Let The Oakville Public Library Pick Your Next Read

Oakville Public Library staff will choose your next book for you. The service is called OPL Picks for You, and it starts with a short online form about what you like to read.

Fill it out and staff put together one of two things: a hand-selected bag of one to five books, or a list of eight recommendations. Either way the books are set aside on the holds shelf at a branch for pickup.

There are separate streams for kids, teens and adults. The kids' questionnaire asks about reading level and preferences, so a child who is into fairy tales, superheroes or silly school stories gets matched accordingly. The adult version covers fiction and non-fiction across all genres, and you decide how much detail to hand over about your taste.

Formats are not limited to regular print either. Requests can be filled in large print, on audiobook CDs, or as graphic novels, which makes the service useful for readers who cannot get on with a standard paperback.