James Patterson

The Most Uniquely Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles (U.S.-Wide)

Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD — 8 regions
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf — 7 regions
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price — 5 regions
The Ultimate Meal-Prep Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen — 4 regions
ADHD 2.0 by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D. — 4 regions
All We Can Save by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson — 4 regions
Good Morning, Monster by Catherine Gildiner — 4 regions

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — California

Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski
Polysecure by Jessica Fern
All We Can Save by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
Fourteen Talks by Age Fourteen by Michelle Icard
Die With Zero by Bill Perkins
How To Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
Good Morning, Monster by Catherine Gildiner
How To Not Die Alone by Logan Ury

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan)

Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
Fourteen Talks by Age Fourteen by Michelle Icard
Murder of Innocence by James Patterson
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
What Color Is Your Parachute? 2021 by Richard N. Bolles
What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon
Laundry Love by Patric Richardson
Hello, Habits by Fumio Sasaki
ADHD 2.0 by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — Hawaii

Beyond Order by Jordan B. Peterson
Winning the War In Your Mind by Craig Groeschel
Till Murder Do Us Part by James Patterson
A Most Remarkable Creature by Jonathan Meiburg
How To Sleep by Rafael Pelayo
Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety by Drew Ramsey, M.D.
The Three Mothers by Anna Malaika Tubbs
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
The Pegan Diet by Dr. Mark Hyman
Intuitive Fasting by Dr. Will Cole

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — Midwest (Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin)

Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
Set Boundaries, Find Peace by Nedra Glover Tawwab
The Little Book of Cottagecore by Emily Kent
Winning The War In Your Mind by Craig Groeschel
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
Good Morning, Monster by Catherine Gildiner
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Fourteen Talks By Age Fourteen by Michelle Icard
The Ultimate Meal-Prep Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen
How To Do The Work by Dr. Nicole LePera

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — Mountains and Plains (Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wyoming)

More Than a Body by Lexie Kite
Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski
The Great Sex Rescue by Sheila Wray Gregoire
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
The Second Coming of the Lord by Gerald N. Lund
Without The Mask by Charles Bird
The Little Book of Cottagecore by Emily Kent
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
Good Morning, Monster by Catherine Gildiner

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — New Atlantic (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia)

All We Can Save by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
How To Not Die Alone by Logan Ury
Good Morning, Monster by Catherine Gildiner
The Ultimate Meal-Prep Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen
Get Good With Money by Tiffany the Budgetnista Aliche
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
What Color Is Your Parachute? 2021 by Richard N. Bolles

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont)

All We Can Save by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
The Ultimate Meal-Prep Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen
How To Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy
A Libertarian Walks Into a Bar by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling
Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Ace by Angela Chen
What Color Is Your Parachute? 2021 by Richard N. Bolles
ADHD 2.0 by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — Pacific Northwest (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington)

Polysecure by Jessica Fern
Burn by Herman Pontzer PhD
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
How To Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Mine! by Michael A. Heller
Gardening in Summer-Dry Climates by Nora Harlow
All We Can Save by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
ADHD 2.0 by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.
What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon

Most Popular Adult Nonfiction Titles — Southeast (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia)

Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Under a White Sky by Elizabeth Kolbert
Laundry Love by Patric Richardson
The Ultimate Meal-Prep Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen
Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff
Winning The War In Your Mind by Craig Groeschel
ADHD 2.0 by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.
A World Without Email by Cal Newport
Get Good With Money by Tiffany the Budgetnista Aliche
Intuitive Fasting by Dr. Will Cole

The Most Uniquely Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles (U.S.-Wide)

Note that manga is bundled in with YA, as you’ll see below.

Covet by Tracy Wolff — 8 regions
Heartstopper, Volume 2 by Alice Oseman — 8 regions
Crush by Tracy Wolff — 6 regions
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge — 6 regions
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge — 6 regions
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge — 6 regions
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 15 by Koyoharu Gotouge — 5 regions
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 19 by Koyoharu Gotouge — 5 regions
Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon — 5 regions

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — California

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Throne of Glass eBook Bundle by Sarah J. Maas
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 15 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 18 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Covet by Tracy Wolff
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 14 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 19 by Koyoharu Gotouge

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan)

Throne of Glass eBook Bundle by Sarah J. Maas
Covet by Tracy Wolff
Twisted Ones by Scott Cawthon
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Crush by Tracy Wolff
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by Holly Black
The Lives of Saints by Leigh Bardugo
Namesake by Adrienne Young
Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon
The Obsession by Jesse Q. Sutanto

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — Hawaii

A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer
You Have a Match by Emma Lord
Unravel the Dusk by Elizabeth Lim
Skyhunter by Marie Lu
Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare
Yolk by Mary H. K. Choi
A Pho Love Story by Loan Le
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 15 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Hawk by James Patterson
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 14 by Koyoharu Gotouge

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — Midwest (Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin)

Covet by Tracy Wolff
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 19 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Twisted Ones by Scott Cawthon
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Namesake by Adrienne Young
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 18 by Koyoharu Gotouge
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by Holly Black

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — Mountains and Plains (Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wyoming)

Throne of Glass eBook Bundle by Sarah J Maas
Covet by Tracy Wolff
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 19 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Twisted Ones by Scott Cawthon
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 18 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Crush by Tracy Wolff

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — New Atlantic (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia)

Covet by Tracy Wolff
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 19 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Crush by Tracy Wolff
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Spy x Family, Volume 2 by Tatsuya Endo
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 15 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont)

Covet by Tracy Wolff
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by Holly Black
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Crush by Tracy Wolff
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 15 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Spy x Family, Volume 2 by Tatsuya Endo

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — Pacific Northwest (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington)

Covet by Tracy Wolff
Hearstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 18 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 19 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 20 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 16 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 17 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Crush by Tracy Wolff
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Volume 15 by Koyoharu Gotouge
Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Most Popular Young Adult Fiction Titles — Southeast (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia)

Covet by Tracy Wolff
Crush by Tracy Wolff
Heartstopper: Volume 2 by Alice Oseman
Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Namesake by Adrienne Young
Sweet and Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley
Perfect On Paper by Sophie Gonzales
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
A Dark and Hollow Star by Ashley Shuttleworth
The Captive Kingdom by Jennifer A. Nielsen

The Most Popular In-Demand Books in U.S. Libraries: August–October 2021

Kelly Jensen