Good morning! Here are the November 2025 LibraryReads Top 10 picks as voted on by public library staff across the USA. If your patrons are looking for scrumptious reads, look no further! A printable list is ready for you at libraryreads.org.

Miss Major Griffin-Gracy passed away today according to the House of GG. She was a veteran of the Stonewall rebellion and a lifelong organizer for the safety and dignity of trans people, sex workers, and the incarcerated. She came from the same generation and milieu as Marsha and Sylvia. She was 78.

I don't understand why U.S. reporters so regularly seem to let politicians get away with 'I haven't seen that' about stuff a) they obviously know and b) is directly relevant to their job. Did they sign some kind of agreement never to ask a follow-up question?

Catch up with the current status of all things IMLS–including disappearing money, the court cause that isn't on hold during the federal shut down, and more.

The book is question is my Imperial Island! I am still sad I didn’t have time in the end to do picture inserts, but it just means finding the historical hotties within is a reader-led activity.

The frogs have landed in Chicago!

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched this TikTok since yesterday. Sherman was stressing those ladies out.

In Discworld, cities thrive because they welcome dwarfs, trolls, vampires, and humans alike. Ankh-Morpork works because everyone belongs. Funny how fiction can seem more humane than policy sometimes.

Anyway, it's a horror/thriller about two women who become unlikely friends and then have to get rid of a dead body, and there is a cat and a lot of blood (but! important caveat – it's human blood!) and if you think you might like it, even though Uggi clearly does NOT, you can preorder here!

NEW: I spoke to clergy and faith leaders who've joined protests at the Chicago-area ICE facility.

Three say they've been shot with pepper balls, sometimes while praying.

All say ICE is also violating their religious freedom, and one is arguing it in court. religionnews.com/2025/10/07/i...

I think more people should be aware of how much cool stuff Link does in real life. He’s not just a poster.

Baker & Taylor appears to be shutting down. A post on the r/libraries subreddit from an employee of B&T breaks the news and there appear to be other employees in the comments confirming the situation.

Got a tip recently about how Trump's tariffs are preventing libraries from sharing books, and causing their loaned books to get stuck or lost in other countries: www.404media.co/libraries-ca...

Reminder that if you are interacting with law enforcement in Illinois, this IS a stop and ID state. Also, aside from identifying yourself and asking if you're free to leave, the ONLY thing you should say to law enforcement, state or federal, is:

The sort of people the administration calls 'terrorists' :

"[the 84 year olds] were rushed by federal officers “for no apparent reason.” She said her husband was leaning on his walker and wearing his Vietnam veterans cap as he was pushed to the ground."

The LA Public Library research librarian explaining what is going on with Charli and Taylor is outstanding work

www.instagram.com/reel/DPXZIUa...

Immediately went to go purchase this! Thanks for the rec!

Horror peeps: Excavation of Hob's Barrow and Strangeland are excellent October choices for beautiful pixel adventures down nightmare alley. As always with Wadjet: high-quality voice acting!

Also currently reading ALL OF US MURDERERS by KJ Charles, which is bringing me exactly the romantic but murder-y Gothic vibes I want in October. A whole room filled with spiders, yikes. #ewgc 📚 💙

Currently reading A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF by Megha Majumdar, a suspenseful and moving story set in a near-future Kolkata about both a family frantically searching for their stolen immigration documents and the thief who stole them. Really good so far! #ewgc 📚 💙

People love a good cult story, and PAPER CUT by Rachel Taff is a suspenseful thriller about a woman who's made a living telling the story of how she brought down a cult in her teens...but when a filmmaker asks to make a documentary about the case, the truth may finally be exposed. #ewgc 💙 📚

THE BOTANIST'S ASSISTANT by Peggy Townsend was a fun cozy-ish mystery about a quirky research assistant determined to uncover the truth about a beloved professor's death at her small university. A great one to hand customers looking for something similar to Nita Prose's The Maid series. #ewgc 📚 💙

THIS STORY MIGHT SAVE YOUR LIFE by Tiffany Crum is a fun entry in the "thrillers about podcasters" subgenre. Benny and Joy are long-time friends (and maybe more?) who host a podcast about survival, but when Joy vanishes along with her husband, Benny must race to find her. #ewgc 💙 📚

I'm really looking forward to the Justin C. Key novel. Loved his short story collection! #ewgc