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Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC and we'll end the show today with a little reveal. The reveal is the five most checked out books in the history of the Brooklyn Public Library. That's a 125 year history and they're releasing the list. They've been releasing the list gradually of the most checked out books and they are releasing the top five ever today. Before we reveal, listeners we're going to give you the chance to take a guess, make a prediction. What was the most checked out book in the 125 year history of the Brooklyn Public Library? What do you think it was?

Before our guest from the library reveals what it actually was, we'll talk a little bit about other stuff leading up to it, but you call in and guess. What do you think was the most checked out book in the 125 year history of the Brooklyn Public Library? 212-433-WNYC, 212-433-9692. My producer's saying maybe give a hint. No, I'm not giving a hint. You guess folks. What is the most checked out book in the 125 year history of the Brooklyn Public Library? What do you think it is? We'll reveal it in a couple minutes before the end of the segment. 212-433-WNYC, 212-433-9692 or tweet it @BrianLehrer. As your predictions, your calls, your guesses are coming in we are joined by the Brooklyn Public Library's president and CEO, Linda Johnson. Hi, Linda. Welcome back to WNYC.

Linda: Thanks, Brian.

Brian: Before we get to the titles, can you quickly share a bit about Brooklyn Public Library's 125th Anniversary Celebration?

Linda: Sure. We're coming to the end of this year where we've been celebrating everything from the believe it or not [inaudible 00:02:23] book which happened a few months ago.

Brian: You broke up there for a second. Just as you were saying the title of that book. You were celebrating the what?

Linda: Our one billionth book was circulated during this last year which is a lot. I'm sorry, I'm breaking up. Is that better?

Brian: It's better. Yes.

Linda: Great. That book was written by a lovely author. It's called The Time of Green Magic by Hilary McKay and the interesting thing about this list, this 125 books, is just how diverse the listing is from many, many children's books, as you might imagine. Books that are currently on lists are being challenged by people who are trying to ban books in certain communities. Those are books that we grew up on, the bread and butter of every school list. It's interesting to see books pop up both on our most circulated books of all time and then to see them being challenged in some of the red states.

Brian: Lawrence in Bayside. You have a guess. What was the most checked out book and the 125 year history of the Brooklyn Public Library? Go. Lawrence, you there? Hi, Lawrence. What book?

Lawrence: I believe I was not given the seven second delay, I think it was To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Brian: All right.

Linda: A good guess.

Brian: We will find out. Rita in [unintelligible 00:03:59] Hills, what's your guess? Rita, You there?

Rita: Moby Dick.

Brian: Moby Dick. Diane in Manhattan, what's your guess?

Diane: Tree Grows in Brooklyn.

Brian: Thank you. Catherine in Manhattan, what's your guess?

Catherine: Goodnight Moon.

Brian: Thank you very much. Frank in Harlem, what's your guess?

Frank: Cat in the Hat.

Brian: Thank you very much. Some of the ones coming in on Twitter. Linda, somebody predicts the Diary of Anne Frank, somebody predicts Michelle Obama's Becoming, somebody predicts the United States Constitution. As you started to say, one of those callers did nail a book that was in the top 10 at least, right?

Linda: Yes. To Kill A Mockingbird was number nine and that's actually one of the books that's being challenged in some of the states that I was talking about earlier. Goodnight Moon is also on the list, which is great. Some of the other books are on the list, but not as high up as you might imagine. Dr. Seuss is all over the list.

Brian: We will start working our way down the top 10 here. The 10th most checked out book in the history of the Brooklyn Public Library was Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, number nine was To Kill a Mockingbird, number eight, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain. Before we keep going down the list, talk a little bit more about how many books on this list of 125 were banned at one time or another?

Linda: There's currently 14 of them are being challenged right now.

Brian: That are currently being challenged right now?

Linda: Yes, there's legislation that's being enacted actually in 36 states in the country banning books. 14 of the books that are on the list are actually also are books that are being challenged.

Brian: Louise in Midwood, what's your guess for the number one checked out book from Brooklyn Public Library in its 125 year history? Hi, Louise.

Louise: Hi, Brian. I'm guessing The Catcher in the Rye.

Brian: Thank you very much. Bill in Fairfield, what's your guess?

Bill: Dr. Spock, what to Expect When Expecting.

Brian: I don't think that was his book, but he certainly had parenting books. What to Expect When You're Expecting I think it was by somebody else. Do you know Linda? It was certainly a very [crosstalk]

Linda: I don't know.

Brian: I did 10, nine, and eight you want to do seven, six, and five?

Linda: Sure. Seven is Naruto, Vol. 1, six is Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë and five is, Are you My Mother? by PD Eastman.

Brian: Let's see, what else. Peter in Manhattan, the most checked out book. What you got?

Peter: The Holy Bible.

Brian: Interesting. Is the Bible on the list? Is it one of the 125 most checked out?

Linda: I'm looking right now because it doesn't strike me. I haven't heard that before and I'm not seeing it. I don't think so.

Brian: People tend to have their own Bibles I think.

Linda: People have their own copies. Exactly.

Brian: Do you hold Bibles in the library?

Linda: Yes, for sure.

Brian: How about copies of the Constitution, which somebody guessed before?

Linda: Of course. It's not on the list, but yes, we have copies of that as well.

Brian: All right. Number four, the fourth most checked out book in the history of the library, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Number three, somebody guessed Cat in the Hat, and number three was Cat in the Hat. Was that the most checked out, I guess obviously that was the most checked out Dr. Seuss book?

Linda: Correct.

Brian: Number two, I see as we're making our way up the list here, more and more children's books. Number two, The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. When was Snowy Day published? Do you have it?

Linda: I don't know exactly, but I think it was just celebrated recently, like as a 50 year anniversary, perhaps. Maybe it was even 75 years but we do a lot with with Ezra Jack Keats that Snowy Day is a really important book because it has an a Black child in the book, which is very early for representation of of non-white kids in children's books. There's a wonderful foundation that we do a lot of work with to teach students about making books.

Brian: I will say that as we enter our last minute and we're about to reveal the most checked out book in the history of the Brooklyn Public Library over 125 years, the most guessed book turns out to be, looking at our caller board and our tweets, A tree Grows in Brooklyn, but it wasn't the number one book. Now, drum roll please. The number one most borrowed book in the 125 year history of the Brooklyn Public Library was?

Linda: Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. Everybody Loves Max and it's a great book and it's a beautiful book and it was written by a Brooklyn author. That's nice for us. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, for everybody's information, was number 24.

Brian: Awesome. We thank Linda Johnson, the Brooklyn Public Library's president and CEO. What can people do at the library or with the library to mark the occasion of the 125th?

Linda: They can come in and borrow books or just hang out or attend any one of our many, many programs and all ages, obviously. As the list demonstrates they can come whether they're zero to five or whether they're 100 come on in.

Brian: Thanks for coming on with us. Thanks for revealing the list with us.

Linda: Thank you, Brian.

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