Curious about which books Seattle’s insatiable readers turned to in 2022? Need a little inspiration for that 2023 book list?
The most popular fiction book checked out from The Seattle Public Library from January through November 2022 was “The Sentence,” by Louise Erdrich. It’s a novel about a Minneapolis bookstore haunting and much more set in 2020, a “year of grief, astonishment, isolation, and furious reckoning.” The most checked out e-novel was “The House of Broken Angels,” by renowned Mexican-American author Luis Alberto Urrea, the selection for the Library’s 2022 Seattle Reads program. Seattle’s community of e-audiobook listeners checked out “Braiding Sweetgrass,” read by author Robin Wall Kimmerer, more than any other e-audiobook.
Several books by Northwest authors also ranked high in popularity in 2022, including “Secret Seattle,” by Library staff member Susanna Ryan; “Red Paint,” by Coast Salish author Sasha LaPointe; The Final Case, by David Guterson; and “Grains for every Season,” by Oregon chef Joshua McFadden (with Martha Holmberg).
Here are the other most popular fiction and nonfiction books, e-books and e-audiobooks among Library patrons last year. Please note that these lists were compiled from anonymous checkout data collected from Jan. 1 through Nov. 30, 2022.
THE 10 MOST POPULAR ADULT FICTION PHYSICAL BOOKS
The Sentence, by Louise Erdrich
The Maid, by Nita Prose
Sea of Tranquility, by Emily St. John Mandel
The Final Case, by David Guterson
The Swimmers, by Julie Otsuka
Book Lovers, by Emily Henry
One Italian Summer, by Rebecca Serle
This Time Tomorrow, by Emma Straub
Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt
The Candy House, by Jennifer Egan
THE 10 MOST POPULAR ADULT FICTION E-BOOKS
The House of Broken Angels, by Luis Alberto Urrea
Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr
The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave
Apples Never Fall, by Liane Moriarty
The Lincoln Highway, by Amor Towles
Anxious People, by Fredrik Bachman
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, by Victoria Schwab
The Four Winds, by Kristin Hannah
The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
THE 10 MOST POPULAR ADULT NONFICTION PHYSICAL BOOKS
Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience, by Brené Brown
The Weekday Vegetarians, by Jenny Rosenstrach
From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life, by Arthur C. Brooks
Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention–and How to Think Deeply Again, by Johann Hari
Happy-Go-Lucky, by David Sedaris
Secret Seattle: An Illustrated Guide to the City’s Offbeat and Overlooked History, by Susanna Ryan
Korean American: Food that Tastes Like Home, by Eric Kim
Crying in H Mart: a Memoir, by Michelle Zauner
Grains for every Season: Rethinking our Way with Grains, by Joshua McFadden, with Martha Holmberg
Red Paint: The Ancestral Autobiography of a Coast Salish Punk, by Sasha LaPointe
THE 10 MOST POPULAR ADULT NONFICTION E- BOOKS
Crying in H Mart: a Memoir, by Michelle Zauner
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed, by Lori Gottlieb
Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience, by Brené Brown
Educated: A Memoir, by Tara Westover
Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, by Trevor Noah
Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, by James Clear
I’m Glad My Mom Died, by Jeanette McCurdy
Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law, by Mary Roach
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, by Bessell A. Van Der Kolk
The Premonition: A Pandemic Story, by Michael Lewis
THE MOST POPULAR E-AUDIOBOOKS
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer (read by the author)
101 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think, by Brianna Wiest (read by Abby Craden)
Dune: Dune Series, Book 1, by Frank Herbert (read by Scott Brick)
Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens (read by Cassandra Campbell)
Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr (read by Marin Ireland and Simon Jones)
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life, by Mark Manson (read by Roger Wayne)
The Last Thing He Told Me, by Laura Dave (read by Rebecca Lowen)
The Guest List, by Lucy Foley (read by Jot Davies and others)
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, by James Clear (read by the author)
Anxious People, by Fredrik Bachman (read by Marin Ireland)
MORE INFORMATION
Statistical summaries of the Library’s collections and circulation for the full year will be posted in the 2022 Impact Report in early 2023 at spl.org/impact.
Contact the Library’s Ask Us service by phone at 206-386-4636 or by email or chat at www.spl.org/Ask. Staff are ready to answer questions and direct people to helpful resources and information.