What a Librarian Reads in a Year

By Colleen Hybl

Sometimes, librarians can seem like magicians when we seeming to pull recommendations from thin air that perfectly match your interests. Except it is not exactly magic; it is the result of reading books that interest us and, hopefully, will interest you. Even before I was a librarian, I read practically everything I could, and now, as a librarian, I am reading even more! To give you a glimpse of what a librarian might read in a year, I have put together three book lists for your reading pleasure. 

While Virginia’s restrictions for COVID-19 caused disruptions to my reading habits, they gave me more opportunities to explore eBooks. Adult eBooks I Read During the 2020 Pandemic provides a snapshot of what I consumed and includes the first two books of a mystery series.





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This year, I also went heavy on the graphic novels and manga, especially those drawn from the children’s and young adult collections. There were so many good ones that told intriguing stories or covered interesting topics. While I would have loved to give you a complete list of all the graphic novels and manga I read, it would have been too long! So, I focused on the one age group to create My Young Adult Graphic Novels/Manga for 2020:





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To do a better job recommending children’s books, I made an effort this past year to read more of them. With My 2020 Children's Reads, I tried to show you the breadth of what I read, which includes some graphic novels.





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I hope you enjoy reading books from these lists so that perhaps you, too, can have the knowledge of a librarian!