一番人気は

Laurel Wamsley “The New York Public Library Has Calculated Its Most Checked-Out Books Of All Time” https://www.npr.org/2020/01/13/795873639/the-new-york-public-library-has-calculated-its-most-checked-out-books-of-all-tim

紐育公共図書館*1は今年創立125周年を迎える*2。それに因んで、最も貸し出された本が算出された*3。第１位はエズラ・ジャック・キーツの『雪の日（The Snowy Day）』；

The most-wanted book? The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats.

The Caldecott Medal-winning tale of a young boy's encounter with snow has been checked out 485,583 times from the NYPL since it was published in 1962.

It shares qualities with many of the other most-borrowed titles: The beautifully illustrated book has been around a long time, it's well-known and well-loved, and it's available in numerous languages.

"It is such a relatable story, and pure magic for kids and adults alike," Andrew Medlar, director of the library's BookOps selection team, said in a statement. "It's on people's radar screens, they remember when they first heard it, and they want to share that experience with their kids. And the artwork is just gorgeous."

遺憾ながら、エズラ・ジャック・キーツという作家／イラストレーター*4も『雪の日』という本も知らなかった（汗）。また、トップ10の多くは「児童書」。例えば、モーリス・センダックの『かいじゅうたちのいるところ』*5が４位、エリック・カールの『はらぺこあおむし』*6が第10位。それから、第９位には『ハリー・ポッターと賢者の石』が入っている。所謂大人の本だと、オーウェルの『一九八四年』*7が第３位、レイ・ブラッドベリの『華氏451度』*8が第７位。また、デール・カーネギーのHow to Win Friends and Influence Peopleという自己啓発本が第８位に入っている。

Where the Wild Things Are (Caldecott Collection)

はらぺこあおむし (ミニエディション)

一九八四年[新訳版] (ハヤカワepi文庫)

華氏451度 (ハヤカワ文庫 NV 106)

Children's books make up a large part of the list. That's not too surprising — short books can be read faster and are returned more quickly. Even the more adult books on the list, such 1984 and To Kill A Mockingbird, are rather slim.

なお、2019年に最も貸し出された本はミシェル・オバマの自伝Becoming。
ところで、この記事には1950年代のブロンクスにおける移動図書館の写真が添えられている。移動図書館を英語でtraveling libraryと表現するのね！
See also

Concepción de León「NY公共図書館で｢史上最も借りられた｣意外な本」（中丸碧訳）https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/326969

*1:https://www.nypl.org/ See also https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20100129/1264744945 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20131118/1384777554 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20170331/1490979991

*2:https://125.nypl.org/125

*3:“Classic Children’s Story The Snowy Day tops The New York Public Library’s All-Time Checkouts List” https://www.nypl.org/press/press-release/january-13-2020/classic-childrens-story-snowy-day-tops-new-york-public-librarys

*4:http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/ See eg. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezra_Jack_Keats

*5:Mentioned in https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20111008/1318015886 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20120508/1336494623 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20150422/1429666988 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/2019/12/27/142258

*6:Mentioned in https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20140806/1407298724 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20141130/1417274885 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20170104/1483533653 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20170425/1493131839 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20181111/1541866712

*7:Mentioned in https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20061207/1165500508 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20090908/1252375872 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20130304/1362367180 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20130804/1375550443 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20130910/1378829609 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20170126/1485454283 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20170129/1485706177 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20171025/1508937620

*8:Mentioned in https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20120607/1339031654 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20120608/1339120884 https://sumita-m.hatenadiary.com/entry/20130910/1378829609