News from the State Library: Bridges Celebrates More Than 2.4 Million Checkouts in 2022

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For Immediate Release: January 13, 2023

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Bridges Celebrates More Than 2.4 Million Checkouts in 2022

DES MOINES — Bridges, the ebook and audiobook consortium managed by the State Library for Iowa libraries, celebrated more than 2.4 million checkouts by Iowans in 2022. Bridges was one of 129 OverDrive library systems to surpass the 1 million checkout milestone worldwide, and OverDrive reported its highest year ever for digital checkouts.

To be exact, Bridges circulated 2,404,576 items in 2022, including:

  • 1,187,411 ebooks
  • 1,120,767 audiobooks
  • 94,939 magazines

“Digital content remains in huge demand with Iowa library patrons,” said Michael Scott, State Librarian. “Iowans appreciate the convenience of checking out library materials right from home. The State Library is pleased to offer libraries the opportunity to provide digital collections through the Bridges consortium at a greater scale than they could on their own.”

2022 Bridges Most Popular Lists

Thrillers and book club fiction were the most popular genres in the Bridges ebook and audiobook top 10 lists. Author Colleen Hoover, enjoying a surge of popularity among readers, made a total of four appearances in both lists. Magazine titles, a newer resource available in Bridges, covered a range of subjects in the most popular list for 2022.

The top 10 ebooks circulated in 2022:

Rank

Title

Author

Checkouts

1

The Four Winds: A Novel

Kristin Hannah

3,918

2

The Last Thing He Told Me: A Novel

Laura Dave

3,319

3

Verity

Colleen Hoover

2,800

4

The Girl in His Shadow: A Novel

Audrey Blake

2,475

5

Apples Never Fall

Liane Moriarty

2,166

6

It Ends with Us: A Novel

Colleen Hoover

2,084

7

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: A Novel

Taylor Jenkins Reid

1,894

8

The Lincoln Highway: A Novel

Amor Towles

1,693

9

The Judge's List: A Novel

John Grisham

1,604

10

Ugly Love: A Novel

Colleen Hoover

1,568

The top 10 audiobooks circulated in 2022:

Rank

Title

Author

Checkouts

1

Where the Crawdads Sing (unabridged)

Delia Owens

3,263

2

The Four Winds: A Novel (unabridged)

Kristin Hannah

3,206

3

The Last Thing He Told Me: A Novel (unabridged)

Laura Dave

3,032

4

It Ends with Us (unabridged)

Colleen Hoover

1,936

5

The Silent Patient (unabridged)

Alex Michaelides

1,831

6

The Guest List: A Novel (unabridged)

Lucy Foley

1,786

7

Apples Never Fall (unabridged)

Liane Moriarty

1,782

8

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: A Novel (unabridged)

Taylor Jenkins Reid

1,686

9

Before We Were Yours: A Novel (unabridged)

Lisa Wingate

1,640

10

Educated: A Memoir (unabridged)

Tara Westover

1,623

The top 10 magazine titles circulated in 2022:

Rank

Title

Checkouts

1

Us Weekly

2,401

2

Woman's World

1,613

3

The Economist

1,300

4

HGTV Magazine

1,252

5

Prevention

1,226

6

Country Living

1,155

7

The New Yorker

1,148

8

Taste of Home

1,144

9

Cook's Illustrated

1,015

10

Food Network Magazine

989

About Bridges

Bridges is the eBook and audiobook buying consortium for Iowa libraries. In 2022, 487 libraries were members of the Bridges consortium. The State Library of Iowa facilitates the program and manages the contract with OverDrive on behalf of the participating libraries. OverDrive, Inc. is an American digital distributor of eBooks, audiobooks, music, and video titles. Through OverDrive's Libby app, users find their local library, authenticate with their library card, and are able to check out materials. More about Bridges

For additional information, contact:

Michael Scott, State Librarian

at (515) 242-5062 or Michael.Scott@iowa.gov

About the State Library of Iowa

The State Library of Iowa actively champions libraries. Our two roles are improving library services in Iowa and delivering specialized information services to state government and to Iowans. The State Library is supported in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act.

www.StateLibraryofIowa.gov