New Year Book Display Ideas

 

I have never liked "New Year, New You" book displays. Self improvement does not need to have an implicit or explicit aura of self-hatred. Save the diet books and exercise videos for another day. 

Instead, focus on showing patrons how they can "____ something new." They can learn something new, eat something new, make something new! It's a way to showcase some of your non-fiction collection that needs more exposure as well as helping them find something new to focus on. I have some pictures here that showcase a few of the displays I have done in the past. 

Think broadly and involve staff from all over your library. Don't forget to include materials from your audiobook and DVD collections. You can even include images and handouts from your ebook collections or databases. 

This idea would also work for youth services book displays. There is a gap in-between the holidays and the start of school. You could encourage some learning and crafting from kids who otherwise might be getting a little stir crazy. 
It would also serve patrons who don't celebrate those particular winter holidays. 

More ideas can be found in this list of New Year's Resolutions. Steal the heading of the list and customize the titles to fit what you have in your collection. Check your inbox for ideas from publishers this year. 

NPR's article has a great book display idea. Just switch it up a bit - "Find Joy with a New Hobby." Then shift to other ways that your patrons could find joy. This is another way to frame the same idea. 

If you want to showcase some fiction, encourage your patrons to "Meet Someone New" by setting up a display with under loved series fiction. Another angle of this is to search out that translated fiction that might not get enough attention. Don't forget to double check your display for diverse characters and authors. 

Finally, I often have included a "Visit Somewhere New" display with travel and travel narratives. Since we don't know when that will happen again, add fiction with a focus on place to those travel narratives. One option is Akashic Press' Noir Series. 

Other options include: 

Ten Books Where the Setting is a Character/Crime Reads

9 Young Adult Books Where the Settings Are Characters/Bustle 

Top 10 World Building Fantasy Novels/Chicago Public Library 

8 Speculative Fiction Authors Whose Books Are a Lesson in Worldbuilding/Barnes and Noble

What are you going to do for your January book displays?