This is the time of year when all the “best of” lists come out. For the best books published in 2021, the most anticipated lists include Goodreads, NPR, USA Today and New York Times. Some of these lists are decided by literary critics and some by peoples’ choice. I like to see if the books I read over the year made the list. But better yet, these lists make for great gift suggestions and “to read” lists for 2022.

At the Library, we are generating our own “best of” lists. The criteria for our lists are the items that were the most checked out in 2021. They weren’t necessarily published in the last year, but they are still very popular with Knox County readers. See if your books are on the list:

Fiction Overall (print)

  1. The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah (601 check outs)
  2. A Time for Mercy by John Grisham (527 check outs)
  3. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (326 check outs)

Mystery

  1. The Sentinel: a Jack Reacher novel by Lee Child and Andrew Child (417 check outs)
  2. The Law of Innocence by Michael Connelly (348 check outs)
  3. Camino Winds by John Grisham (344 check outs)

Romance

  1. A Walk Along the Beach by Debbie Macomber (152 check outs)
  2. It’s Better this Way by Debbie Macomber (132 check outs)
  3. The Lost and Found Bookshop by Susan Wiggs (123 check outs)

Sci-fi / fantasy

  1. Spin by Patricia Cornwell (201 check outs)
  2. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (117 check outs)
  3. Ready player two by Ernest Cline (84 check outs)

General non-fiction

  1. Guinness World Records (203 check outs) 
  2. Till Murder Do Us Part: true-crime thrillers by James Patterson (127 check outs)
  3. Caste: the origins of our discontents by Isabel Wilkerson (120 check outs)

Biography / memoir

  1. A Promised Land by Barack Obama (147 check outs)
  2. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey (147 check outs)
  3. Educated a Memoir by Tara Westover (111 check outs)

Reminder: all Knox County library locations will be closed this Friday, Dec. 24, through Monday, Dec. 27. We will resume regular schedules on Tuesday, Dec. 28.

Mary Pom Claiborne is assistant director for marketing, communications and development for Knox County Public Library. She writes a Wednesday feature for KnoxTNToday.com.