Bonnie Garmus, Michelle Zauner, and Dav Pilkey were among the authors whose books were most popular with Washington, D.C., library patrons this year.
The DC Public Library released its lists of the most borrowed books of 2023. In adult fiction, Garmus’ Lessons in Chemistry, which was recently adapted into a miniseries for Apple TV+, took the No. 1 spot, followed by Barbara Kingsolver’s Pulitzer Prize–winning Demon Copperhead, which was a pick for Oprah Winfrey’s book club.
Emily Henry’s Happy Place was at No. 3; the author also appeared at No. 8 on the list for Book Lovers. The top five was rounded out with Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and Jenny Jackson’s Pineapple Street.
In adult nonfiction, memoirs proved exceptionally popular with Washington readers. Zauner topped the list with Crying in H Mart, followed by Prince Harry’s Spare. Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died was at No. 3, with Hua Hsu’s Pulitzer Prize–winning Stay True at No. 4 and Michelle Obama’s The Light We Carry at No. 5.
Pilkey was far and away the most popular youth fiction author in the nation’s capital—nine of the 10 most borrowed books in that category were written by him, with Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea taking the No. 1 spot. The sole non-Pilkey book on the list was How Fast Is the Flash? by Victoria Armstrong.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
