B & N - Biggest Books Out Now Promo As a Book Display Idea

 This week, Barnes & Noble sent out an email about the biggest new releases. 

"Our biggest new releases have landed. With sweeping history, mind-bending thrillers and even a new Dog Man adventure, here are the best new books to keep on your radar."

While many of these titles have wait lists and need no help from us, you can take a look at the titles included and put up  books that need some more attention. Use a sign that says "While You Wait for ______________" and put up some similar books that could use attention. Add information about how to put books on hold. 

Because we spend so much time deep in libraries, it's easy to forget that not everyone knows all of the services we offer. Especially with the supply issues in wake of Baker and Taylor's closing, patrons need to know both about how your holds list works in addition to knowing what they could read while they wait. 

Book displays are mostly thought about as far as promoting backlist titles but your library could have new adult and youth titles that haven't found their reader yet. Setting up a focus display to promote them can help with that.  Add a sign that says "These Just In..." and give them a boost!

Use links to your eBook collections as well. Pay per use services, available through several eBook services including Hoopla and CloudLibrary, can be leveraged. It could be that your patrons are unaware that they can read/listen to popular titles through your eBook services. I know that they are a heavy expense for libraries but they can fill the gap while we all sort out physical book purchases and processing. 

Book News to Book Display - 2025 Booker Prize Winner

This year's Booker Prize winner is David Szalay's Flesh. There is information about the book, including a reading club guide, on the publisher's website. Clearly, it's literary fiction but book displays should rotate out to cover all aspects of your collection. There are ways you can leverage this news to market your collection both online and in your building. 

David Szalay was interviewed on the Booker Prize website. Link to that on your social media if you decide to double up the display by using it both online and in your building. 

The Goodreads page has a list of books that people who enjoyed Flesh also enjoyed. While these aren't as reliable as recommendations by a librarian, they can certainly be used for a display. There is also a list of authors that readers have also enjoyed. 

If your library subscribes to NoveList, you can use that to find readalikes by title or author as well. The appeal factors listed there can also help you find titles in your collection. Check your collection and use what you have. Putting literary fiction titles that need some love faced out and in the spotlight will help circulate them. 

This NPR article has more information about the award, who else was nominated, and who the judges were. All of that information can be used to see what is in your collection and you can create a display. Use their books that you have in your collection and add a simple sign that has information about the Booker Prize. Pull out previous long list, short list, and winners to complete the display and to fill it in as needed. 

Truthfully, you can always put up a sign about the awards with a list of the long list, short list, and winner. Add a QR code to any titles you have in your eBook collection. Then fill in the display with literary fiction titles that need some attention. It doesn't need to be a complicated research project. If you want to be more specific, you can read a plot summary and some reviews to find more exact matches but it's not necessary. The face outs will do the work for you. 

November Ideas

 It is November and time to transition book displays for the new month. While Thanksgiving is certainly one of the big days of the month, there are plenty of other opportunities to promote your collection in November. With Veterans Day being November 11, it would be a good time to create an interactive display with not only titles related to veterans but also information about library and other local resources for veterans facing issues. You can bring in a partner organization and put a cart of books in the room for patrons to browse. With Pearl Harbor Day on December 7, change the sign and stretch this display out for a little bit longer. 

Every month is dedicated to at least one health issue, disease, or condition. It's not realistic to try to promote all of them with displays, one option is to combine them into one with a sign recognizing them. Add a variety of health books and include bookmarks or flyers with information about local health resources. This would also make for a wonderful social media post promoting your health related resources. November is well known for "No Shave November" which promotes cancer awareness. An easy display, repeatable in any part of your library, is to create a display of random titles with faces on the cover and add a removable moustache to each book. This can be easily filled by any library worker. Spare moustaches and tape can be stored in the workroom. 

Because there are several bear-related holidays in November, one display can be set up with different signs or even all three mentioned on one sign. Any book about bears, with bears in the title, or bears on the cover are fair game. Obviously, this display can be mirrored in your children's area. 

Polar Bear Week (Nov. 2 to Nov. 8)
National American Teddy Bear Day - November 14
Have a Party with Your Bear Day - November 16

D.B. Cooper Day is November 24, the anniversary of the day the mysterious hijacker disappeared with $200,000 in 1971. Set up a display about mysteries, conspiracy theories, and unsolved crimes. Use fiction, non-fiction, and movies. Include any heist books and movies as well. 

Aviation History Month in in November which can create a variety of display ideas related to airplanes. The simplest idea is just books with planes on the cover. There should be history, transportation, and travel books in your non-fiction collection as well as a variety of fiction titles in which flight plays a part. Ask your patrons where they would like to fly to and post the answers either online or on a display in your library. 

Native American Heritage Month is all month. Remember to include fiction, arts, poetry, and cultural books in your displays. One comprehensive display will be easier to maintain than several specific displays. Here are some lists to get you started: 

Recent Works by Indigenous Authors - New York Public Library 
Native American Books for Native American Heritage Month - Powell's Books
Native American Heritage Month - Book Club Reads - Cincinnati Public Library 
Fiction and Non-Fiction Reads for Native American Heritage Month - Goodreads

World Vegan Month is in November. I include a no-turkey display every year and fill it with vegetarian and vegan cookbooks. This display can last all month and is easily filled. I mention creating easily filled displays because there are times when you need those because of staffing or other priorities. November and December are always filled with plenty of staff vacations. Sometimes we need to select the easiest options. 

Available Presentations

 I am able to create a custom presentation to meet anyone's needs but here are the 1 hour (with questions) presentations that I have show to at least one audience 

*Book Display Basics for Every Library Worker

*Book Displays That Do More - Interactive Book Displays with Passive Programming 

*Engaging Patrons With Better Book Displays

*Inclusive Readers Advisory for Any Library Worker

*An Introduction to Passive Readers Advisory

*Love Is In the Air : Marketing Your Romance Collection Using Passive Readers Advisor

*Marketing Your Collection, Services, and Programs with Better Book Displays

*Not Just In October: Marketing Your Horror and Dark Literature Collection with Passive Readers Advisory

* Using Book Displays and More to Market Your Winter Holiday Collection 

In addition to these, I have trained librarian on adult fiction collection development.

I am working on presentations on other genres, including science fiction and fantasy, crime fiction, and cozy fiction. 

Please reach out if you are interested in having me train your staff in passive readers advisory techniques. 

How to Navigate Book Displays When You Have To Be Careful

Some library workers must be careful when creating book displays especially around certain political issues as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion. While I always advocate for sharing, celebrating, and recommending books from diverse author and including as many experiences as possible in the books you put a spotlight on, some libraries exist in an environment where activists, local politicians, or patrons are invested in policing book displays and library collections. What is a library worker to do when they want to bring attention to books by diverse authors or to highlight perspectives that are out of whatever the mainstream is where their library is located? This is a question I get constantly when I present to libraries. It's a real and legitimate concern. 

My suggestion is to focus on the books. With budget and funding issues, libraries are doing more with fewer resources, including employees. Fighting about the verbage on a sign is not always the best use of anyone's time. For example, a display during Thanksgiving highlighting the Native American experience is completely appropriate. Language on a sign which is intentionally provocative and will draw attention from those who have already made trouble for your library or are poised to do so will create a situation which will draw time, energy, and attention from all the good work that a library does. More importantly, it will draw attention away from the books that you are trying to spotlight. 

I would love to tell everyone to be willing to take on any battle and fight for whichever signage or message that they wish. With the need for most people to maintain employment as well as the likely outcome, I just don't think that is realistic. What would work better is to work books by diverse authors into every display. In the Thanksgiving example above, put books about the Native American experience into any display about Thanksgiving history. Include books by Native American authors in any display of Thanksgiving themed fiction. Set up a display to honor Native American History month, even if you add a sign that says "Great Reads for November."

Ultimately, readers will learn more about the Native American experience by reading books by authors like Stephen Graham Jones than they will from any signage we could put up. Focus on getting books like his in the hands of as many readers as possible. 

Recent Webinars - Using Book Displays and More to Market Your Winter Holiday Collection

I've posted the slides above from my recent PCI Webinars presentation Using Book Displays and More to Market Your Winter Holiday Collection. 

In this presentation I run through ideas for passive readers advisory from Thanksgiving up through Kwanzaa and Yule. Remember to always include some fall/autumn and winter/snow themed displays which can both float before and after a holiday and will be more inclusive to those who don't celebrate holidays at this time. 

Unshelve Your Collection - Body Horror with Book Riot & TOGETHER

 Emily Martin of Book Riot has an article on their site with suggestions for other titles to read for those excited about Together, a body horror film out in theaters. Her list includes three strong titles, including one by Eric LaRocca who is definitely an author your library should have on its shelves.

Body horror is a subgenre which focuses on the mutilation, transformation, mutation, or degradation of the human body. It's often graphic and disturbing with intense descriptions which will unsettle readers.    

Lists like these are great to use as a start for a book display. You can take the theme and then see what books your library owns that might fit. You don't need to limit yourself to the titles on any one list or follow the theme exactly. The object is to help books in your collection find their readers. 

RA for All Horror - New Book Bonus Annotations: Chapter 13: Body Horror

Penguin Random House - Bone-Chilling Body Horror Books 
Goodreads - Body Horror Books
Book Riot - 9 Body Horror Novels by Women about Losing Control
The Guardian - Five of the best body horror novels
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh- Genre Guide – Body Horror