Reflecting on 70 Years of Publishing
By Pam Parker
Director of Library Operations
Happy Anniversary to The Community Library, which celebrates 70 years as an institution in 2025.
Our librarians thought it would be fun to look back on those years and identify stand-out books that were published for each year. We did this for four categories: fiction, nonfiction, young adult and children’s. Then we created a mash-up list that picks the most significant title for each year as our 70 Years, 70 Books list.
- Download the Mash-up list here.
- Download All Genres here.
- Download Children’s and YA here.
- Download Adult Genres here.
As we look back on seven decades of book publishing, one trend stands out: the sheer growth in both volume and variety of titles. What once amounted to a few dozen titles per year has become a steady stream of monthly arrivals on our shelves.
Readers now find dozens of books in subgenres as specific as Magical Realism, Narrative Nonfiction and Middle Reader. That’s not to mention the oddities that have leaped onto the page like Paranormal Romance and Historical Comedy – yes, those are whole categories now.
Each subgenre represents a hive of releases—astonishing, and at times, overwhelming!
Our list isn’t a popularity contest. Instead, it’s a curated reflection on the books that have made a lasting impact—works that shaped conversations, captured cultural moments, or introduced new ways of thinking.
For instance, the 1960s and 1970s brought fiction that challenged social and political norms. The 1980s ushered in a wave of narrative nonfiction that breathed life into history. In the 1990s, saw the emergence of Young Adult, a distinct genre that served those readers between ages 12-18, primarily – and, yes, adults admit to reading in this space!
The 21st century has seen an explosion of subgenres, offering something for every niche and then some. I’ve yet to read any Western Horror but our pick for best fiction of 2025 is just that! The Buffalo Hunter Hunter (2025) by Stephen Graham Jones. The novel delves into the era in which we largely destroyed a species in our greedy efforts to settle the West.
Compiling this list was no small task. It’s inherently subjective, and any “best of” collection will vary depending on who’s making it.
We’ve collaborated across our library staff to ensure a thoughtful balance among fiction, nonfiction, children’s literature, and young adult titles. A fun effort might be to make your own list! You’d likely be surprised how many books bubble up that you’ve read across the decades—and some that you’ve always wanted to read, too!
Want to explore further? Visit our full genre lists to see the 70 titles we believe have stood the test of time. You might discover something new, or color outside your normal reading habits with a subgenre pick. Most importantly, this effort is about being inspired to read, whether that’s revisiting a modern classic that deserves a second look or diving headfirst into something you’d not likely turn the pages of!
