Your Next Good Read
Let our librarians help you find your next favorite book. Fill out and submit this form for customized recommendations.
On the Shelf RSS
- Banned Books Week, September 26 – October 2, 2021
Humans have always valued books and the stories and knowledge they embody. The high regard we have for them is rooted in the distant past when they were rare, expensive,
- Latinx Authors and Hispanic Heritage Month
We are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15-October 15 here in Pasadena and at PPL! We have lots going on, so check out our brochure full of happenings or
- Anthony Bourdain June 25, 1956 – June 8, 2018
Today is June 25. It would have been Anthony Bourdain’s 65th birthday. We lost the celebrity chef, author and documentarian in 2018, just over 3 years ago. Bourdain was a
- Summer Solstice and Big Histories
Happy Summer! The Summer Solstice officially began, by NASA’s most scientific and accurate calculations, at 8:32 pm PDT on June 20 (Sunday night). This marks the longest day of the
- The love of reading
I ran into a former colleague of mine at a store not too long ago. We exchanged the usual pleasantries and asked each other what the other was reading. I
- Shakespeare’s contemporaries
April is Poetry Month, and specifically on the 23rd of this month is Shakespeare Day when we celebrate the life and works of the Bard whose poetry and plays have
- The Vanishing Half
We celebrated our final “Monday Lit” for Black History Month on February 22nd with a read-aloud from bestseller The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett. We shared some other books that
- Information, Entertainment: A Reading List for the Week of January 4, 2021
We’ve had a challenging week with Wednesday’s turmoil in Washington, DC. You may be the kind of person who is glued to your favorite news source, bleary-eyed and breathless with
- Hey, we got oranges in the dead of winter!
It was sometime in 1889 during a meeting of the Valley Hunt Club that a distinguished professor by the name of Dr. Charles F. Holder shared an idea he had
- Native American Heritage Month- Books By and About Native Americans
We are celebrating National Native American Heritage Month in November. Please check out our November Newsletter (page 40 or events calendar for our programs for all ages. Following are
Select Reads
Explore lists of new library books grouped by genre. You can also sign up to receive these lists in your email each month.
Search the Catalog
See if the library has the items you’re looking for by searching in our online catalog.
If it doesn’t look like we have what you’re looking for, try filling out a Suggestion for Purchase form to see if the library might purchase a copy.
Additional Resources
Book Groups
Learn more about the book groups offered through the Pasadena Public Library system. Find meeting times and contact information. Have your own book group? Learn about the Book Group Kits that the library has available for check out.
One City, One Story
Learn more about Pasadena Public Library’s annual shared reading celebration. Our guide has plenty of good reads to suggest, among the annual selections and short-list nominees.
PPL Book Lists
We honor cultural heritage months annually with events and programs; we also create and update book lists around those and other topics These lists are by no means comprehensive, but contain some suggested reads you can find in the Pasadena Public Library colletions.
- Black History Month Authors (February 1-28)
- Women's History Month (March 1-31)
- Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month (May 1-31)
- Pride Month (June 1-30)
- Hispanic Heritage Month 2021 (September 15-October 15)
- Hispanic Heritage Month 2020
- Native American Heritage Month (November 1-30)
- Social Justice & Anti Racism
Find great reads for teens recommended by staff and organized into themed booklists.
Find great reads for kids recommended by staff and organized into themed booklists.
Search this online resource for information about book titles and series; reviews from professional journals; reading suggestions based on title, author, or series; recommended reading lists and more. Make sure to have your library card number handy to sign in to use this resource.
Search this online resource for information about book titles and series; reviews from professional journals; reading suggestions based on title, author, or series; recommended reading lists and more, all tailored specifically to readers grades K-8. Make sure to have your library card number handy to sign in to use this resource.
Look through this online resource that has in-depth book reviews; handpicked “if you like this, try these” recommendations; browsing by genre, time period, geographical setting and theme; advice on starting and running a book club, and much more. Make sure to have your library card handy to sign in to use this resource.