Finalists for Bentonville Public Library’s book sorter naming contest announced

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — TyrannoSORTus Rex, R2Book2, and Bookie Monster were some of the final names chosen for Bentonville Public Library’s new book-sorting machine, according to a news release.

Included with the library’s expansion, BPL’s new, state-of-the-art Tech Logic automated system was installed, which started a naming contest. 114 submissions were narrowed down to the final 11 candidates by library leadership. Finalists are:

• AMHy – Automated Materials Handler
• B.E.A.S.T. – Book Eater and Sorter Tool
• B.O.B. – Belly of Books
• BookBot
• Bookie Monster
• Bookworm
• B.O.S.S. – Back on the Shelf Sooner
• ChewBOOKa
• Dewey
• R2Book2
• TyrannoSORTus Rex

Honorable mentions BPL would like to recognize include Sorty McBookface, Sir Sorts-a-Lot (Baby Got Books!), The Sorting Hat, SORTimus Prime, and Bifrost (a bridge to the nine realms/bins).

Patrons can submit their vote from now until close on Saturday, July 6, in the ballot box on display in the library. It is asked that only one vote per person be provided on the ballot.

“So many people submitted fantastic names. Our community is so creative!”, Library Director Hadi Dudley said. “It was so hard to narrow it down to 11.”

In its first month, the new book sorter circulated 34,636 items with an accuracy rate of 97.50%. In 2023, BPL’s circulation increased an unprecedented 33,000 items, averaging over 100 items daily. The machine was selected because it can be upgraded to 15 bins as circulation increases with the community’s demand.

Staff find the advanced automated sorting feature frees their time to work more closely with patrons. Patrons also admire the machine in the viewing window as it transports their books and drops them in the designated bin.

For more information about the Bentonville Public Library expansion, please visit the Bentonville Bond Extension page for BPL .

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