PG has just discovered The Panorama Project.
In recent years, market research has confirmed that public libraries remain an important driver of reading activity, and that borrowers are also buyers, but surveys can only tell half the story. Surprisingly, there’s never been a collaborative analysis of public library circulation data to understand the actual impact they have, positive or negative—until the Panorama Project.
Using data to measure the impact more than 16,000 public libraries in the United States have on developing readers, driving book discovery, and generating book sales in their local communities and beyond is particularly timely as there’s fierce competition for every reader’s attention and discretionary spending. Publishers need to understand the complex dynamics of book discovery and sales, and where public libraries fit in their readers’ lives.
The Panorama Project is a cross-industry, collaborative research initiative committed to aggregating and analyzing data from publishers, distributors, booksellers, public libraries, library service providers, search sites, social sites and other relevant data sources, and identify ways publishers and libraries can continue to support their intrinsically related missions while delivering mutually beneficial outcomes.
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Public libraries and librarians use many approaches to connect readers at all skill levels and ages with books and authors. For decades public librarians have honed their skills in what is known in the library world as Readers’ Advisory Service—an umbrella term for the many activities that librarians use to aid readers in finding books that they will enjoy reading. Readers’ Advisory Service is basic to public libraries, even though its impact on the publishing industry has generally been ignored.
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Panorama Picks provides local booksellers with quarterly lists of under-the-radar fiction, nonfiction, and young adult backlist titles library patrons are waiting to borrow—optimized for local interest via regional groupings aligned with the American Booksellers Association’s (ABA) regional associations.
Link to the rest at The Panorama Project
Here are the Top Ten Panorama Picks for California in Q3:
The Rosie Result | Graeme Simsion |
The Things We Cannot Say | Kelly Rimmer |
American Spy | Lauren Wilkinson |
My Sister, the Serial Killer | Oyinkan Braithwaite |
The Other Americans | Laila Lalami |
The Priory of the Orange Tree | Samantha Shannon |
The Night Tiger | Yangsze Choo |
A Woman Is No Man | Etaf Rum |
The Island of Sea Women | Lisa See |
The Only Woman in the Room | Marie Benedict |
And the Top Ten Picks for the Midwest during the same time period:
The Things We Cannot Say | Kelly Rimmer |
The Secret Orphan | Glynis Peters |
The Rosie Result | Graeme Simsion |
American Spy | Lauren Wilkinson |
A Woman Is No Man | Etaf Rum |
The Cliff House | RaeAnne Thayne |
My Lovely Wife | Samantha Downing |
The Only Woman in the Room | Marie Benedict |
The Island of Sea Women | Lisa See |
The River | Peter Heller |
And the Top Ten Picks for the Southeast in Q3:
The Things We Cannot Say | Kelly Rimmer |
American Spy | Lauren Wilkinson |
A Woman Is No Man | Etaf Rum |
The Island of Sea Women | Lisa See |
The Only Woman in the Room | Marie Benedict |
My Lovely Wife | Samantha Downing |
The Priory of the Orange Tree | Samantha Shannon |
The Night Tiger | Yangsze Choo |
My Sister, the Serial Killer | Oyinkan Braithwaite |
My Favorite Half-Night Stand | Christina Lauren |
And, finally, the Top Ten Picks for Hawaii in Q3:
American Spy | Lauren Wilkinson |
Stone Cold Heart | Laura Griffin |
Polaris Rising | Jessie Mihalik |
The River | Peter Heller |
In Her Sights | Katie Ruggle |
Any Man of Mine: A 2-in-1 Collection | Diana Palmer |
The Only Woman in the Room | Marie Benedict |
The Raven Tower | Ann Leckie |
Bad Bachelors Bundle | Stefanie London |
Deep Harbor | Fern Michaels |
Glad you found Panorama PG. I think they have been doing valuable work that the publishers should pay attention to.
My only caveat is that Panorama is primarily run by Rakuten Overdrive, which has a big stake in library ebook circulation, so they aren’t entirely disinterested, but they are a useful counterbalance to the likes of Macmillan.
I’m a public library advocate. I’ve been saying that libraries should not take Macmillan’s single ebook copy bait. I suggest they wait out the window, then acquire an appropriate number of copies of the ebook to keep their hold queues within reason. My guess is that if libraries follow that policy, Macmillan will see a spike in sales after their window closes, which would clearly show how significant libraries are to their business.