Since I retired, I spend more time in libraries. I’d estimate that 80% of the books I read now are library books. Usually, I can persuade the librarians to buy most of the books I suggest–giving them chocolates helps. But I love to visit libraries. Shelves and shelves of books never get old for me!
Lea Teascher’s lovely book, 150 LIBRARIES YOU NEED TO VISIT BEFORE YOU DIE (2025), is a browser’s delight! So many grand libraries! So much to see! You can get a taste of this book by just clicking on the big white arrow above. GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
EUROPEAALST01 UTOPIA P.12AARHUS02 DOKK1 P.15ADMONT03 ADMONT MONASTERY LIBRARY P.16ANTWERP04 HENDRIK CONSCIENCE P.17LIBRARYBARCELONA05 GABRIEL GARCÍA MÁRQUEZ P.18LIBRARYBERLIN06 JACOB AND P.20WILHELM GRIMM CENTRE07 PHILOLOGICAL LIBRARY P.2108 BERLIN STATE LIBRARY P.22BIRMINGHAM09 LIBRARY OF BIRMINGHAM P.24BUDAPEST10 METROPOLITAN P.25ERVIN SZABÓ LIBRARYCAMBRIDGE11 WREN LIBRARY P.26COIMBRA12 JOANINA LIBRARY P.28COPENHAGEN13 THE BLACK DIAMOND P.29DUBLIN14 TRINITY COLLEGE LIBRARY P.31HELSINKI15 OODI P.3316 RIKHARDINKATU LIBRARY P.36ISLE OF ARRAN17 LIBRARY IN THE WOODS P.37LE HAVRE18 OSCAR NIEMEYER LIBRARY P.38LEUVEN19 UNIVERSITY LIBRARY P.41OF LEUVENLJUBLJANA20 NATIONAL AND UNIVERSITY P.42LIBRARY OF SLOVENIALONDON21 BRITISH LIBRARY P.4322 BRITISH MUSEUM P.46READING ROOMMADRID23 ROYAL LIBRARY P.47OF EL ESCORIALMAFRA24 MAFRA PALACE LIBRARY P.48MANCHESTER25 CHETHAM’S LIBRARY P.4926 THE JOHN RYLANDS LIBRARY P.50MARIA LAACH27 JESUIT LIBRARY P.51AT MARIA LAACH ABBEYMOSCOW28 RUSSIAN STATE LIBRARY P.52OSLO29 DEICHMAN BJØRVIKA P.53OXFORD30 BODLEIAN LIBRARY P.54PARIS31 BNF FRANÇOIS-MITTERRAND P.5532 BNF RICHELIEU P.5633 SAINTE-GENEVIÈVE LIBRARY P.58PORTO-VECCHIO34 L’ANIMU P.5935 NATIONAL LIBRARY OF P.62THE CZECH REPUBLICPRISTINA36 NATIONAL LIBRARY P.64OF KOSOVOSIENA37 PICCOLOMINI LIBRARY P.65SPIJKENISSE38 SPIJKENISSE PUBLIC LIBRARY P.66ST. GALLEN39 ST. GALLEN’S ABBEY LIBRARY P.67STOCKHOLM40 CITY OF STOCKHOLM LIBRARY P.70STUTTGART41 STUTTGART CITY LIBRARY P.72THE HAGUE42 HANDELINGENKAMER P.75TILBURG43 LOCHAL P.76ULM44 WIBLINGEN ABBEY LIBRARY P.77UTRECHT45 UTRECHT NEUDE LIBRARY P.81VENICE46 MARCIANA LIBRARY P.82VERONA47 CAPITOLARE LIBRARY P.83VIENNA48 AUSTRIAN NATIONAL LIBRARY P.85VUGHT49 DEPETRUS P.86ZURICH50 UB LAW P.88ASIAAKITA51 NAKAJIMA LIBRARY P.89BALOCHISTAN52 CAMEL LIBRARY P.90BANGKOK53 CHULALONGKORN P.91UNIVERSITY LIBRARYBEIJING54 BEIJING LIBRARY P.9455 NATIONAL LIBRARY OF CHINA P.96HAIKOU56 CLOUD CAVE LIBRARY P.97HANOI57 VAC LIBRARY P.100HUE58 THAI BINH LAU ROYAL LIBRARY P.101ISTANBUL59 SALT GALATA P.102JAFFNA60 JAFFNA PUBLIC LIBRARY P.103JAKARTA61 OMAH LIBRARY P.104KANAZAWA62 UMIMIRAI LIBRARY P.107LEH63 THIKSEY GOMPA LIBRARY P.108MATSUBARA64 MATSUBARA CIVIC LIBRARY P.110MUMBAI65 DAVID SASSOON LIBRARY P.111NINGBO66 TIANYI LIBRARY P.112OSAKA67 CHILDREN’S BOOK FOREST P.113QINHUANGDAO68 SEASHORE LIBRARY P.115RAMPUR69 RAZA LIBRARY P.116SELÇUK70 LIBRARY OF CELSUS P.117SEOUL71 SEOUL CHEONGUN P.120LITERATURE LIBRARY72 STARFIELD LIBRARY P.122SHANGHAI73 SHANGHAI LIBRARY EAST P.123SHUANGYUE BAY74 WATER DROP LIBRARY P.126TAINAN75 TAINAN PUBLIC LIBRARY P.127TAIPEI76 NOT JUST LIBRARY P.130TIANJIN77 TIANJIN BINHAI LIBRARY P.131TOKYO78 TAMA ART UNIVERSITY P.132LIBRARYXIUWU79 LIBRARY IN RUINS P.134YUSUHARA80 YUSUHARA COMMUNITY P.135LIBRARYTHE AMERICASANN ARBOR81 WILLIAM W. COOK LEGAL P.138RESEARCH LIBRARYAUSTIN82 AUSTIN CENTRAL LIBRARY P.139BALTIMORE83 GEORGE PEABODY LIBRARY P.140BOGOTÁ84 VIRGILIO BARCO LIBRARY P.141BRAMPTON85 SPRINGDALE LIBRARY P.142CALGARY86 CALGARY CENTRAL LIBRARY P.145CHICAGO87 HAROLD WASHINGTON P.146LIBRARYCLEVELAND88 CARNEGIE WEST BRANCH P.147COSTA MESA89 DONALD DUNGAN LIBRARY P.149DENVER90 DENVER CENTRAL LIBRARY P.150DES MOINES91 STATE LAW LIBRARY P.151DETROIT92 DETROIT MAIN LIBRARY P.152DRUMMONDVILLE93 DRUMMONDVILLE PUBLIC P.153LIBRARYEXETER94 CLASS OF 1945 LIBRARY P.156HUATICOCHA95 YUYARINA PACHA LIBRARY P.158LA MOLINA96 PLAZA BIBLIOTECA SUR P.161LOS ANGELES97 LOS ANGELES CENTRAL P.162LIBRARYMEDELLÍN98 SANTO DOMINGO SAVIO P.163LIBRARY PARKMEXICO CITY99 UNAM CENTRAL LIBRARY P.164100 VASCONCELOS LIBRARY P.165MISSOULA101 MISSOULA PUBLIC LIBRARY P.167MONTRÉAL102 THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES P.168IN MONTRÉALNEW HAVEN103 BEINECKE RARE BOOK P.170& MANUSCRIPT LIBRARYNEW YORK104 MORGAN LIBRARY & MUSEUM P.172105 NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY P.173MAIN BRANCH106 STAVROS NIARCHOS P.177FOUNDATION LIBRARYON A STREET NEAR YOU107 LITTLE FREE LIBRARIES P.178OTTAWA108 LIBRARY OF THE CANADIAN P.179PARLIAMENTPHILADELPHIA109 PARKWAY CENTRAL LIBRARY P.180PHOENIX110 BURTON BARR CENTRAL P.181LIBRARYPUEBLA111 PALAFOXIANA LIBRARY P.182QUINCY112 THOMAS CRANE LIBRARY P.183RIO DE JANEIRO113 ROYAL PORTUGUESE P.184CABINET OF READINGSAN DIEGO114 GEISEL LIBRARY P.186SÃO PAULO115 SESC POMPÉIA P.187SCOTTSDALE116 ARABIAN PUBLIC LIBRARY P.188SEATTLE117 SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY P.189118 SUZZALLO LIBRARY P.193ST. LOUIS119 ST. LOUIS PUBLIC LIBRARY P.195TOLEDO120 TOLEDO LUCAS COUNTY P.196PUBLIC LIBRARYTORONTO121 TORONTO REFERENCE P.197LIBRARYVANCOUVER122 VANCOUVER PUBLIC LIBRARY P.201VINLAND123 COAL CREEK LIBRARY P.202WASHINGTON, DC124 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS P.203125 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. P.206MEMORIAL LIBRARYWINTHROP126 WINTHROP PUBLIC LIBRARY P.208OCEANIAADELAIDE127 STATE LIBRARY P.211OF SOUTH AUSTRALIACHRISTCHURCH128 TˉU RANGA P.212CRAIGIEBURN129 CRAIGIEBURN LIBRARY P.214LIVERPOOL130 YELLAMUNDIE LIBRARY P.215MARRICKVILLE131 MARRICKVILLE LIBRARY P.219MELBOURNE132 STATE LIBRARY VICTORIA P.220PARRAMATTA133 CITY OF PARRAMATTA P.221LIBRARY (PHIVE)PERTH134 CITY OF PERTH LIBRARY P.225SYDNEY135 STATE LIBRARY P.226OF NEW SOUTH WALESWELLINGTON136 NATIONAL LIBRARY P.227OF NEW ZEALANDAFRICA ANDTHE MIDDLE EASTABU DHABI137 ABU DHABI P.228CHILDREN’S LIBRARYACCRA138 LIBRARY OF AFRICA AND P.230THE AFRICAN DIASPORAADDIS ABABA139 ABREHOT P.231ALEXANDRIA140 BIBLIOTHECA ALEXANDRINA P.232CAPE TOWN141 CENTRAL LIBRARY CAPE TOWN P.234CHINGUETTI142 THE LIBRARIES P.235OF CHINGUETTIDAKAR143 AFROTHÈQUE P.236DOHA144 QATAR NATIONAL LIBRARY P.237FEZ145 AL-QARAWIYYIN LIBRARY P.240MUYINGA146 MUYINGA LIBRARY P.241MWANYANYA147 MARIAM’S LIBRARY P.244PAYNESVILLE148 LIBERIAN LEARNING CENTRE P.246SHARJAH149 HOUSE OF WISDOM P.247SINAI150 SAINT CATHERINE’S P.251MONASTERY
I am a full-fledged library geek so I approve, George.
The library in my home town of Chelmsford, Massachusetts, was built in 1894 and dedicated in 1895. It was a grand building with a columned entrance, a domed roof, and dirt floors in the closet in the basement where they stored old copies of magazines; as a teen and pre-teen I would haunt thar closet, digging out old issues of THE SATURDAY EVENING POST to get at the many wonderful short stories that lay hidden within. Back then, you needed to be ten years old before you could get a library card, which I did on my tenth birthday. During the Depression, my step-great-grandfather would hook up his buggy once a week and drive to the center of town from its southern end to return library books for his many neighbors and pick up any new ones they might want. Due to finances, the library was open two or three days a week, depending on the town budget for that year; by my junior high school years it had expanded to six days a week. I remember the librarians well — Mrs. Lester Ball and Miss Edith Pickles — both kindly ladies who soon allowed me to browse among the adult shelves, rather than being restricted to the children’s section. To see what the library looked like back then, one need only view THE SIMPSONS — Springfield’s Town Hall was modeled on the Adams Library, thanks to a cartoonist who also grew up in Chelmsford. In the mid-Nineties, a large addition was added to the original building without destroying or altering its original 1895 look.
Jerry, I have my parents to thank for my love of Libraries. My mother and father took us–I’m the eldest of five children–to the local Library every week. We’d spend a half hour or so examining books and then ALL of us were required to check out a book. A week later, we’d do it all again. Needless to say, the Kelley Family became known as Big Readers. And, it motivated me to get a Master’s of Library Science degree and work as a Librarian for a few years. And, who else has a 10,000+ books in their basement? I love Libraries!
Nice. When I get home I will definitely look for a copy of this.
The Central Branch of the Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza was built during the Depression. It’s a huge building with a ton of books. At one point, when Jackie was working downtown, about once a week after I dropped her off, I would stop at the library on the way home and just spend an hour or so browsing the fiction aisles. I often came home with the maximum (then) 10 books.
Jeff, our local Library had a 10 book limit, too. But I’d convince one of my sisters to take out some of the books I wanted that exceeded the limit.
One of our two local libraries also opened around 1895 like Jerry’s library, though on a much smaller scale.
When we first moved to Brooklyn in 1958, we were two blocks from the huge Kings Highway branch – it seemed enormous with two full floors, after just having a weekly bookmobile in Queens. The second floor was a huge children’s section, but I quickly made a home on the first floor. That’s where I started browsing the fiction section for the first time, looking for big books – I found THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO there, which remains one of my all-time favorite books. In June, you could take out up to 10 books for the summer (other than new books).
Jeff,Andrew Carnegie and his foundation funded the construction of 2,509 libraries worldwide between 1883 and 1929. One of those Libraries was in Niagara Falls, NY in the downtown area. I visited it by riding my bike and later, when I got my license, by car. I loved the old fashioned architecture. A new, modern Library was built in Niagara Falls in 1974 and the old Carnegie Library was turned into an art museum.
Birmingham, where I live now, has a very good library (The Baldwin). I took a tour of it a few months ago and saw all sorts of wondrous equipment, services and collections.
Patti, I’m alarmed that many Libraries have had their funding cut (just like NPR and PBS). Diane and I donate funds every year to our local Libraries and we spend money at Library Book Sales to help support activities. Our Libraries are always busy and they deserve to be properly funded.
As a rule, librarians (like teachers) are the nicest and most underrated professionals in the world. Certainly in the U.S., and increasingly so as we slide back into the Dark Ages thanks to the ruling class and their political lackeys. When I was a kid, our county bookmobile arrived every second Friday to serve our 6th grade class. Later, in high school, I often asked for books they’d locate through interlibrary loan. At that time, I also availed myself of the bigger library in the next county, and the librarians there honoured my request for a card even though I didn’t Iive there. The Austin library system is an excellent resource in an otherwise stumblingly run city, with many free civic services (like preschool playgroups). I’m always heartened when I see plenty of family traffic at or local branch. It’s a welcome if tenuous counter-balance to the book-banning, wilfully ignorant mindset of the Texas state government, god help us.
Fred, I got into trouble each week when the Bookmobile visited my elementary school, Pacific Avenue. Our class would go down the stairs and out into the parking lot where the Bookmobile waited for us. I’d be the first one on and the last one off. We had 15 minutes to find a book and check it out before we had to return to our classroom. I was always searching the shelves for science fiction books…and always late!
George, the Fayette County, WV, bookmobile of my kid hood and teen years carried Heinlein, Norton, and assorted Doubleday SF. As a teen, via ILL, it came up with Lovecraft and Howard for me–Arkham House and Gnome Press!
Fred, my Bookmobile had Heinlein, Norton, and Asimov. But, no Arkham House or Gnome Press.
That list s just too long – and most of these libraties never in reach for me.
But I have fond memories of our little city library and the libratian (mother of one of my classmates) who let me take out “adult books” qhwn I wasn’t even 16 years old.
Especially the translations of US books which arrive every two weeks from the America House were dantastic – like Cannery Row and A Steetcar named Desire.
So when I was a student this German American Institute became one of my favourite places to spend the afternoon and also read the NYT.
Fond memories!
OT:
My own SF libray contans around 12 000 books, mainly in English language and since noone in my family is intersted in SF (except my Hungarian parter – but she can’t read English and at 80 years she’s too old to learn it ) so I’ve been thinking what to do with those old paprebacks???
Wolf, old Science Fiction paperbacks are often sought after by collectors. There used to be a few SF bookstores in Western NY but they’re all gone. The closest one still operating is in Toronto, Canada. It’s a little too far away for me to access regularly. I try to visit once a year or so.
We used to have a beautiful old library in the part of San Diego where I grew y. In the 70s or maybe late 60s it was torn down and replaced by one about the size of a modest 21 bedroom house. It’s closed because a new one was built near a part & newish elementary school. I used to donate ooks to a newish library closer to my house. The librarian let me look at the list of books she could order. If I had received or was expecting some for review that I didn’t want to keep, I’d let her know so she could order others , and id give them to her. After 8 .months she told me she couldn’t take any more because they books had to go to the main branch to be entered in the system and they were a year behind. She had a cabinet filled with books waiting one entered in the system. I went to the la Mesa CA library and was told they would sell them at their monthly sale for $1 and use the money to buy ew books. I suggested they consider just taking brand new book and entering them in the system but they said they were considered used books even though they hadn’t been read. I have up
Maggie, some libraries have some strange rules about book donations.
Including having all the choosing be their own. Seems parochial, when being offered a potentially interesting, and circulating, title for free. But I suppose it does discourage vanity=press and latter-day similar items.