What were your favourite reads in 2023?
Libraries Tasmania’s annual Top 10s have been released! What did Tasmanians love to read and borrow most from the library last year?
There are some clear trends – and a few surprises!
Tasmanians borrowed more than 3.1 million physical and online items in 2023.
The full 2023 list includes the most-borrowed items across 19 categories including your favourite fiction, non-fiction, romance, crime, magazines, picture books and board books, plus eBooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines and more.
Browse the dropdown sections below to see the favourite reads across categories.
Tasmanian Authors – Fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Accident | Katie McMahon |
| 2 | Limberlost | Robbie Arnott |
| 3 | The House of Now and Then | Jo Dixon |
| 4 | The Secrets of the Huon Wren | Claire Van Ryn |
| 5 | The Angry Women’s Choir | Meg Bignell |
| 6 | Mole Creek | James Dunbar |
| 7 | A Week to Remember | Esther Campion |
| 8 | Bruny | Heather Rose |
| 9 | The Deep | Kyle Perry |
| 10 | Welcome to Nowhere River | Meg Bignell |
Tasmanian Authors – Non-fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here | Heather Rose |
| 2 | The Good Life | Hannah Moloney |
| 3 | Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner: a memoir | Grace Tame |
| 4 | Toxic: the Rotting Underbelly of the Tasmanian Salmon Industry | Richard Flanagan |
| 5 | Ten Steps to Nanette: a memoir situation | Hannah Gadsby |
| 6 | We Love Country | Leanne Pelikan |
| 7 | The Comfort Bake: Food that warms the heart | Sally Wise |
| 8 | Undiscovered Tasmania | Rochelle Dare |
| 9 | Truganini: Journey through the apocalypse | Cassandra Pybus |
| 10 | Tongerlongeter: First Nations leader & Tasmanian war hero | Henry Reynolds |
Tasmanian Children’s Books
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | We Love Country | Leanne Pelikan |
| 2 | Sea Country | Patsy Cameron |
| 3 | Tassie Rhymes for Little Tigers | Narelda Joy |
| 4 | The Ultimate Animal Counting Book | Jennifer Cossins |
| 5 | 10 Australian Animals | Jennifer Cossins |
| 6 | Are These Hen’s Eggs? | Christina Booth |
| 7 | Feathered Alphabet Featuring Australian Birds | Monica Reeve |
| 8 | Quentin the Quoll on Bruny Island | Kate Morton |
| 9 | Amazing Animal Journeys | Jennifer Cossins |
| 10 | A Flamboyance of Flamingos | Jennifer Cossins |
Adult DVDs
Adult Fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | No Plan B | Lee Child |
| 2 | Desert Star | Michael Connelly |
| 3 | Dead Tide | Fiona McIntosh |
| 4 | Exiles | Jane Harper |
| 5 | The Orphans | Fiona McIntosh |
| 6 | The Bullet that Missed | Richard Osman |
| 7 | I Will Find You | Harlan Coben |
| 8 | Simply Lies | David Baldacci |
| 9 | The Rising Tide | Ann Cleeves |
| 10 | The Accident | Katie McMahon |
Adult Graphic Novels
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse | Charlie Mackesy |
| 2 | Sapiens: a Graphic History (series) | Yuval N Harari |
| 3 | The Lost Soul | Olga Tokarczuk |
| 4 | Revenge of the Librarians | Tom Gauld |
| 5 | Animal Farm: the graphic novel | George Orwell |
| 6 | Norse Mythology. Volume 1 | Neil Gaiman |
| 7 | Lore Olympus. Volume one | Rachel Smythe |
| 8 | Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant? | Roz Chast |
| 9 | No Longer Human | Junji Ito |
| 10 | Monstress. Book one | Marjorie M Liu |
Adult Non-fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Just One Thing: how simple changes can transform your life | Michael Mosley |
| 2 | Spare | Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex |
| 3 | Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here | Heather Rose |
| 4 | The Book of Roads & Kingdoms | Richard Fidler |
| 5 | Wifedom: Mrs Orwell’s Invisible life | Anna Funder |
| 6 | My Dream Time | Ash Barty |
| 7 | The Girl Who Fell From the Sky | Emma Carey |
| 8 | The Good Life | Hannah Moloney |
| 9 | Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner: a memoir | Grace Tame |
| 10 | I’m Glad my Mom Died | Jeanette McCurdy |
Crime
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exiles | Jane Harper |
| 2 | The Bullet that Missed | Richard Osman |
| 3 | The Rising Tide | Ann Cleeves |
| 4 | Desert Star | Michael Connelly |
| 5 | The Heron’s Cry | Ann Cleeves |
| 6 | Shattered | James Patterson |
| 7 | The Dark Hours | Michael Connelly |
| 8 | A Heart full of Headstones | Ian Rankin |
| 9 | The Tilt | Chris Hammer |
| 10 | Dead Tide | Fiona McIntosh |
Romance
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Opal Miner’s Daughter | Fiona McArthur |
| 2 | Snowy Mountains Promise | Alissa Callen |
| 3 | Mara’s Choice | Anna Jacobs |
| 4 | Nightwork | Nora Roberts |
| 5 | Paula’s Way | Anna Jacobs |
| 6 | Wish You Were Here | Karly Lane |
| 7 | Snowy Mountains Daughter | Alissa Callen |
| 8 | One Enchanted Evening | Katie Fforde |
| 9 | A Very Special Christmas | Anna Jacobs |
| 10 | Snowy Mountains Cattleman | Alissa Callen |
Libby – eBooks
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Seven | Chris Hammer |
| 2 | Exiles | Jane Harper |
| 3 | Echo Lake | Jane Sauers |
| 4 | The Things That Matter Most | Gabbie Stroud |
| 5 | Small Things Like These | Claire Keegan |
| 6 | Kookaburra Cottage | Maya Linnell |
| 7 | The Paris Mystery | Kirsty Manning |
| 8 | Lessons in Chemistry | Bonnie Garmus |
| 9 | How to Kill a Client | Joanna Jenkins |
| 10 | The Gifted Son | Genevieve Gannon |
Libby – eAudiobooks
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harry Potter (series) | JK Rowling |
| 2 | Fourth Wing | Rebecca Yarros |
| 3 | The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck | Mark Manson |
| 4 | Did I Ever Tell You This? | Sam Neill |
| 5 | A Court of Thorns and Roses | Sarah J Maas |
| 6 | The Angry Women’s Choir | Meg Bignell |
| 7 | Iron Flame | Rebecca Yarros |
| 8 | The Seven | Chris Hammer |
| 9 | Limberlost | Robbie Arnott |
| 10 | Pride and Prejudice | Jane Austen |
Libby – eMagazines
uLibrary eAudiobook
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Ink Black Heart | Robert Galbraith |
| 2 | Troubled Blood | Robert Galbraith |
| 3 | Betrayal in the Cotswolds | Rebecca Tope |
| 4 | A Day in the Death of Dorothea Cassidy | Ann Cleeves |
| 5 | A Bird in the Hand | Ann Cleeves |
| 6 | The Marriage Portrait | Maggie O’Farrell |
| 7 | A Lesson in Dying | Ann Cleeves |
| 8 | Blue Lightning | Ann Cleeves |
| 9 | Hamnet | Maggie O’Farrell |
| 10 | A Brush With Death | Ali Carter |
Borrowbox eAudiobooks
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Bullet That Missed | Richard Osman |
| 2 | Exiles | Jane Harper |
| 3 | The Murder Rule | Dervla McTiernan |
| 4 | The Man Who Died Twice | Richard Osman |
| 5 | Apples Never Fall | Liane Moriarty |
| 6 | The Rising Tide | Ann Cleeves |
| 7 | Deception | Lesley Pearse |
| 8 | Love Stories | Trent Dalton |
| 9 | Homecoming | Kate Morton |
| 10 | The Bookbinder of Jericho | Pip Williams |
Junior DVDs
Junior Fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Diary of a Wimpy Kid (series) | Jeff Kinney |
| 2 | Treehouse (series) | Andy Griffiths |
| 3 | Spaceboy | David Walliams |
| 4 | Hot Dog (series) | Anh Do |
| 5 | Robodog | David Walliams |
| 6 | Weirdo (series) | Anh Do |
| 7 | The World’s Worst Pets | David Walliams |
| 8 | The Bad Guys (series) | Aaron Blabey |
| 9 | Ninja Kid (series) | Anh Do |
| 10 | Wolf Girl (series) | Anh Do |
Junior Graphic Novels
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dog Man (series) | Dav Pilkey |
| 2 | Cat Kid Comic Club (series) | Dav Pilkey |
| 3 | Wings of Fire, the Graphic Novel (series) | Tui Sutherland |
| 4 | Click (series) | Kayla Miller |
| 5 | Baby-Sitters Club (series) | Anne M Martin |
| 6 | Ghosts | Raina Telgemeier |
| 7 | Bunny vs Monkey (series) | Jamie Smart |
| 8 | Star the Elephant | Remy Lai |
| 9 | Besties Find their Groove | Kayla Miller |
| 10 | Just Jaime | Terri Libenson |
Junior Non-fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barefoot Kids: Your Epic Money Adventure | Scott Pape |
| 2 | The Treehouse Joke Book | Andy Griffiths |
| 3 | Young Dark Emu: a Truer History | Bruce Pascoe |
| 4 | The Ultimate Animal Counting Book | Jennifer Cossins |
| 5 | Bluey and Bingo’s Fancy Restaurant Cookbook | Various |
| 6 | Minecraft Annual 2021 | Dan Whitehead |
| 7 | The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Dangerous Animals | Sami Bayly |
| 8 | Amazing Animal Journeys | Jennifer Cossins |
| 9 | Minecraft Annual 2022 | Dan Whitehead |
| 10 | The Book of Bees | Piotr Socha |
Picture Books
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bluey (series) | Various |
| 2 | Peppa Pig (series) | Lauren Holowaty |
| 3 | Pig the Rebel | Aaron Blabey |
| 4 | Maisy (series) | Lucy Cousins |
| 5 | The Very Clever Bear | Nick Bland |
| 6 | The Dog and the Chicken Thief | Chantal de Marolles |
| 7 | The Speedy Sloth | Rebecca Young |
| 8 | The Baddies | Julia Donaldson |
| 9 | Colours, Colours Everywhere | Julia Donaldson |
| 10 | Whitney and Britney Chicken Divas | Lucinda Gifford |
Bilingual Picture Books and Board Books
| Number | Title | Author | Additional Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monsieur Roscoe on holiday | Jim Field | French |
| 2 | El pez arcoíris = The rainbow fish | Marcus Pfister | Spanish |
| 3 | Las ruedas del autobús = The wheels on the bus | Elodie Pope | Spanish |
| 4 | Eres tâu mi mamâa? = Are you my mother? | PD Eastman | Spanish |
| 5 | Aliens love underpants = K̲h̲alāʼī mak̲h̲lūq ko jāngīye pasand hain | Claire Freedman | Urdu |
| 6 | Xiong zai na er = Where is Bear | Jonathan Bentley | Chinese |
| 7 | Samakat qaws qazah = The rainbow fish | Marcus Pfister | Arabic |
| 8 | Espacio = Space | Spanish | |
| 9 | Mi primer libro de numeros = My very first book of numbers | Eric Carle | Spanish |
| 10 | Màu của Elmer = Elmer’s colours | David McKee | Vietnamese |
Board Books
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bluey (series) | Various |
| 2 | Postman Bear: a lift-the-flap book | Julia Donaldson |
| 3 | Peppa Pig (series) | Mandy Archer |
| 4 | Oi (series) | Kes Gray |
| 5 | Slide and see: pets | Stella Baggott |
| 6 | Spot (series) | Eric Hill |
| 7 | Here come the tractors: a touch-and-feel book | Kat Uno |
| 8 | That’s not my T Rex…: its tummy is too squashy | Fiona Watt |
| 9 | Sheep in a Jeep | Nancy Shaw |
| 10 | All about Duggee | Daniella Wills |
Youth Fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes | Suzanne Collins |
| 2 | The Inheritance Games (series) | Jennifer Barnes |
| 3 | Shadow and Bone | Leigh Bardugo |
| 4 | Shatter Me | Tahereh Mafi |
| 5 | One of us is Lying | Karen McManus |
| 6 | Mockingjay | Suzanne Collins |
| 7 | The Summer I Turned Pretty | Jenny Han |
| 8 | Girl in pieces | Kathleen Glasgow |
| 9 | Caraval | Stephanie Garber |
| 10 | Good Girl, Bad Blood | Holly Jackson |
Youth Graphic Novels
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guts | Raina Telgemeier |
| 2 | Smile | Raina Telgemeier |
| 3 | Heartstopper (series) | Alice Oseman |
| 4 | The legend of Zelda (series) | Akira Himekawa |
| 5 | Demon in the wood: a shadow and bone graphic novel | Leigh Bardugo |
| 6 | Demon slayer (series) | Koyoharu Gotoge |
| 7 | The aquanaut | Dan Santat |
| 8 | Spy x family (series) | Tatsuya Endo |
| 9 | Maus: a survivor’s tale | Art Spiegelman |
| 10 | Five Nights at Freddy’s (series) | Scott Cawthon |
Youth Non-fiction
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Girl stuff for girls aged 8–12 | Kaz Cooke |
| 2 | You don’t know what war is | Yeva Skalietska |
| 3 | The teenage girl’s guide to living well with ADHD | Sonia Ali |
| 4 | Welcome to consent! | Yumi Stynes |
| 5 | Owning it | Caroline Foran |
| 6 | Befriend your brain | Faith G Harper |
| 7 | The story of Australia | Robert Lewis |
| 8 | Video game of the year | Jordan Minor |
| 9 | Money queens | Michelle Bowes |
| 10 | Women aviators | Karen Bush Gibson |
Console Games
Audiobooks (physical)
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Secret Seven Short Story Collection | Enid Blyton |
| 2 | The Thursday Murder Club | Richard Osman |
| 3 | Stories for Every Season | Enid Blyton |
| 4 | Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets | JK Rowling |
| 5 | The Deep End | Jeff Kinney |
| 6 | Spirits of the Ghan | Judy Nunn |
| 7 | The World’s Worst Pets | David Walliams |
| 8 | The Beatrix Potter collection | Beatrix Potter |
| 9 | Hairy Maclary story collection | Lynley Dodd |
| 10 | The Secret Runners of New York | Matthew Reilly |
Large Print
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dark Sacred Night | Michael Connelly |
| 2 | The Man who Died Twice | Richard Osman |
| 3 | No Plan B | Lee Child |
| 4 | A Valley Wedding | Anna Jacobs |
| 5 | Lessons in Chemistry | Bonnie Garmus |
| 6 | A Valley Secret | Anna Jacobs |
| 7 | The Long Call | Ann Cleeves |
| 8 | Where the Crawdads Sing | Delia Owens |
| 9 | Sarah’s Gift | Anna Jacobs |
| 10 | Better Off Dead | Lee Child |
Magazines
Express Books
| Number | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dead Tide | Fiona McIntosh |
| 2 | I Will Find You | Harlan Coben |
| 3 | Simply Lies | David Baldacci |
| 4 | The Bookbinder of Jericho | Pip Williams |
| 5 | Standing in the Shadows | Peter Robinson |
| 6 | The Last Remains | Elly Griffiths |
| 7 | Homecoming | Kate Morton |
| 8 | Spare | Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex |
| 9 | Just One Thing: how simple changes can transform your life | Michael Mosley |
| 10 | The Tea Ladies | Amanda Hampson |