These were the 10 most borrowed books from the Windsor Public Library in 2025
CBC
The Windsor Public Library’s most-borrowed books of 2025 reflect the growing popularity of celebrity book clubs and a growing interest in “romantacy,” according to one public service librarian there.
People are overwhelmed by the assortment of available literature and are turning to celebrities to help them choose what to read, Katie Vlanich said.
Book clubs run by Reese Witherspoon and Jenna Bush Hager are especially popular, she said.
“Reese's Book Club is like the new Oprah's Book Club,” Vlanich said.
“It's incredible. … If she gives something her seal of approval, it is going to be crazy popular.”
Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall was one of Witherspoon’s picks this year, Vlanich said, while The Wedding People by Alison Espach was chosen by Bush Hager.
The presence of Onyx Storm in the top 10 reflects a growing interest in “romantacy,” Vlanich said, marking a transition from the growth in the popularity of contemporary romance novels that has emerged over the past several years into a fascination with romance novels set in magical settings.
Vlanich was especially pleased to see One Golden Summer by Canadian author Carley Fortune in the top 10, she said, adding that the author’s work is “so incredibly Canadian.”
“There was one [book] she wrote where it took place in Prince Edward Island, and I wanted to go to Prince Edward Island immediately after,” she said.
“The way that she writes and kind of celebrates Canada in her writing is incredible.”
This year’s popular children’s books reflect a soaring interest in graphic novels, Vlanich said.
“Kids come in looking for Dog Man,” she said.
"They say, ‘Do you have Dog Man?’ And I go, ‘In the system? Yes. On the shelf? Probably not.”
But it’s not just Dog Man they want, Vlanich said.
This First Person article is the experience of Kristine Thoreson, who lives in Calgary. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ.
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