Here are the most checked out books at the New York Public Library in 2019

Female authors dominated the list of most checked-out books from the New York Public Library over the past year.

Seeing an increase of 30 percent in library card signups, the NYPL says that Michelle Obama's Becoming, about her role in the White House, was checked out the most in 2019, followed by Tara Westover’s memoir Educated, A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult and Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens—all of which made their debuts this year.

Books penned by James Patterson–Ambush, The Chef, Liar Liar, The 18th Abduction, Target: Alex Cross and The House Next Door–were so popular in the Bronx that they snagged six out of the top 10 books there, according to the NYPL.

The full list of top system-wide checkouts of 2019 is:

1. Becoming by Michelle Obama
2. Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover
3. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
4. A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult
5. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
6. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
7. Circe by Madeline Miller
8. Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
9. Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou
10. Milkman by Anna Burns

"The top checkouts at The New York Public Library may seem like a simple opportunity to identify what New Yorkers enjoyed reading in 2019, but at the library we see the diversity these titles represent," Lynn Lobash, the Library’s Assistant Director of Readers Services, said. "Whether it's literary fiction, memoirs, the latest mystery or thriller–readers of all ages from all walks of life can find the book they're looking for at their local branch or online and this annual list is our tribute to them."

If you have missed these top books, now might be a good time to check them out at the gorgeous Stephen A Schwarzman Building.

In January the NYPL will announce its top checkouts of all time and challenge patrons to read 20 minutes every day by offering daily book recommendations.