On Display: New & Notable Nonfiction

Need an idea for a research paper? Just want the latest on a topic? Here is the display for you.

These books were chosen by our reference librarians to showcase titles that may have escaped your notice when they were originally added to the shelves. You will recognize some of these titles and authors from the bestseller lists, while others were chosen based on recommendations from professional and scholarly review sources or are on topics currently in the news.

Stop by the lobby at any point between August 5th to September 22nd and browse the display, or view the list online here. We will continue to add new books that catch our eye as they arrive, so check back often!

On Display: Live Your Best Life - Be the Best YOU Can Be!

Live your best life.  Sounds easy. Sounds complicated. It seems trendy at the moment to “live in the moment”, to live with authenticity, or to be present in our day-to-day lives. But why? Shouldn’t we always live like that? If we are always living for the next big thing; the promotion, the vacation, the relationship – we never truly enjoy the everyday small occurrences that can just as easily put a smile on our face or the faces of those we love.

This month’s display is called Live Your Best Life and we have curated a collection of books covering topics to reset your thinking in a positive way. Taking the time to develop new habits and routines, such as daily mediation, yoga, and gratitude can vastly improve our mindset over time. These habits, as well as decluttering items you no longer use or need, have been proven to relieve stress, reframe your thinking and can lead to a more positive outlook on life.

While many of these titles will be available on display in the library lobby, there are additional titles available on Overdrive in both audiobook and eBook format. There are also titles like Simplicity: An Uncomplicated Guide to Being Successful and Achieving Your Full Potential by Richard Gerver available through Books 24×7.

The most important thing to remember is don’t let others determine what your best life is. Find what habits work for you and what routines fit into your lifestyle. What works for one person might not work for someone else. So take some time to focus on Living Your Best Life this month; and start creating healthier habits for the days, months and years ahead.  

On Display: #FindYourPark: National Parks & America's Public Land

“We need the possibility of escape as surely as we need hope.” 
― Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire

The Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse in Acadia National Park, Maine, USA.

The National Parks have been called “America’s Greatest Idea” and it is easy to see why. In 1916, President Wilson signed The Organic Act creating The National Parks Services whose “purpose is to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.” Today the National Park System covers more than 84 million acres including parks, shorelines, monuments, and historic sites.

This collection of books includes histories of the parks and the people who championed them, memoirs of time spent living in and walking among nature, depictions of conservationists efforts to protect these resources, and awe inspiring photography that captures just a fraction of what makes these landscapes so breathtaking. Check out one of our guide books covering everything from the major parks in the west or even just the rail trails of New England or read a history of the Boston Harbor Islands as you prepare for a local day trip. Whether you are heading to the Cape Cod National Seashore or the Great Smoky Mountains, or you’d rather be thrilled by the amazing feats of the rock climbers of the Yosemite Valley, as summer rolls in be inspired to get outside and explore.

Stop by the library lobby to browse or borrow May 13th – June 23rd.

Audie Award Winners and Finalists Available!

The Audies – the Oscars of the audiobook industry – are awarded annually by the Audio Publishers Association. Many of the 2019 award-winners and finalists are available at the library and the library staff have conveniently pulled together this content for you to checkout and enjoy over Spring Break and beyond.

On the display table in the library lobby, there is a collection of 2019 award-winners and finalists available on compact discs. The CD offerings will be highlighted until Thursday, March 7th, when they will be reintegrated with the Popular Audiobook collection on the main floor.

We’ve also created an online Audie Awards Display of OverDrive downloadable titles for you. As you pack up to go home for the break, remember the OverDrive collection is available for you to enjoy, anywhere, 24×7 on any device. Not familiar with OverDrive? Take a look our OverDrive page.

To view the complete list of the Audie Award winners and finalists, visit the Audio Publishers Association. Comment on this post to share your own recommendations.


Are we missing a title you think we should have in the collection? If so, just fill out the Suggest a Purchase form.

On Display: Women's History & Leadership

On Display in the Library Lobby promotional image. Women's History & Leadership Celebrate Women's History & Get Inspired to Lead. Curated by the Gloria C. Larson Center for Women and Business & the Bentley Library.

March is Women’s History Month and we are celebrating with a lobby display, guest curated with help from Bentley’s Gloria C. Larson Center for Women and Business! Visit the library from 2/18/19– 3/31/19 to browse items in person. Many of these books, as well as additional women’s history and leadership titles, are available as eBooks and audiobooks via the library’s OverDrive digital collection.

This display encompasses many aspects of women’s history and empowering women’s advancement. Titles have been divided into two sections to help you browse and choose new books more easily.

  • Looking Back: Learn about inspiring, historical women and the ways that they have led and changed the world. Find out about the history of women’s suffrage, early female entrepreneurs, and more.
  • Looking Ahead: Get inspired to be a future leader by picking up titles that discuss current women’s issues and strategies for women at work. Titles in this section address the wage gap, leadership, female mentorship, the state of women in politics, and more.

Check back on the display often – we will update the title list as new acquisitions arrive and checked-out titles return to the library. If a title you want to read is checked out, remember to place a hold! If you’d like to see a list of all the titles on display, click here.

If you’d like more reading suggestions for Women’s History Month, please contact the Bentley Library. If you’re looking for resources on women’s leadership, please visit the Gloria Cordes Larson Center for Women and Business website.

We’ll also be holding another Women’s History Month button-making event in mid-March, so stay tuned for more details!

On Display: Best Books of 2018

Happy New Year! Here at the library we are celebrating the arrival of 2019 and the 10th anniversary of our annual “best books” display!

Back in January of 2009 we thought it would be fun to comb through multiple year-end “best of” lists to put together a display of the previous year’s top fiction and nonfiction titles. Thus began an annual tradition, and here we are ten years later…

This year we examined 17 unique review sources* to bring you a display of 100+ books and audiobooks. As always, you’ll find titles by popular authors who regularly land on the bestseller lists, as well as books from outside the spotlight that are worthy of your attention. The common denominator is that they have all been hailed as the best of 2018’s publishing.

Please take some time to visit the library’s lobby or browse the items online in our catalog. Many of these books are also available as downloadable eBooks and audiobooks via the library’s OverDrive digital collection.

If you don’t see anything of interest at first glance, keep checking back. As new acquisitions arrive and currently checked-out books are returned we will add more books to the display. Happy browsing!

*sources consulted: AudioFile, Bloomberg, Booklist, The Boston Globe, The Christian Science Monitor (fiction, nonfiction), The Economist, Entertainment Weekly, Fast Company (business, technology), Forbes, Kirkus Reviews, Inc., Library Journal, The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, strategy+business, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post.

On Display: Check Out a Book; Whip Up Something Delicious!

Looking for a new recipe to spice up your holiday table, or want to try creating a delicious meal from another culture? Maybe you’ve made a New Year’s resolution to eat healthier. This display of cookbooks and other food-related reading might just inspire you to think outside your comfort zone when it comes to being in the kitchen. We’ve also included a few select food films and chef biographies that might get you and your culinary skills into the kitchen to whip up something amazing and different!

To feast your eyes on what we’re offering, come to the Library to browse the display. You can also go beyond our lobby display by taking a look at the cooking titles in our OverDrive collection of ebooks and audiobooks, and searching our streaming film database Kanopy by typing the word “cooking” in the search box.

Bon appétit!

Diverse Voices Display: Culture Fest 2018 Event

Are you curious about the “world” of resources that the Library offers? Visit the Library lobby all week during Culture Fest to see a pop-up display of books and movies from across the globe!

Do you already have a favorite book or movie from a diverse voice or place that’s not in our collection? Let us know by placing a title into our suggestion box, and we’ll consider adding it. You can also give us your suggestions on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #BentleyLibraryWishlist.

While you’re browsing, visit our giant world map and pinpoint the location where you or your ancestors came from. And of course it’s not a Library event without buttons! We’ll have CultureFest buttons, national flag buttons, and more for you to add to your collection.

Diverse Voice display flyer