Women’s fiction among most-borrowed books at Toronto Public Library

The year’s most borrowed books at the Toronto Public Library include “The Women” by Kristin Hannah and “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros.

The Toronto Public Library says many of its most-borrowed books for 2024 centre on strong female characters.

“Fourth Wing” and its sequel “Iron Flame” top the list at the TPL, which is the nation’s largest and busiest library system.

The books, which were both published last year, are part of the Empyrean series, fantasy romance novels about a heroine named Violet Sorrengail who attends a war college for dragon riders.

Hannah’s “The Women,” which was released in February, is No. 2 on Toronto’s list, but it tops lists at the Halifax Public Library and the Saskatoon Public Library.

The 2022 novel “Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus was also popular at all three libraries, coming in second in Toronto, third in Halifax and fifth on Saskatoon’s list of adult fiction books.

Top-performing non-fiction titles at the three libraries include “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, a self-help book published in 2018 that argues tiny changes can have a big impact.

The Toronto Public Library also released its most-borrowed Canadian titles, and local author Carley Fortune features prominently.

Two of her romance novels top the list: “This Summer Will Be Different,” published this year, and last year’s “Meet Me at the Lake,” while her 2022 debut “Every Summer After” comes in 10th.