Most bibliophiles have long TBR (to-be-read) lists. Stacks of books on the bedside table and over-full bookshelves. And yet, we still often ask the age-old question: what should I read next?
At the library, we call the service that answers this question “readers advisory.” Our staff is ready to help you find your next read. Most of the library staff are prolific readers and can make recommendations from our personal reading history, but we are also knowledge in searching the KanShare catalog and utilizes other resources to help patrons find the right book to fit their reading preferences.
One of those resources in called NoveList Plus, and patrons can access it through our website and use it on their own!
On NoveList, patrons can browse curated lists of trending titles, popular genres, and award winners. A favorite feature is the read-alike search for both individual titles and series. If you liked Hunger Games, NoveList will give you a list of other dystopian series you might enjoy.
If you find a book you are interested in, read reviews from Library Journal and click the “Check the Library Catalog” link to put the book on hold with your library card.
NoveList Plus will receive an update on June 16th with even more features and ways to search for titles. Check out NoveList Plus today and find your next read!
Welcome to our monthly series, where we explore the music tastes of our staff.
I love it because the lyrics feel so mythological and mermaid-like while the beat makes you want to dance. It’s an uplifting song and one that’s great to jam out to in the car.
~Alyssa
His voice is smooth like butter.
~Dawn S.
I enjoy this song because it is light hearted, lifting my spirits and grounding me to the present moment. It’s like a mini vacation for my mind.
~Tabbitha
It’s been final paper, after final paper, after final paper for me recently so I have been listening to a lot of classical music while I study. My favorite at the moment is Camille Saint-Saens, “Le Carnaval des animaux” in particular I love The Swan but all 14 movements are beautiful.
~Maycie
Maycie & I listen to this almost every Saturday. Going through the motions of the album is moving.
~Megan
It’s always been my favorite, it takes you back to the good old days, when life was so good.
~Kristy H.
I had to pick one off of Ghost’s new album. I have been a fan for years. I like the sound of this whole album, it feels nostalgic and new all at the same time. As always with Ghost, the lyrics say more than you get with just one listen.
~Shane
Stevie Nicks just has a way of singing directly to the soul. Her passion in the live version is so intense and captivating, it’s a hard song to not enjoy.
Welcome to Bookworm Buffet! Get ready to feast on three literary delights, each served up in a different format: physical, digital ebook, and audiobook.
Summary: When you’ve been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?
As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes. Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves. When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.
Summary: Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself. Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It’s how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus, with every stroke. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes. So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water…
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Dark Academia, Young Adult Read for:Wine & YA Book Club
Summary: Sade Hussein is starting her third year of high school, this time at the prestigious Alfred Nobel Academy boarding school. After being home-schooled all her life and feeling like a magnet for misfortune, she’s not sure what will happen. What she doesn’t expect though is for her roommate Elizabeth to disappear after Sade’s first night. Or for people to think she had something to do with it. With rumors swirling around her, Sade catches the attention of the most popular girls in school – collectively known as the ‘Unholy Trinity’ – and they bring her into their fold. Between learning more about them – especially Persephone, who Sade finds herself drawn to – playing catch-up in class, and trying to figure out what happened to Elizabeth, Sade has a lot on her plate. It doesn’t help that she’s already dealing with grief from the many tragedies in her family.
And then a student is found dead..
Narrated by: Natalie Simpson Publication: March 14, 2024
The lineup of what the DPL staff have been up to lately.
Megan’s Lineup
Books: The Friend Zone series by Abby Jimenez
I started this series on a whim needing something to listen to. I was instantly hooked. I am a big audiobook listener because life is crazy and I need to multitask! What I like about these books are the wit and humor, while underlying a serious topic that the character is going through. The narration is *chef’s kiss*. I am now going down a rabbit hole of reading/listening to every book this author has written, and I’m not one bit sorry about it.
For the longest time I would buy a plant, and it would be dead within a week. A few years back I made it my goal to learn how to care for them. I started off with a Pothos and Snake plant, both easy plants for beginners. And guess what?! THEY ARE STILL ALIVE! Since then I have accumulated more and now am a proud plant mama of 21! I am most proud of the one pictured, String of Tutles. I got it from Renata’s Plant Bus as a scrap she had. She told me to throw it on some dirt, and it would grow, and it has!
Games: Black Fleet
My husband & I have regular game nights at our best friends house, and have been introduced to many different board games. My current favorite is Black Fleet. It’s a pretty easy game that consists of delivering your merchant ship with goods and trying to get to another port without pirates stealing those goods. Even though the object isn’t to go after each other’s ships per se you can’t help the evil mwahahaha laugh or jokes that comes out when it happens. It makes us laugh every time we play it.
Pets: Tuna & Calvin
I have two pets, a corgi named Tuna, and a cat named Calvin. I’ve had Tuna since he was a wee little pupper, and he’s been my bestest boy for almost 13 years now. I got Calvin in September 2024 from the Wichita Animal Action League. We needed a chill adult cat who would get along with Tuna, and we definitely hit the jackpot with him.
Music: Lady Gaga
I have been a Gaga fan since the beginning, I love how she takes her time with albums and really makes them different and her own. Her newest album “Mayhem” is no exception! I was talking to some friends about it, and it was mentioned that it reminds them of her bold and weird side, which I absolutely love. My current favorite song from Mayhem is “The Beast”. Go take a listen or check out Mayhem here!
Welcome to our monthly series, where we explore the music tastes of our staff.
A new favorite album of mine is “The Stranger” by Billy Joel. It’s so beautiful and relaxing and honestly perfect!
~Maycie
I love the ocean, and this song reminds me of the soothing waves.
~Alyssa
I like this song because it has funky, melodic bass music and is very unique.
~Tabbitha
Another weird song from a weird band that I can’t get enough of. Vibing with the love them for Valentine’s Day. The music video is especially odd, I warned you.
~Shane
It has a somber and ghostly quality to it that just hits the right way.
~Justin
Just makes me want to dance no matter where I’m at or what I’m doing.
The lineup of what the DPL staff have been up to lately.
Hayden’s Lineup
TV Show: Friends
Last month I watched all 10 seasons of Friends. After it being recommended to me for years, I finally decided to watch it. The earliest seasons were my favorite, but I enjoyed having the show playing in the background while completing schoolwork.
Availabe to check out hereor it is currently streaming on Max.
Pet: Harley
Harley is my two-year-old cat. We found him when he was very little stuck under our grandfather’s truck, and we took him in. He loves sleeping in front of the heater and playing with dog food on the tile floor. During the summer, he will chase wasps and other bugs that get into our house. Harley is one of my first pets and I absolutely adore him.
Hobby: Board Games
One of my all-time favorite hobbies is playing many different board games. Currently my favorite game is Settlers of Catan. While playing we all get pretty competitive, but I find that has made the games much more fun. For many games, we have come up with house rules after playing for a while and that has been making each game feel fresh and new.
School: Accounting
I have been studying accounting for a few years now. I started taking classes for accounting in high school here in Derby. I liked doing accounting and math and I was pretty good at it, so I decided to start studying accounting in college.
Books:Caraval Trilogy by Stephanie Garber
I recently reread the Caraval series. I first read the books in high school, and I really loved the world that Garber built. The books are a little different than what I normally read, but I really enjoyed the magic and mystery throughout the whole of the trilogy. You can check out Caraval and other Stephanie Garber novels here on Libby!
Welcome to Bookworm Buffet! Get ready to feast on three literary delights, each served up in a different format: physical, digital ebook, and audiobook.
March’s Spread –
Physical: Love & Friendship by Jane Austen
Genre: Satire, British Literature, Humor
Summary: From the much-loved Jane Austen comes the satirical short novel, Love and Friendship. Written as a series of letters, Love and Friendship is a satire of the upper-class 18th century society that Austen loved to parody.
Isabel’s daughter, Marianne, is naive, flighty and unaware of the first thing about love. Through apprising letters, her mother’s friend, Laura, warns her of the dangers of sensibility and romance. But when Laura receives an unexpected proposal, it seems as though love might have its advantages after all. That is until the family learn about their hasty marriage and each member begins to reject Laura.
The plot is an amusing combination of unlikely coincidences, dramatic fainting fits and confusing twists and turns. Complete with the young writer’s original spelling quirks, this short novel demonstrates Austen’s natural talent and biting wit. Publication: 1790
Summary: It’s a thin line between love and love-hating.
Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can. Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise!
But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two. Publication: May 20, 2025
Summary: Practical, unassuming Jane Shoringfield has done the calculations, and decided that the most secure path forward is this: a husband, in a marriage of convenience, who will allow her to remain independent and occupied with meaningful work. Her first choice, the dashing but reclusive doctor Augustine Lawrence, agrees to her proposal with only one condition: that she must never visit Lindridge Hall, his crumbling family manor outside of town. Yet on their wedding night, an accident strands her at his door in a pitch-black rainstorm, and she finds him changed. Gone is the bold, courageous surgeon, and in his place is a terrified, paranoid man—one who cannot tell reality from nightmare, and fears Jane is an apparition, come to haunt him. By morning, Augustine is himself again, but Jane knows something is deeply wrong at Lindridge Hall, and with the man she has so hastily bound her safety to. Set in a dark-mirror version of post-war England, Starling crafts a new kind of gothic horror from the bones of the beloved canon. This Crimson Peak-inspired story assembles, then upends, every expectation set in place by Shirley Jackson and Rebecca, and will leave readers shaken, desperate to begin again as soon as they are finished.
Narrated by: Mandy Weston Publication: October 5, 2021
The lineup of what the DPL staff have been up to lately.
Jessie’s Lineup
TV Show: Young Sheldon
Last year I watched all twelve seasons of ‘The Big Bang Theory’. I normally don’t like shows or movies that pre-date the original, but I gave ‘Young Sheldon’ a chance and it became my favorite. I recently rewatched it with my husband so we could watch the final season together. My favorite character to see grow throughout the series is Missy – she constantly had me laughing.
Availabe to check out hereor it is currently streaming on Netflix.
Hobby: Fishing
Some of my earliest and greatest childhood memories are fishing trips I took with my dad and uncle. Summer 2023 I started fishing again after a decade hiatus. I have been looking forward to filling my spring and summer with fishing trips with my husband and our friends to Kansas State Parks and maybe a few in bordering states. While I grew up primarily fishing for catfish, I have found that I enjoy bass fishing more. While it’s more about having fun and getting outdoors, my husband and I have made fishing into a small (read: maybe not small, because it’s all we’ll talk about when we’re in the height of our fishing season) competition on who will catch the most by the end of the summer.
Books:Wilderness Ridge Series
I found on Libby, by accident, the Wilderness Ridge series. There are six standalone books in the series written by two different authors. I first read “Pheasant Hunting Firsts” because my first hunting experiences with my uncles were during pheasant season. What I really enjoy most about these middle grade books are the representations of female outdoorsmen. Other than seeing a few women in my family fishing while growing up, I hadn’t seen other women outside of social media who hunted and fished. I think that having this representation in middle grade books is invaluable, because the outdoors is for everyone!
You can check out Pheasant Hunting Firsts here on Libby!
Restaurant: Old Chicago
For some reason Old Chicago has become my comfort food spot if we’re treating ourselves and going out to lunch or dinner. I love the atmosphere and the games you can watch from your table, especially if it’s a Texas A&M University game! If we’re at Old Chicago, we have to have appetizers – our go to is the Sicilian Pepperoni Rolls. Pepperoni and melty mozzarella, YUM. I’ve tried several items on the menu at Old Chicago, but my all-time favorite item is thin crust pizza called The Farmer’s Daughter. Fresh mozzarella, sundried tomatoes, pesto sauce and topped with fresh arugula & a balsamic drizzle. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
Music: Cody Johnson – Leather Deluxe Edition
There’s nothing more that I love than live music. I’ve seen Cody Johnson in concert three times and each time it’s better than the last. When “Leather” was released in November 2023 it quickly became my favorite album to put on repeat. Typically, I don’t like extended or deluxe editions of music albums because there’s only a few additional songs added. The deluxe edition of “Leather” came with an additional thirteen tracks added – doubled the original track list!
Welcome to Bookworm Buffet! Get ready to feast on three literary delights, each served up in a different format: physical, digital ebook, and audiobook.
Summary: Seventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school’s podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses her idea—she’s left confused and betrayed. Determined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, almost. By chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen’s spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen’s cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can’t let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge? Publication: December 31, 2024
Summary: Last week, Nina Hunnicutt was a professor about to move into a gorgeous new apartment with her long-term boyfriend. Now, she’s single, unemployed, and living with her parents. Even more surprising is the fact that Quentin Bell, her childhood neighbor (and okay, fine, crush), is also back in town—and wants to resume the treasure hunt that ended their friendship almost two decades ago. As they resume their hunt, Nina and Quentin begin to rediscover all the things they once loved best about each other. But unlike the treasure, the secrets that left them empty-handed the first time refuse to stay buried. If there’s any hope of finding what they’re looking for—and for a future together—Nina and Quentin will have to be brave enough to excavate their past as well. Publication: June 24, 2025
Summary: Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland. But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more
Narrated by: Fran Burgoyne Publication: January 2, 2024
Welcome to our new monthly series, where we explore the music tastes of our staff.
A song I’m currently jamming out to a lot is “Steal the Show” by Lauv from the Elemental Soundtrack.
–Alyssa
I am a big music person typically and I have A LOT of favorites. After seeing them in concert earlier this year my current favorite song would be “Down Below” by Creeper.
-Shane
My current bop is Diva by Beyonce. I’m also always listening to “All Things End” by Hozier – it’s such a beautiful song!
–Maycie
I’ve been listening to Post Malone’s F-1 Trillion album!
-Jessie
I’m currently enjoying the new “Wicked” soundtrack.
-Shelia
Everything (acoustic version) by Stereo Fuse. I like the acoustic version because it gets rid of the unnecessary stuff in the background.
–Justin
Before Christmas music became the go to in December, I consistently would have Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour playlist on Amazon playing.
–Ashley
I’ve been listening to Tamino, Hozier and “Lonely Boy” by The Black Keys. –Trinity
I came across MUNA as I was listening to YouTube music on shuffle, and I liked the vibe.
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