Books for Adults

Our Adult Collection encompasses a wide range of reading choices in print, audio and digital formats. The depth and breadth of our collection is expansive and constantly updated, offering everything from the latest bestsellers and new nonfiction to old favorites, classic literature, history, biographies, travel, essays, memoir and humor. We also offer an extensive DVD collection of feature films, documentaries and television series. Browse our new DVDs & Books on CDs>>

Snack On This!

Who has time to conquer War and Peace during the holiday season? Want something short, snappy, and interesting? Behold– our Snack Reads! They are small morsels, 200 pages or less. These quick reads will give you the fulfillment of finishing a book without the stress!

Try one today!

Your Next Great Read

Let us help you find your next great read, find a favorite new author, or simply explore our wonderful collections. Our resident Reader’s Advisory Librarian is here to help. Stop by the Library or get in touch at read@newcanaanlibrary.org. Whether for yourself or for your book group, we can guide you to your next book discovery!

Looking for other great sources of book recommendations?

Award Winning Books

Pulitzer Prize Fiction / Nonfiction
National Book Awards
National Book Critics Circle Awards
Nobel Prize in Literature
Man Booker Prize
Edgar Awards
The Audies

Bestseller Lists and Reviews

New York Times Book Review
New York Times Bestsellers
NPR Book Reviews
Indie Bestsellers

The Book Group Page

We are happy to help you pick your next book group selection. Please note that we are not always able to obtain multiple copies of new bestsellers so we recommend selecting a title at least 6 months past its publication date.

To request a number of books to be set aside for your book group, we need 8 weeks advance notice of the following information:

1.) date your group is meeting,
2.) title and author of the book you want to read,
3.) # of books needed,
4.) your contact information (email and phone)
5.) name of the book group – sometimes more than one group is reading the same book. Providing the name of your book group ensures that your group members will get the book intended for them.

Click the Book Group Request Form to get started.

Don’t have a title? Select from over 1200 items in our Book Group Collection. If you don’t see the title you’re looking for, or if you need a book recommendation, please email read@newcanaanlibrary.org and our staff will be happy to help get the perfect book for your group’s next reading experience.

Newspapers & Magazines

In our Salant Reading Room we offer a wide variety of newspaper and magazine titles. We have dozens of magazine subscriptions available for check out, from national news magazines and local publications to those focused on hobby and entertainment.

Get instant access to the most popular magazines with Flipster and Zinio. Learn how at our digital library.

Our current newspaper subscriptions: