Jan 20, 20224 min read

Caseyville Library's Most Read 2021

Discover Caseyville Public Library District's Most Read Books of 2021 and find your next book to check out, request from the library, or borrow from your favorite library eBook app!

Adult Fiction

1. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Identical twin sisters growing up together in a black community run away at age sixteen. Years later one twin finds herself back in her hometown with her daughter and the other marries a white man and passes for white with her own daughter. Eventually, the two daughters meet and change the dynamics of the family.

2. The Night Circus by Erin Morenstern

A circus pops up in the night and only operates after twilight. In this circus two master magicians volunteer their star pupils who have been training since their youth to be pit against each other. The rules of the magical battles are unclear, but soon prove they could be just as dangerous as the contestants soon falling in love with each other.

3. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michelle Richardson

A young woman in Appalachian Kentucky lives as the last woman with the visible blue skin of the rare Blue People ancestry. She joins the Pack Horse Library Project and becomes a librarian toting books up the mountains to bring education and escape to those living through depression-era Appalachia.

4. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman

Ove is the neighbor everyone avoids because of his strict routines and short temper, but a new family moves in next door and accidentally flattens his mailbox with their U-Haul. This new couple and their energetic two kids strike up an unexpected friendship with Ove that alters how the neighborhood thinks of him.

5. My Sister's Grave by Robert Dugoni

Tracy's sister disappeared 20 years ago. Now that her remains are discovered in Northern Cascade Mountains of Washington State, Tracy sets out for justice when she suspects the person behind bars is not the true killer. Her sister's murderer could still be out there, and Tracy will find them.

Adult Non-Fiction

1. The Strength Training Anatomy Workout by Frederic Delavier

This exercise guide has full color illustrations of 200 exercises and 50 workouts to do from home to improve muscular-skeletal strength.

2. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel Yan Der Kole, M.D.

Learn how trauma and stress can change the wiring in our brains, specifically in the areas of pleasure, engagement, control, and trust. These areas can be reactivated through mindfulness techniques.

3. The Empath's Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People by Judith Orloff, M.D.

This book discusses how to use empathy in constructive ways rather than find ourselves depleted by feeling too much by taking on the weight of others' emotions.

4. The Apple Cider Vinegar Cure: Essential Recipes & Remedies to Heal Your Body Inside Out by Madeline Given

Discover the history and science of using apple cider vinegar and try out this book's 130 recipes to assist the immune system, probiotic regulation, and health.

5. The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer

Find peace in the present through meditation and mindfulness and develop the ability to let go of habitual thoughts and emotions.

Young Adult

1. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

In a near-future New York City, a service alerts people when they are going to die. Two teens receive the alert and look to the Last Friend app to find someone also facing their last day. The book's main characters are LGBTQ+ and Latinx providing an excellent own-voices representation.

2. The ABC's of LGBT+ by Ash Hardell

Familiarize yourself with LGBTQ+ terminology with this helpful guide that features infographics, pictures, and personal anecdotes. This book is wonderful for allies and LGBTQ+ community members alike.

3. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

Revisit the dystopian world of The Hunger Games series by following Coriolanus Snow's mentorship over a 12 year old from district 12 as she competes in the tenth annual Hunger Games. As his mentee struggles her way through the games and faces certain death, Snow starts to care about her, but will he risk his life and honor to keep her safe?

4. Pirates!: The True and Remarkable Adventures of Minerva Sharpe and Nancy Kington, Female Pirates by Celia Rees

After Nancy's father dies on a merchant ship, she is sent to be wed to a plantation owner in Jamaica. Here Nancy befriends Minerva an enslaved girl around her age working in the house. To escape their fates, they run away together to become pirates to face the world as free as they can be.

5. Anxiety Relief for Teens: Essential CBT Skills and Mindfulness Practices to Overcome Anxiety and Stress by Reine Galanti, PhD

Learning practices, techniques, and activities to increase mindfulness and emotional regulation can help with all aspects of a person's life. Find quizzes and self-assessments for a better understanding of your own brain and its triggers and what types of grounding techniques to try out to keep yourself in the present and decrease anxiety.