Read Receipt
A book discovery service for school librarians and reading specialists that recommends titles based on what teens in similar demographics are actually finishing, not what publishers market to them.
school librarians and reading specialists building collections and reading lists for teens
- Demographic-aware recommendations filtered by age, region, language, and reading level
- Spanish/English bilingual discovery to surface translations and original-language editions
- Completion-rate signal per title, showing which books teens actually finish vs. abandon
- Reading-circle kits with discussion questions and pacing for group use
The Spanish readership study shows 75% of 14-24 year olds read for pleasure, directly challenging the 'kids don't read' narrative and demanding data-driven collection tools.
SLJ article 'The Quest for Good YA Publishing Statistics' shows school librarians actively seeking YA circulation/completion data, and NoveList/Booklist Online are established players, indicating real but niche demand.The Quest for Good YA Publishing Statistics | School Library Journal ↗NoveList Plus | EBSCO ↗
Market is crowded: NoveList (EBSCO) is the dominant 'most trusted' reader-advisory DB, NoveList Select Analytics already tracks engagement, Follett's Destiny Discover owns K-12 catalogs, and BookNet Canada's LibraryData aggregates circulation — very little white space for a new entrant.NoveList Select Analytics ↗Destiny Discover | Follett ↗LibraryData — BookNet Canada ↗
School library budgets are notoriously tight and procurement is district-level with long cycles; NoveList typically bundles via EBSCO subscriptions and Follett has lock-in, making willingness-to-pay for a standalone point tool constrained.Selection Tools for School Librarians - sldirectory.com ↗Destiny Discover | Follett ↗
Data-driven collection development is a real and growing trend in K-12 libraries, but chronic school-budget pressure and political book-banning fights create volatility; the 'teens actually read' angle is durable but the market is slow-moving.Resources & Tools | Young Adult Library Services Association ↗
Hard to build: requires aggregating 'finished' (not just checked-out) data across many school ILS systems — a major data-acquisition and partnership problem; NoveList spent decades hand-tagging titles and partnering with ILS vendors to reach scale.NoveList Plus | EBSCO ↗