The branch will be closed Monday, May 13, through Friday, May 17, as the City of Bremerton, the building owners, repair the branch's attic.

The book drop will be open, but items will not be checked in until Monday, May 20. Holds will be extended through Saturday, May 25. 

During the closure, please use the Bremerton – Sylvan Way, opens a new window branch location at 1301 Sylvan Way or any other Library location. 

We apologize for any inconvenience this causes during the week and look forward to welcoming you back on Saturday, May 18. 

After weeks of fierce competition, a book has been crowned the Grand Champion of Literary March Madness, where well-loved books that were adapted into Oscar-winning films faced off to be crowned the reader's favorite.

And the winner is ... 

"The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien! The stunning conclusion to Tolkien's epic, world-building "Lord of the Rings" series proved to truly be the one book to rule them all. 

We hope you enjoyed the tournament! Thank you for voting each week as titles made their way through the bracket! , opens a new window

If you want to read up on this year's competing titles or revisit your top choice, our staff has you covered!

List created by KitsapLibrarians

View Full List

Find every edition of Chapters at KRL.org/chapters., opens a new window

Chapters 002 - Tagged Version

There are more than books available at the library. In addition to Discover Passes, ukuleles, and telescopes, Kitsap Regional Library has learning kits ready for you to check out. These kits are developed by the Library's Collections & Technical Services team (CTS) who select and purchase everything, from books to video games, for every library branch. Each learning kit includes a backpack, books, educational toys, and activities. Specially curated by age group for babies, kids, teens, and adults, each kit is designed to spur learning and allow users to explore diverse topics, including astronomy, manga, drawing, baby sign language, and more. 

Late last year, 16 new kits were introduced to our collection. Patron Errika Schneider and her six grandkids were the first to check out the Farm Animal Sounds kit. 

This first concepts kit for babies and toddlers introduces babies to animals and animal sounds. It provides an accessible experience with braille board books, tactile soft animal puppets, and a baby-friendly tactile animal sounds toy. 

As a person who is blind, Errika, who babysits her grandkids throughout the week, was thrilled to share the multi-sensory learning and reading experience with her loved ones. 

"My grandkids loved the interaction. It was fun because we could all read and play together. The Farm Animal Sounds kit will be borrowed multiple times. My youngest grandkid didn't want to see the kit go back to the library!" says Errika.

"It's more common to find material for blind children with sighted parents than for sighted children with blind parents," she adds. "So, finding something at our local library that meets all our needs is unique and fun!" 

Working alongside Errika to ensure she has the materials she wants and needs is Mobile and Adult Services Librarian Liz Ochoa. 

The Mobile Services team delivers library materials to healthcare facilities, group homes, and individual residences, supplying personalized services to those who cannot visit the branches. Errika shares, "Liz is always so helpful and is a voice for me and my needs. I really appreciate it." 

Liz says, "Errika is an amazing human and it's been wonderful working with her. I've learned so much about accessibility issues through listening to her and doing my best to find library materials and resources that work for her and her family. 

I've also learned a lot about resources available for people with visual impairments and am so grateful to be able to share those resources with others. Those connections are what being a librarian is about!"

Youth Selector Librarian Rosie Bromberg, who cultivates the new kits, explains, "With these new learning kits, we're hoping to offer meaningful interactive learning experiences for patrons of all ages, allowing them to explore a variety of topics and interests. 

Incorporating accessibility into these kits allows us not only to share this learning experience with more people in our community, but also to help create connections." 

Open to all, fostering a sense of welcoming and belonging is essential to the Library's work.

Check out a learning kit at KRL.org/borrowmore, opens a new window.

In this inaugural issue, discover how one family connects with each other while using new, multi-sensory kits in our collection, the history and restoration of the branch in downtown Bremerton, and the triumphant return of the Community Internship program. 

Read the full first issue below, or pick up a copy the next time you visit a branch!

Chapters 001 - Tagged Version

"Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. brought people together from all different walks of life," Bremerton Mayor Greg Wheeler told a celebratory crowd that Friday evening. "His message of unconditional love and forgiveness continues to inspire and lift up others." 

Twenty-five years ago, the City of Bremerton, with the support of Kitsap Regional Library, named the historic downtown Bremerton building after Dr. King. Formally renaming the branch now was an opportunity to recognize this anniversary and acknowledge a legacy that continues to inspire and shape our region.   

Several leaders spoke during the renaming celebration, including NAACP Bremerton Unit President Robert Harris, Kitsap History Museum Board Trustee Roosevelt Smith, and Kitsap Equity Race and Engagement Coalition Founder Akuyea Karen Vargas. These scholars and experts in racial justice talked about the meaning of the moment and the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Kitsap County.  

"It's truly a name that reflects the values and aspirations of our community," said Kitsap Regional Library Director Jason Driver. "By renaming this branch, we send a clear message that this space is for everyone, regardless of their background, regardless of their race, their creed, their sexual orientation ... it's all about a place where knowledge is accessible to all. Dr. King would have wanted that, and he envisioned that — a world where opportunity and justice were accessible to every individual. That's what a library is." 

Audiobooks

No genre seemed left unread by listeners this year. The most popular titles featured fantasy, historical fiction, and celebrity memoirs. 

Top 5 Checked-Out Audiobooks of 2023 

Fourth Wing

The Covenant of Water

I'm Glad My Mom Died

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Lessons in Chemistry

Movies

Viewers tried to be "everything, everywhere, all at once" by staying up to date with Oscar winners and nominees, taking to the skies, and facing the music.

Top 5 Checked-Out Movies of 2023

Everything Everywhere All at Once

Top Gun

The Fabelmans

Elvis

The Menu

Print Nonfiction

Library patrons read widely this year, delving into memoirs while seeking gardening and travel knowledge. 

Top 5 Checked-Out Print Nonfiction Titles of 2023

Spare

Gardening With Native Plants of the Pacific Northwest

Rick Steves Europe Through the Back Door

Crying in H Mart

Gardening in the Pacific Northwest

Ebook Nonfiction

Unflinching memoirs and a desire to understand our modern times drove this year's digital check-outs.

Top 5 Checked-Out Nonfiction Ebooks of 2023

Spare

Tibetan Peach Pie

I'm Glad My Mom Died

I Never Thought of It That Way

The Triumph of Seeds

Ebook Fiction

The innovative and ambitious characters took center stage as startling revelations and the will to survive captivated readers.

Top 5 Checked-Out Fiction Ebooks of 2023

Lessons in Chemistry

The Orchardist

Verity

Demon Copperhead

The Bird King

Print Fiction

"Lessons in Chemistry" won the day in fiction. Other literal page-turners included thrillers set locally, Shakespearean game design, and a tentacled hero.

Top 5 Checked-Out Print Fiction Titles of 2023

Lessons in Chemistry

The Bones at Point No Point

Demon Copperhead

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

Remarkably Bright Creatures

Easy Fiction for Little Kids 

Decision-making, exploration, and looking for lost objects thrilled our younger readers. 

Top 5 Checked-Out Easy Fiction Titles of 2023

What Pet Should I Get?

Nanette's Baguette

The Pigeon Has to Go to School!

I Want My Hat Back

Curious George

Juvenile Fiction

The time-traveling tree house and diary entries of a so-called "wimpy kid" were the favorites of 2023. 

Top 5 Checked-Out Juvenile Fiction Titles of 2023

Hurricane Heroes in Texas

Rodrick Rules

The Meltdown

The Last Straw

Camp Time in California

YA Fiction

Fresh perspectives on YA favorites from the 2000s may have earned the most attention, but those were followed closely by long-time favorites and new series beginnings. 

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Midnight Sun

The Hobbit, Or, There and Back Again

The Summer I Turned Pretty

Shadow and Bone

From all of us at Kitsap Regional Library: Happy New Year! We look forward to discovering your new favorites in 2024. See you at the library!

Favorite Fiction

"The Covenant of Water" by Abraham Verghese

Spanning the years 1900 to 1977, “The Covenant of Water” is set in Kerala, on South India's Malabar Coast, and follows three generations of a family that suffers a peculiar affliction: in every generation, at least one person dies by drowning—and in Kerala, water is everywhere. At the turn of the century, a twelve-year-old girl from Kerala's long-existing Christian community, grieving the death of her father, is sent by boat to her wedding, where she will meet her forty-year-old husband for the first time. From this unforgettable new beginning, the young girl—and future matriarch, known as Big Ammachi—will witness unthinkable changes over the span of her extraordinary life, full of joy and triumph as well as hardship and loss, her faith and love the only constants. (Description provided by the publisher.)

The Covenant of Water

Favorite Nonfiction

"A Fever in the Heartland" by Timothy Egan

The Roaring Twenties—the Jazz Age—has been characterized as a time of Gatsby frivolity. But it was also the height of the uniquely American hate group, the Ku Klux Klan. Their domain was not the old Confederacy, but the Heartland and the West. They hated Blacks, Jews, Catholics, and immigrants in equal measure, and took radical steps to keep these people from the American promise. And the man who set in motion their takeover of great swaths of America was a charismatic charlatan named D.C. Stephenson. Stephenson was a magnetic presence whose life story changed with every telling. Within two years of his arrival in Indiana, he'd become the Grand Dragon of the state and the architect of the strategy that brought the group out of the shadows—their message endorsed from the pulpits of local churches, spread at family picnics and town celebrations. Judges, prosecutors, ministers, governors, and senators across the country all proudly proclaimed their membership. But at the peak of his influence, it was a seemingly powerless woman—Madge Oberholtzer—who would reveal his secret cruelties, and whose deathbed testimony finally brought the Klan to their knees. (Description provided by the publisher.)

A Fever in the Heartland

Favorite Mystery/Thriller/Horror Novel

"How to Sell a Haunted House" by Grady Hendrix

New York Times bestselling author Grady Hendrix takes on the haunted house in a hilarious and terrifying new novel that explores the way your past—and your family—can haunt you like nothing else. Louise's parents have passed away, and she's returning to the small Southern town where she grew up to get their house ready to sell. It means she'll have to spend time with her younger brother—and their old grudges make that a terrifying prospect. But childhood hurts pale in comparison to the dangers posed by what still lives inside the house. (Description provided by the publisher.)

How to Sell A Haunted House

Favorite Historial Novel

"The Librarian of Burned Books" by Brianna Labuskes

Berlin 1933. Following the success of her debut novel, American writer Althea James receives an invitation from Joseph Goebbels himself to participate in a culture exchange program in Germany. For a girl from a small town in Maine, 1933 Berlin seems to be sparklingly cosmopolitan, blossoming in the midst of a great change with the charismatic new chancellor at the helm. Then Althea meets a beautiful woman who promises to show her the real Berlin, and soon she’s drawn into a group of resisters who make her question everything she knows about her hosts—and herself. Paris 1936. She may have escaped Berlin for Paris, but Hannah Brecht discovers the City of Light is no refuge from the anti-Semitism and Nazi sympathizers she thought she left behind. Heartbroken and tormented by the role she played in the betrayal that destroyed her family, Hannah throws herself into her work at the German Library of Burned Books. Through the quiet power of books, she believes she can help counter the tide of fascism she sees rising across Europe and atone for her mistakes. But when a dear friend decides actions will speak louder than words, Hannah must decide what stories she is willing to live—or die—for. New York 1944. Since her husband Edward was killed fighting the Nazis, Vivian Childs has been waging her own war: preventing a powerful senator’s attempts to censor the Armed Service Editions, portable paperbacks that are shipped by the millions to soldiers overseas. Viv knows just how much they mean to the men through the letters she receives—including the last one she got from Edward. She also knows the only way to win this battle is to counter the senator’s propaganda with a story of her own—at the heart of which lies the reclusive and mysterious woman tending the American Library of Nazi-Banned Books in Brooklyn. As Viv unknowingly brings her censorship fight crashing into the secrets of the recent past, the fates of these three women will converge, changing all of them forever. (Description provided by the publisher.)

The Librarian of Burned Books

Favorite Romance/Relationship Novel

"Hello Beautiful" by Ann Napolitano

William Waters grew up in a house silenced by tragedy, where his parents could hardly bear to look at him, much less love him. So it's a relief when his skill on the basketball court earns him a scholarship to college, far away from his childhood home. He soon meets Julia Padavano, a spirited and ambitious young woman who surprises William with her appreciation of his quiet steadiness. With Julia comes her family; she is inseparable from her three younger sisters: Sylvie, the dreamer, is happiest with her nose in a book and imagines a future different from the expected path of wife and mother; Cecelia, the family's artist; and Emeline, who patiently takes care of all of them. Happily, the Padavanos fold Julia's new boyfriend into their loving, chaotic household. But then darkness from William's past surfaces, jeopardizing not only Julia's carefully orchestrated plans for their future, but the sisters' unshakeable loyalty to one another. The result is a catastrophic family rift that changes their lives for generations. Will the loyalty that once rooted them be strong enough to draw them back together when it matters most? (Description provided by the publisher.)

Hello Beautiful

Favorite Science Fiction/Fantasy Novel

"Fourth Wing" by Rebecca Yarros

Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders. But when you're smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don't bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them. With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother's daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant. She'll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise. Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret. (Description provided by the publisher.)

Fourth Wing