SJCPL Collection Development

Adult Book Collections

We select the most popular and important fiction and non-fiction titles for our book collections. We purchase other fiction and non-fiction titles to fill patron need beyond the scope of our popular collections.  We always purchase Best Sellers, and strive to anticipate them. We select books based on the popularity of the authors or the subject matter, good reviews or the reputation of the publisher.

The adult book collection reflects the diversity of opinions and cultures in our service area. We purchase controversial books to provide balance to an issue, to provide critically acclaimed works, or when they are popular in the mainstream media.

We purchase non-circulating books for our reference collections and for our professional staff.  The reference collections are available for in-house patron use.

We purchase graphic novels for our adult collections, but librarians may choose to shelve them with their juvenile or teen collections.