March Madness is just around the corner, and Chillicothe Public Library District (CPLD) is celebrating with a Bracket Bonanza—this year featuring more than just books! In last year’s inaugural Bracket Bonanza, four books were voted to be champions by Chillicothe readers of all ages. This year we are doubling the fun, with eight brackets featuring the fiction and nonfiction books, DVDs, and video games that checked out the most from the CPLD collection in 2025. Stop by the library each week in March to vote for your favorites and send them to the next level of the competition! 

While most people think about books when it comes to what you can borrow from the library, the 50,000+ checkouts from the CPLD collection in 2025 also included more than 5,000 checkouts for DVDs and over 600 for video games. And that’s just the library’s physical collection; additionally, almost 16,000 audiobooks, movies, and TV shows were checked out across the library’s many eLibrary services, including Hoopla, Libby, and Kanopy. With the rising costs of streaming services, CPLD patrons have free access to physical and digital media from the Chillicothe collection, as well as the physical collections of over 1,200 other libraries in Illinois through interlibrary loan. Don’t have a DVD player? No problem! CPLD cardholders over the age of 18 can now check out a DVD player to use at home.

While you’re at the library this month, be sure to grab a Spring Reading Challenge sheet. CPLD’s Spring Reading Challenge is designed to help you find your next great read through exploring book award lists. Read three books between the months of March and April that have each won a different award, and you can win a prize from our sponsor, Picket Fence. Books will be displayed throughout the library that have received many different awards to help you get started. Keep an eye out for Bracket Bonanza champions to add to your list!

For more information about Chillicothe Public Library’s collection, programs, and services, call 309-274-2719, visit www.chillipld.org, or stop by 430 N. Bradley Ave., Chillicothe, IL.