I think this might be my favourite public library in South Australia. Maybe it’s to do with its location (heart of the city) and it caters to the city users.

Date of Visit: 28 September 2021

Features: I loved the collection and the space of the City Library – Adelaide.

Collection

The library is a member of the South Australia public library network under the Adelaide City Libraries. At the time of the visit, the library offered a contemporary (quite a brand new) collection of reading material including a community language collection. I was salivating at the Japanese books! I really must get back and brush up on my Japanese reading, I thought! They also had a wide range of adult fiction and I loved the display units at the end of the shelves. They also had a collection of board games for people to use in the library and board game meet ups for game enthusiasts every third Saturday. Brilliant! I’m not sure how popular this event was but I could see this as a potential magnet for bored (maybe nerdy) teenagers (or adults for that matter) on the weekend while in the city. There were also magazines and kids’ reading items available. However, I noticed (and was surprised to find) that they didn’t have a CD collection!

Space and Facilities

This was a spacious, naturally-lit (dark in some areas of the library particularly in the foyer) and quite an inviting library. I especially loved the Outdoor Reading Area where you could have your lunch and fresh air while reading or studying. There was also a sink with hot/cold water tap facilities so you could make yourself a cup of tea or fill out your water bottle. Brilliant! There was plenty of comfortable seating around and a high number of public PCs available with dividers between computers (for COVID safety purposes). Meeting rooms were also available for hire and there were also toilets in the vicinity. It had a nice view although its location was a little difficult to find and people needed to use the lift and/or stairs to access the library.

Staff

There were 4 staff roaming the floor at the time of the visit. I spoke to one of the staff members who was helpful in providing me information about work availability in the library. She recommended that I look at the council website for job ads and put my name down for volunteering and casual work.

Overall Impression: I enjoyed visiting this library. It had everything that I would expect from a public library – plus more! It’s worth a visit. There are currently 3 public libraries in the Adelaide CBD but this was the nearest library at the time we visited Adelaide city – near Rundle Mall.