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If you’re like me and the avid library users we adore, you’re always looking for your next great read. I know the genres that are my tried and true, I know my favorite go-to authors, but sometimes the thought of branching out to find something new is intriguing. We are so inundated with media and resources from so many different outlets that sometimes it’s hard to know where to look for your next great read.

This month, I’d like to highlight a resource that is always available at your fingertips through your local public library, BookPage, and is always free. Dive into a sampling of book reviews from the January 2021 BookPage magazine which are highlighted in the page 16 article titled “Most Anticipated Books of 2021” and find your next great read.

“Shy Willow” by Cat Min, Feb. 16, Children’s Fiction

We’re always on the lookout for beautifully illustrated picture books that leave us feeling hopeful, and Cat Min’s debut has piqued our interest. It’s the story of a very shy rabbit who lives in an abandoned mailbox and must figure out how to deliver a very important letter — to the moon.

“Merci Suarez Can’t Dance” by Meg Medina, April 6, Young Adult Fiction

Medina and the beloved heroine of her 2019 Newberry Medal winner, Merci Suarez Changes Gears, are back. This sequel finds Merci in seventh grade confronting all the new — and familiar — experiences and challenges it brings.

“Somebody’s Daughter: a Memoir” by Ashley C. Ford, June 1, Adult Biography & Autobiography

Ford is already widely admired for her journalism, personal writing and podcasting, but Somebody’s Daughter will be her first book. Growing up in Indiana, Ford felt isolated and misunderstood. She longed to reunite with her incarcerated father, but when she found out what crime sent him to prison, everything changed.

“Good Company” by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, May 4, Adult Fiction/Suspense

Sweeney’s 2016 debut novel, “The Nest,” became an instant bestseller, and no wonder — she’s got a clear knack for family drama. She returns to the landscape of lifelong relationships with her second book, the story of a woman who’s trying to make sense of her husband’s long-ago lie about a lost wedding ring. We can’t wait for these bonds to unfold before us.

If one of these titles caught your eye, be sure to let a librarian know so that we can point you in the right direction in the stacks, or help you download the eBook or audiobook to your device through the Libby app. If you’d like to read the full article with more reviews or browse the entire BookPage January issue, it is available for free in all library locations, or digitally through our website. Cheers from us to you, the new year, and your new reads.

Currently Reading: “On Becoming Babywise: Giving Your Infant the Gift of Nighttime Sleep” by Dr. Robert Bucknam

Picture Book Highlight: “The Couch Potato” by Jory John and Pete Oswald

Sara Hahn is the Children and Youth Services Librarian at the Stanly County Public Library in Albemarle. Email shahn@stanlycountylibrary.org.