Category: Libraries of the World

Dear Library

02/09/2025 / mayagreen / 0 Comments

Dear Library

A love letter to library institutions all over the world…

To commemorate the 100^th anniversary of the National Library of Scotland, the NLS has curated a special exhibition called ‘Dear Library’, which runs from June 20th this year until April 18th, 2026. It is free to attend and was put together in collaboration with partners across the UK. Each display within this wonderful exhibition ultimately represents how libraries can help and support their patrons, and equally, how you can also support them. As a library worker myself, I was instantly drawn to visiting this exhibition when I saw it advertised on the National Library of Scotland’s webpages and would like to share some of the highlights of this intriguing and galvanising experience.

The Love Letter Display Board…

The exhibition itself is essentially advertised as one giant ‘love letter’ to libraries across the world and the library sector altogether. It was also inspired by the works of Jackie Kay and her poem ‘Dear Library,’ which the exhibition was also named after. Libraries serve as vital community hubs and public spaces where the pursuit of knowledge, reading and digital access is accessible and free to all. In addition to bridging the digital divide, libraries also host programs that promote community, connection, and well-being worldwide. They are also seen as safe spaces by many, and one where individuals do not feel pressure or obligation to spend money to access resources or simply spend time there. As part of the ‘Dear Library’ exhibition, a display board was put up by National Library of Scotland staff for patrons to stick a post-it note with their own love letters to the library sector, including what libraries have done for them and the positive impact they have had on their lives. To see so many of these post-it notes displayed on the board expressing people’s love for the library sector truly warmed my heart. I decided to leave my own little love note to the library sector, which expresses both my own love for both being a patron and regular customer of local libraries in my area and for working in the library sector itself.

The Library Marathon Display.

Now here is a very passionate patron of the library sector! From 2019-2023, author and poet Joseph Coelho commenced a four-year-long mission where he became a member of a library in all the local authorities throughout the UK. Altogether, he visited a total of 213 libraries during his ‘library marathon’ – some of the cards he collected on this UK-wide expedition are displayed on the wall photographed below. His primary goal was to promote libraries as vital public and community spaces in the UK as well as to inspire a love of reading in young people – a mission us library workers can definitely get behind! It was also essentially a call for everyone to join their local library within their catchment area. Below you will see a photograph of the breathtaking wall of library cards he accumulated during this expedition.

The Bookshelves with recommendations from the public and famous Scottish figures…

At the centre of one of the exhibition rooms was an open reading room of bookshelves stacked with a variety of genres, all of which are recommendations put forward by widely-known Scottish figures as well as the general public. In each of these novels was also a note left by individuals expressing their love for the book, the impact it had on them and sometimes even how it shaped them in years to come. I saw many well-known titles such as The Handmaid’s Tale and The Perks of Being a Wallflower, as well as many which I had not heard of but was intrigued by – several were most definitely added to my Goodreads reading list! One patron even noted that a book they put forward as a recommendation had inspired them to pursue a career in the library sector. It was a truly incredible and heart-warming display – it not only gave me some great recommendations to look forward to but also highlighted the joys of reading and the positive impact reading can have on individuals, as well as how significant of a role libraries can play in fostering this love of reading.

The Save our Library Display…

Despite libraries being widely viewed as essential community and support hubs, they usually end up being at the frontline of any government funding cuts in the UK, which can result in closures (usually of small, localised institutions), hours being cut and reduced staffing. This can have a detrimental impact on deprived areas where many patrons may rely on libraries in terms of open access to resources, digital access or even access to a safe and ‘warm’ space. A powerful quote is framed within this display, reading ‘A library card in your hand is your democracy.’ This statement essentially advocates for libraries as vital community hubs where information, literacy skills and digital access are all free and accessible to all. This significantly aligns with freedom of access to information and freedom of information laws in society and helps to ensure that everyone can access information held by public authorities. Ultimately, it reveals how important it is to have publicly accessible institutions like libraries as it aligns with various principles regarding freedom of information and access to it. Part of keeping libraries accessible can also involve having localised institutions located in as many different vicinities as possible within a single catchment area. I therefore felt that the ‘Save Whiteinch Library’ banner featured in this display was particularly relevant in reflecting the importance of small, localised library institutions, and a powerful attribute within this display overall.

Recommendations…

Here are some recommendations from us if you would like to read more about libraries…

Creating a person-centered library : best practices for supporting high-needs patrons

Wahler, Elizabeth A., author.; Johnson, Sarah C., author.

2024

Available at Sighthill Library.

2014

Available at Merchiston Library.

By Rachel Downie

We love our library

Librarians on Holidays

29/08/2024 / mayagreen / 0 Comments

Librarians on Holidays

What do Librarians get up to when they go on Holiday? We go to and visit libraries around the world, of course.

Between the team, we have visited many libraries around the globe—enough to form a recommendation list. So when you are next travelling, why not pop into a library?

European Holidays

Starting off in France. An excerpt from one of our colleagues:

I visited the Conde Musee library at the Chateau de Chantilly near Paris several years ago. It was one of the most amazing libraries I’ve visited. We went to see the art gallery specifically but found that there was so much more to see. The library holds vast collections of books from the Middle Ages, and many rare illuminated manuscripts, mainly collected by Heni d’Orleans, who was one of the greatest collectors of his time. The reading room was designed to showcase all the manuscripts collected by Henri d’Orleans and many of the previous owners of the chateau, and many of the most beautifully bound books are also on display there. It holds the Très riches heures du duc de Berry. A book of hours by the Limbourg brothers, commissioned by the Duke of Berry in the 15^th century and said to be the most beautiful illuminated manuscript in the world. It was purchased by Henri d’Orleans in 1856. We were lucky to see it in the original but it is now displayed in digital form most of the time to preserve it. There is also a book on the life of St Denis, which is one of the few embroidered bindings made in France which has been preserved and has the initials of Marie de Medici enhanced with pearls on the front and dates from 1629. Certainly worth a visit if you’re in the area!

Looking elsewhere in Europe, may we recommend the following:

Trinity College Dublin Library: The largest library in Ireland dating back to 1592. The Book of Kells Exhibition has attracted visitors since the 18^th Century to see a 9th-century gospel manuscript. All inside the incredible Old Library You can visit 7 days a week and tour the magnificent library. (tcd.ie/library/about/history.php)

The Klementinum Astronomical Tower and Baroque Library: After Prague Castle, it is the second largest building in Prague. Albert Einstein taught there and Wolfgang Amademus Mozart played. Located in the old town, it was originally founded as a Jesuit College in 1556, before merging with Charles University in 1622. Baroque Library wasn’t founded till 1722. The library is decorated in frescoes and nods to Greek mythology. The library is home to over 6 million items and hosts the ‘longest continuous series of meteorological observations in Europe’ which dates back to 1775. (prague.eu/en/objevujte/the-clementinum-astronomical-tower-and-baroque-library) A tour is a must.

We also want to give mention to the Royal Danish Library. And if you are looking closer to home, we have Manchester Central Library, Bodleian Libraries in Oxford and Ornkey Public Library.

Libraries further Abroad

Starting off in the United States, we want to give special mentions to:

Boston Main Library: Founded in 1848 and ‘was the first large free municipal library in the United States’ (bpl.org/bpl-history/) and became a National Historic Landmark in 1986. You can find over 23 million items including works from Mozart and Shakespeare. The central library has been home to art and architecture spanning three centuries. One of the founding principles of the library was to be welcoming to all. The design keeps that in mind. It was ‘to be a palace of people’s own’ (bpl.org/art-architecture/).

New York Public Library : The largest public in the United States. The library is home to over 54 million items including originals from James Baldwin to Augusta Savage. The New York Public Library is an iconic feature of Midtown.

Moving from the States, the National Digital Library of Korea. The newest library on the list opened in 2009. Often refer as dibrary, combining library and digital. A Part of the National Library of Korea, it has over 264 million items. The building won an architecture award. The library was created in response to the growing digitisation of information and resources, to preserve the efforts of libraries for future generations.

Now we might be biased but we fully recommend visiting a library on your travels, you never know what you might find.

Like our recommendations, we also have a recommended reading list.

Photo by Alejandro Barba Unsplash

Librarians and libraries

28/08/2024 / mayagreen / 0 Comments

Librarians and libraries

Librarians go on holidays, of course, but that doesn’t make us less of passionate about Libraries in general. At least I personally find it difficult to go away and “switch off” the curiosity about a service that is more than ever-changing and its similarities and differences.

Public Libraries

Just a few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to visit and use the public premises of the library I used to go in the town where I grew up. Despite the passage of time, and the different ways I have been involved in libraries (as a student, as a user, and finally as a professional), up to this day. It’s a trip that I could do blindsided.

Despite of the different locations and countries, the sense of familiarity among the shelves and, the endless enthusiasm about (free!) books, over time my conception of those spaces has been “challenged”, as its best.

Sadly, and beyond homesickness feelings, it is impossible to deny that Public Libraries have lost the important role/attention that they have had from Society and politicians in the past. There were fewer users, than I wished for, and that happens there and here.

If you want a first-hand testimony of how Public Libraries work and face challenges in Scotland. Plus some wider indirect conversations like Mental Health Awareness or Poverty, check the book “The Librarian: The Library Saved Her. Now She Wants To Save The Library”, by Allie Morgan.

Edinburgh Libraries

Just to bring this to your attention, the City of Edinburgh Council has been revising their service in their “Edinburgh Future Libraries strategy 2024 to 2029” plan. This aims to set up a new vision for Edinburgh’s Libraries to provide the framework. Looking at service delivery and development for public and school libraries over the next five years

As an avid reader, and an advocate for libraries I can’t help but wonder a bit about the outcome of those plans, especially in the long run.

Even in days when the overwhelming offer of entertainment that we have at hand (pun intended, I mean our smartphones!). I am still an advocate for Libraries, especially public ones. Possibly because I am glued to the idea and memories that. But among books, there is entertainment, learning and somehow solace, at a different and calmer pace.

E.Pastor Alventosa

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post about our international library visits.

Interested about studying at other libraries, we have SCONUL

Photo by Tobias Fischer

Libraries Week 2023

04/10/2023 / julietkinsey / 0 Comments

Libraries Week 2023

Libraries Week is an annual celebration held to promote the best that libraries have to offer. This year, Libraries Week becomes Green Libraries Week!

From the 2nd to the 8th of October, libraries across the UK will celebrate the work they do related to climate change and sustainability.

Find out what’s happening in libraries throughout the UK during Green Libraries Week 2023 by following @librariesweek

Libraries Week 2023 Resources

You can search for library resources on all sustainability and climate change topics using LibrarySearch

If you find a book is at another campus library, you can always request it through our Click and Collect service.

Lions Gate Garden

Adjacent to the Library at Merchiston campus is the Lion’s Gate Garden. You can see the garden from the relaxation area in the Library.

The Lion’s Gate Garden is an interdisciplinary, permaculture learning and demonstration site. Functioning as a garden, outdoor sustainability laboratory, allotment, venue, performance, re-wilding, and relaxation space. Furthermore, It is designed to protect and enhance the biodiversity of Edinburgh Napier University campuses as per the University’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy

Find out more about the Lion’s Gate and the other green initiatives across the other campuses including the orchard at Craiglockhart and how you can become involved on the Lion’s Gate Blog.

By Sarah Jeffcott

Unusual Libraries from the UK

29/03/2022 / julietkinsey / 0 Comments

Image Source

University libraries tend to be large spaces with shelves with thousands of books, computers and study spaces. Students are used to and expect to have these facilities. You may also use public libraries which may not be as big, but still house a huge variety of books and other resources, but not all libraries are the same……

Here are two Unusual Libraries from the UK

Bethnal Green tube station library

Source

When war broke out in 1939 Bethnal Green Underground station was partly completed, and work was halted. In late 1940 it was decided that as the works were far enough ahead it could be used as a safe shelter for the public during air raids. Over a period of months, the station was transformed to house enough bunks to sleep up to 5000 people, a café, theatre and a nursery. This community 78 feet underground also gained a library in 1941-Britain’s only tube station library.

In September 1940 a bomb had fallen on the roof of Bethnal Green Public Library causing vast destruction to the adult learning library. Librarian George F. Vale and his deputy Stanley Snaith pulled a tarpaulin over the shattered glass dome roof and vowed to bring a library to the underground community. The council approved a grant of £50 and a library was created over the boarded-up tracks of the westbound tunnel. Stanley Snaith wrote “All last summer the caverns echoed to the din of hammers and saws. The result was a triumph.” Later in the Library Review 1942, he wrote “Libraries in converted shops, in village halls, in mobile vans are common enough. But libraries in tube shelters are something new under the sun.”

The tiny library measured 15 feet square and opened from 5.30-8pm every evening. It housed 4000 titles that had survived the bombing of the main library. Romances, classics, poetry and children’s books could be borrowed and help the residents to escape from the horrors happening above ground. Snaith wrote of his patrons, “Each dusk sees the first contingent making its way down to the bowels of the earth. The well and the ill, the old and the young, they come trooping down… In the library the youngsters are vocally busy with their book selection, but why should they not chatter to their heart’s content.” Now the “youngsters” are in their 90’s, but they still have fond memories of the tube station library. Pat Spicer, now 92 said, “You can’t imagine what that library represented to me as a place of safety. It sparked a lifelong love of reading.”

As the war dragged on many would have been anxious about what the future held, but in October Bethnal Green Library celebrates its centenary and tube trains still come and go from Bethnal Green station.

Phone box libraries

Source

Across the UK many redundant old red phone boxes have found a new use as micro libraries. This is often in rural areas which have been affected by cuts to spending on public libraries due to cuts in local council funding. The idea is simple-anyone can take a book home, but they are expected to bring it back or bring a replacement.

The first phone box library was set up in 2009 in Westbury-Sub-Mendip following cuts to the mobile library funding. The parish council purchased the box for £1 and locals put up wooden shelves and donated books.

These micro libraries operate on a system of trust and house a large range of titles from cookery books to classics and children’s books. In villages where everyone knows everyone, the system works well, but in some cities, micro libraries have been vandalised and the local community has had to fund and carry out repairs.

These are just 2 examples of libraries in unusual places. If you would like to find out about some other unusual libraries click on the links below:

The Worlds Oddest Libraries

Donkey Libraries of Columbia

ReadingClub2000

Also, check out our amazing article on

Wilderness Libraries of edamalakudi

By Vivienne Hamilton

The Wilderness Library: Libraries of The World Edamalakudi

20/09/2021 / julietkinsey / 1 Comment

Source

How far would you travel to borrow a library book? Into town on the bus? One Edinburgh Napier campus to the other? How about trekking 18 kilometers through a forest in which you may or may not stumble across the occasional wild elephant? I’ll be honest – I probably wouldn’t bother. The patrons of the library in the remote Idukki district of Kerala in southern India, however, are prepared to do just that.

The library in Edamalakudi doubles as a teashop, which no doubt comes as a huge relief to the patrons who have climbed uphill through an impenetrable forest to pick up their paperbacks. Kerala is India’s most literate state, and the residents here – while poor and marginalised – are ardent readers. When it was first established in 2010, the library stocked precisely 160 books – all Indian classics – but over the years word of the library’s success has spread, and it has ambitions to collect a thousand more books. The library’s borrowing rate is high. We wish it a thousand books and a thousand more.

Category: Libraries of the World

Dear Library

Dear Library

A love letter to library institutions all over the world…