Book Smart

Cincinnati has the libraries, universities, readers and literary culture to rank among America’s strongest reading markets. Our next opportunity is hiding in plain sight: use the library system we already have.

But what makes a truly great reading city?

Books matter, obviously. But so do libraries, universities, bookstores, educational attainment, digital readership and a culture that brings readers and writers together.

When Cincinnati People analyzed 20 U.S. markets using those factors, Cincinnati ranked No. 6, alongside cities including Boston, Minneapolis, Washington, Seattle and Pittsburgh.

That’s impressive, but there’s a bigger opportunity.

Cincinnati already has one of its greatest educational, cultural and economic-development assets sitting in neighborhoods throughout Hamilton County: The Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library.

Laufey is in the Cards

Across the river, Kenton County Public Library boasts a robust system and new ways to bring people into the library fold.

If you haven’t pulled out your library card in a while, Icelandic singer Laufey might give you a reason to find it. Or get a new one.

The Kenton County Public Library is celebrating Library Card Sign-up Month with a limited-edition card featuring Laufey, the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter whose vintage-inspired sound has built a devoted following and whose interests extend well beyond music.

KCPL is one of only 50 library systems worldwide distributing the limited-edition Laufey Book Club library card, part of a nationwide collaboration between the American Library Association and Laufey, who is serving as the 2026 honorary chair of Library Card Sign-up Month.

Let’s pause here for a lesson in pronunciation. Laufey herself says it’s difficult to pronounce her name in English, since Icelandic vowels are very different. The closest approximation, she says, is “LAY-vey.”

So, now that we know how to say it, why is Laufey’s name on a library card? Turns out, she’s a serious reader. She founded the Laufey Book Club in 2022, building a community around reading alongside a music career that now reaches more than 20 million monthly Spotify listeners.

And yes, existing KCPL cardholders can get the special version, too.

One note: the Laufey cards are actual working library cards, not memorabilia. KCPL ordered a limited number for each branch and is distributing them on a first come, first served basis while supplies last.

“One of our goals is always to reach people who may not already think of themselves as regular library users, and Laufey gave us a really interesting opportunity to do that. She has a large, younger fan base who are drawn to books, music and storytelling, which makes her a natural fit for libraries,” said Chad Showalter, director of public relations for the Kenton Co. Public Library.  “We’ve had people come into our branches specifically asking for the Laufey card, and that’s exactly the kind of connection we hope to make. If the card gets someone through the door and introduces them to everything else the library offers, we count that as a win.”

The timing is particularly fitting. September is Library Card Sign-up Month, an annual reminder that the humble library card has evolved considerably from the days when its primary job was getting a stack of books through the checkout line.

At KCPL, a card opens the door to eBooks and audiobooks, digital resources, career and educational tools, technology and creative opportunities through the library's STREAM Center, along with the books, movies and other materials people traditionally associate with their neighborhood library.

There’s also a nice bit of symmetry to it. An artist who has built a modern fan community around both music and reading is putting her name on a card designed to connect people with more things to read, learn and discover.

The limited-edition Laufey Book Club cards are available at Kenton County Public Library branches while supplies last.

– Kathrine Nero

This Isn’t Your Childhood Library

The Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library (CHPL ) operates 41 locations across the county. More than 2.4 million visits are made to the system annually. But measuring today’s library by how many people walk through its doors misses much of the story.

In 2025, Cincinnati readers checked out more than 6 million digital books, audiobooks, magazines and graphic novels through Libby alone, setting a system record. Through November, library customers had made more than 73,000 meeting and study room reservations and participated in more than 26,000 MakerSpace sessions. More than 167,000 people attended storytimes and 18,000 participated in library book clubs.

The library also added more than 50,000 new cardholders during the first 11 months of 2025.

Those numbers tell us something important. Cincinnati isn't becoming a digital city instead of a reading city. Digital technology is giving Cincinnatians more ways to read.

Yes, Our Library is Really That Good

Cincinnati’s library system has earned national recognition. 

The system received nine consecutive Five-Star Library awards from “Library Journal” from 2012 through 2021, making it one of only two libraries nationally to achieve nine consecutive years at that level.

In 2025, two CHPL leaders, Michelle Matthews and Keloni Parks, were named Library Journal Movers & Shakers, a national recognition of library professionals helping shape the future of the field. Library Director Paula Brehm-Heeger was named Ohio Librarian of the Year in 2026, the Ohio Library Council's highest individual honor for a library professional.

Meanwhile, the system is investing in its physical future through a 10-year Facility Master Plan that is renovating and rebuilding neighborhood libraries throughout Hamilton County. Library visits increased 6 percent in 2025 compared with 2024.

So the question isn’t do we have a great library, it’s “Are enough of us using everything it offers?”

The Best Subscription You’re Already
Paying For

Think about your subscriptions – streaming television, music, news, audiobooks, magazines, learning apps – but consider what comes with a library card.

CHPL provides access to all of that, plus research resources and online learning. Libby allows cardholders to borrow as many as 40 titles at a time, while Hoopla offers books, audiobooks and comics without traditional waiting lists, subject to system limits. 

Of course CHPL has plenty of things you can’t download, from meeting rooms and study spaces to the MakerSpaces and career resources. Each month, CHPL supports hundreds of people each month in their pursuit of meaningful careers through software, materials and coaching, along with digital-literacy training, English classes and workforce resources.

That’s where the definition of a library begins to change. A great public library isn't simply a place where books are stored, it’s community infrastructure.

The Opportunity Starts Before Kindergarten

For Cincinnati to become an even stronger reading city, the work starts with its youngest residents. In 2025, CHPL trained 86 youth-focused staff members in techniques supporting early literacy and Ohio's Science of Reading goals. Its branches provide storytimes, summer reading programs, collections for children and book deliveries to educators throughout the county.

That matters because reading isn’t just a cultural amenity, it’s foundational to learning. The child attending storytime today becomes the elementary school reader tomorrow, the high school student researching a paper years later and, potentially, the adult using that same library to find a job, learn a skill or launch a business.

 That’s the extraordinary thing about a public library – It can grow with you.

What If Cincinnati Became America’s Reading City

Here is the opportunity.

What if we stopped thinking about our libraries as buildings we occasionally visit and started treating them as one of Cincinnati's defining civic assets? Imagine a community-wide goal of getting a library card into the hands of every eligible child. Imagine employers encouraging employees to use CHPL's learning and professional-development resources. Imagine entrepreneurs routinely using the library's research tools and MakerSpaces. Imagine every college student arriving in Cincinnati being introduced not only to campus libraries but to the public library system.

Imagine neighborhood book clubs, businesses, schools, universities, nonprofits and cultural organizations working together around a citywide celebration of reading.

And imagine Cincinnati becoming known as America’s reading city, where an outstanding library system helps create a community of readers, learners and big thinkers.

 That’s the distinction. Buildings don't create reading cities. Readers do. 

Your Cincinnati People Challenge:

Start small.

Get a library card. Download Libby. Visit your neighborhood branch. Check out one book. Listen to one audiobook. Take your child to one storytime. Join one book club. Explore one database. Visit a MakerSpace.

 Then tell someone else what you discovered.

 Cincinnati already has much of what it takes to be one of America's great reading cities: major universities, independent bookstores, literary events, engaged readers and an award-winning public library system with 41 locations.

 The opportunity is to open the door, or the app, and use it.

 Explore the Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library and see how much comes with a library card.