I found Столична библиотека, the Sofia City Library (SCL), on a pleasant promenade of trees, fountains, statues and the tram. Slaveykov Square is the perfect place – central, packed with bookstalls, sellers and shops and named after beloved father and son writers.

The building takes up the whole block and seamlessly interweaves a medical center, TV station, barbershop, theatre… Dating from 1928 it had various purposes before SCL moved in during the nineties.

Though mainly on the second and third levels, the biblioteka’s displays, offices and storage share some floors. In the elegant lobby, SCL has vitrines and flyers and posters advertise upcoming plays. Arrows point to the theater’s box office, and the Библиотека upstairs, and a placard lists what’s on each tier. It’s in Cyrillic, so the security guard took me to Violeta’s office.

It had been five years since COVID made a planned visit impossible, so I was delighted to finally meet Violeta Bozhkova, the secretary to Yulia Tsinzova, Director of the Sofia City Library since 2013.

She introduced me to Yulia and Biser Yankov, their Technical Information Expert, (my translator), and Devora Stoyavuva (new to YA and also getting a first tour of the byzantine structure). Everyone spoke excellent English, so mistakes are mine and apologies for misspellings. Due to the different alphabets, translations vary – names more than words.

Yulia is in charge of quite an institution. Last year, circulation was 850,000 and the 100,000 subscribers (23,000 new) came 1.2 million times and had access to over 1 million volumes, about 250,000 in foreign languages, and wifi and computers. It’s the biggest public library in the country and will be 97 years old in October. They’re Sofia’s archive – the most important repository in the city – and have a treasure trove of heritage.

The system has five facilities and has added or upgraded two branches in the last two years. Ovchakupel is near the rapidly expanding university sector. Borrow and return at any of their locales (including the five collections in Vitosha Nature Park and Zoo), but they are not connected to the neighborhood libraries.

Considered one of 27 regional libraries, though the biggest, SCL’s share of government funding is based on personnel figures (136), not circulation or population, so the book budget was 111,000 BGN plus 4,500 for journals.

Open weekdays 8:30-7:45 and 9-2:45 on Saturdays, SCL receives grants to encourage reading, writing and literacy. Drawing, public speaking and poetry contests attract K-12s and the Bibliobus brings musicians, STEM games, quizzes and gifts to users in the outer suburbs.

A tram boosts commuter reading and the 10-year-old campaign for green libraries has outposts as far as Vitosha Mountain, more than 10 miles away (where despite the country touching Greece, snow clings on in late April, after the ski slopes close).

Annual dues are zero up to age seven and for pensioners and just eight lev for adults (a lev is about 60 cents) but there are frequent opportunities to snag a free card as staff are frequently out and about, especially during summer holidays or events like the Chinese Embassy’s Dragon Boat Festival or the art fair they hosted in the plaza out front.

This lively metropolis of 1.5 million has enormous swathes of nature by its magnificent temples, mosques and cathedrals. Walking around, we stumbled on a breakdancing competition, go-karts, paddle boats, a carnival and a hula troupe. The populace gravitates to the outdoors, so in summer, SCL finds them at a different park each week, bringing singers and performers.

The cavernous premises has lots of spots for concerts and exhibitions. When I went, this gallery had a collection appropriately named Burnt Books, by Gredi Assa, Bulgaria’s most famous artist. Openings include wine and are well attended.

The lovely yet formidable interior of the edifice is softened by chandeliers, intricately patterned marble walls and tiles, and the grand pianos found throughout. Elsewhere, warm wood, pictures, tall windows, high ceilings and plants give it a light and airy feel.

We headed to the Teen Lab, partially financed by the US. Laptops, VR headsets, a graphics tablet, mixers, cameras, standing mics, a motion detector, digital pens and pads, a streaming station and Photoshop, Tinkercad, Blender, AutoDesk and InkScape software let youngsters experiment and film videos.

The thrice weekly classes are only an hour so they mainly demonstrate the equipment, but YA’s use the 3-D printer to make toy soldiers and slinking crocodiles. And kids get to experience roller coaster rides and exciting expeditions via a VR entertainment course that sharpens spatial awareness and educates them in advanced technology.

An alcove in the same vibrant shades has mounted cubes of Elvis and Sinatra LP’s and we stood around and marveled while the gramophone played a tune. Besides vinyl, they have cassette tapes, DVDs, videos, etc. and the machines to play these relics so everyone can enjoy echoes of the past online, thanks to a 36,000 lev donation in 2021.

Biser’s chief responsibility is the digital platform, Serdika (heart in English), which besides the media, has documents, recordings, manuscripts, realia, sheet music and copies of paintings. The impressive center, helped by a four million lev award from Norway, boasts scanners for various sizes, portable lighting and an array of powerful computers, the only limiting factor being the 70 year copyright. The oldest item is from around 1870 when they were liberated from the Ottomans.

After being made available electronically, some books are published. The fourth in the series of Beautiful Sofia, Interesting Sofia and Curious Sofia is being done in conjunction with the Ministry of Culture.

We headed through an archway framed in gorgeous stained glass into Fiction…

…a clean corridor of inventive geometric designs, cushy seats and illuminated consoles separated by genre. Bulgarian fantasy, new materials, sci-fi and steamy romance – Biser’s comment on the bosomy covers – all feature here.

Openings lead to passages of plush couches by sunny windows. Poetry and titles in Hungarian, Italian, German, Kazakh, Ukrainian, French, and Greek are stacked high. Often, older generations are able to read the Russian items.

You can do a course in library information technologies, a four year bachelor’s degree here, and a master’s is available, but salaries are low.

Swinging saloon doors bring you into a chamber of glowing varnished floors great for group gatherings. Many of the display shelves are affixed to the walls, an innovative approach for easy cleaning.

As we breeze passed meeting enclaves named after Saint Sofia’s daughters – Faith, Hope and Love – Biser mentioned they have readings at the unaffiliated bar in the basement.  

Maria Mihailova is in the art department where works by significant painters adorn the walls. One of its areas has a large conference table and a suspicious dark panel – a one way mirror that’s a remnant of when the property was the headquarters of the Communist Party and this was a soundproofed interrogation room. Evidently tunnels off a bunker in the cellar go to the National Assembly, Parliament… Built at the beginning of the Cold War in case of further bombardments by the Americans and the British like the ones during World War II, the warrens are now sealed off.

The academic (nonfiction) section holds titles classified by subject – medical, technical, economics, health, sports, biography etc. – and then by author.

Dressed in radiant reds, one end has a raised part where barstools at a high table get a marvelous view of the countryside. Offshoots have stout cubes on wheels matching brilliant blue surroundings. Step into a space of calming violet tones or the orange and yellow of the magazine racks’ seating to buy a coffee to sip while perusing a newspaper.

SCL’s website has its history, annual reports, calendar of events, an active YouTube channel and X and Instagram accounts. I absolutely love the virtual tour, which has shots of the branches and bus.

Further on, folding chairs arranged for talks face a stage with a projector and overhead screen while the far side has velveteen study carousels complementing the rust, cream and cobalt cases.

Facebook shows a haiku night, battle of the poets, and many celebrations with prizes, musicians, authors and supporters. Clubs announce monthly selections, a lecture on winemaking kicks off the Wonders of Science series, a psychotherapist is the first speaker for the Science in the Library program and there are Easter and Christmas charity bazaars.

Like many European organizations, SCL frequently coordinates with other countries to promote cultural knowledge. Romanian activities are prevalent, as the two countries have close ties besides their long shared border, despite what must be a difficult language barrier.

SCL has Korean and Turkish Corners and a rare book area full of old maps and photos. And it has three small museums – the personal collections of Konstantin Stoilov, Kiril Hristov and Simeon Radev – politicians, diplomats, historians, lawyers, poets and writers.

Splendid carpets, antique furnishings, leather padded doors, and a death mask (!) are organized as if the occupants had just left – a great way to highlight these valuable bequests.

We go out to a second entrance and the American Corner. Besides physical English materials they provide an e-library of databases, documentaries, and e-books.

Pippi Longstocking and Yan Bibiyan, the hero of Bulgaria’s first kid’s fantasy, grace the flights of stairs to Children’s. Bins and cubbies are at toddler height and colorful murals catch the eye. Pillows on a built-in bench are perfect for hiding away and beanbags, little stools, a tiny piano, mobiles and tot-sized chairs greet the small set. There’s a classroom for pupils, a division for adolescents and 70,000 choices for the 10,000 patrons.

Youth has school books by subject, and slots for Romany folklore, Bulgarian fairytales, Winnie the Pooh, Paddington Bear and Spanish and Russian materials. The Van Gogh picture opens into a space themed sanctuary of night sky and stars. At one point, they decorated for a Harry Potter costume ball.

There’s a comic studio and weekly storytimes for babies and toddlers. Writers, bloggers and editors attend the monthly literary club for young adults. Every Saturday the branches have games of logic and twice a week in summer kids attend workshops, draw, watch animated movies and play interactive games. Employees go to universities, kindergartens, schools and crèches to tell stories and introduce folks to the library.

SCL has school newspapers from all over the country and has digitized the older archives of the Bulgarian Children’s Periodical Press where many renowned Bulgarian authors were first published.

Yulia, Biser and Violeta were so kind to give me such a warm welcome and so much time. It seems they’ve thought of everything to engage the community and inspire a love of literature. What a fabulous establishment!

Almost fifty years later, despite having just under 80,000 residents, it could be Europe’s answer to Dubai, set in the pretty Pyrenees. Many of the hamlets that perhaps had a small part-time cafe are now covered in vast modern plazas with roads winding up the slopes looming above. Fifty years can produce a lot of changes. Luckily the high rises and highways are dwarfed by the landscape as the country has the highest capital city in Europe.

I found La biblioteca comunal d’Escaldes-Engordany (BCEE) near the top of the steep pedestrian mall conveniently housed by the art center as they collaborate extensively.

After meeting my contact Vanessa Sanjurjo, the manager, and her colleague, Cristina Gomez, the museum guide who translated for us, I was delighted to hear that heritage is as important as ever. During my summer here, every weekend brought fêtes and carnivals in a different locale. Dances, music and food pulled you into the festive spirit and the party seemed never-ending. Both the library and the culture facility play a huge part in keeping the Andorran identity alive.

BCEE has 22,600 books and is open nine to eight during the week and 9:30-7 on Saturdays except for lunch breaks. They welcome tourists for in-house reading, free wifi and computers, but only residents have borrowing privileges, which are free, a rarity in Europe.

The Adult department is downstairs so noise from Children’s doesn’t float up. The quiet, soothing maroon decor, lots of table space, good lighting, a wonderful arched window, and the distressed wood and tile floors make for a clean and inviting area.

BCEE has books, (including French and Spanish ones in addition to Catalan) as well as graphic novels, magazines and local newspapers but so much is online they no longer carry physical media as it wasn’t popular here. However a couple of organizations do still have DVDs and audiobooks and since the villages banded together for interlibrary loan, you can request materials from any institution and pick them up wherever you want and return them anywhere. In such a small country it’s easy to shuttle items around.

They have ebooks through a national project and patrons borrow eight things for a month and are allowed to renew three times. No fines are charged, but you must return overdues before checking out anything else.

Beyond the sleek lines of the information and circulation desk near the glass elevator (to match the glass stairs) a lustrous old card catalog by the reference texts is kept for sentimental purposes.

The three staffers are paid by the municipality which provides assistance such as computer support, but they process and barcode acquisitions themselves. The cultural division apportions the budget and allots them 8500 euros per year for books and 2500 for journals.

BCEE has about 21,000 visitors a year, a circulation of 6000, and monthly reading clubs where the choice will often be integrated with folkloric activities.

Their web page has PSAs about the free on-demand bus, sells tickets for a dance performance, lets you email the consul and promotes a body expression workshop, social services and appliance collection for recycling.

It’s a big room and a study nook and long desk in another alcove that lets multiple pupils work together adds to the capaciousness. Prints adorn the walls and interesting little displays abound, one looking like a toppling stack of tomes.

All financing of the eight public libraries in Andorra comes from the respective towns except the National Library provides the databases. La Massana’s Museu la Massana Còmic is in a separate location from its biblioteca and the Biblioteca Pública del Govern d’Andorra is a public establishment and also houses federal documents. If an Andorran author publishes something, they will buy and distribute it. Its website links to new materials and the reading clubs at each institution, but otherwise, the various enclaves do their own promotion.

The government library has a Facebook page advertising new offerings, book talks for all ages, adult learning events, summer reading and movie nights. There are videos of people talking about literature, awards ceremonies and shots of the booth featuring their publishing accomplishments at Catalan Book Week where they emphasized custom in several presentations, e.g. when local editors and authors gathered for ‘Morning of Andorra.’

The building BCEE leases was erected in the 1930s on a hotel’s parking lot, and was originally one of the first cinemas in the principality. The owners rented it to a bank for a while, which explains the feel of the long silver basement hallway leading to an enormous unbreachable vault door. Storing a treasure trove of party props, there’s a delightful amalgamation of art supplies, paint pots, neat rolls of colorful plastic and paper, tiki torches, puppets, baskets, carved parade figures and even oil barrels inside.

Two flights up we met the delightful children’s librarian in her domain.

She mentioned they do numerous programs for kids and join forces with schools on certain subjects in creative ways that can be more fun than the scholarly approach. Every three months employees prepare a new amusement promoting BCEE in escolas that have different options for everyone.

Andorrans are closely related to Catalonians (contrary to popular belief, Països Catalans span a much bigger region than just Barcelona) and despite Spanish and French being widely spoken, Catalan is the official language.

Reflecting the wide variety of the origins of their tourists and immigrants, the country catalog has listings in a stunning array of tongues from English, Kurdish, Vietnamese and Arabic to Hebrew, Hungarian and Hindi.

Youngsters have Spanish and French titles too and sturdy plastic furnishings and board book bins on wheels.

Older users have round tables to study at. One school is quite close by so a lot of boys and girls come in to do homework.

Juvenile items are arranged by age and color-coded.

Local History volumes are kept in the National Library whose website shows art workshops, scholarships, and happenings. For such a small country there are a lot of cultural venues and functions, ensuring their ethnic background will always be a large part of citizens’ lives.

Almost finished the tour, we peeped into Vanessa’s tidy office and chatted for a bit about the educational system. Vanessa studied philosophy and took online librarianship courses from Madrid University.

Passing the PC section where six units overlook the premises we headed back down through this lovely realm.

The ability of La biblioteca comunal d’Escaldes-Engordany, and the communities, libraries and entities of this tiny place to cherish and maintain the centuries-old society that has thrived here is impressive. Their wealth of resources means millions of tourists can never erase what it truly means to be Andorran.

What lucky people to have such tradition and meaning to bind them together!

Thank you so much to Vanessa for taking pity on monolingual me and making the time for this visit to happen (not an easy thing when Google translate isn’t well versed in Catalan) and to Cristina, without whom, communicating as they showed me around would have been extremely difficult.

Situated at the end of the Knez Mihailova pedestrian zone, it’s right by the lush and enormous Kalemegdan Park and its fascinating fortress and zoo.

Housed in a mid-nineteenth century building that gracefully mixes Renaissance, Art Nouveau and Art Deco and was originally the Serbian Crown Hotel (designated an Immovable Cultural Property in 1981) BGB was founded in 1928. Shortly thereafter, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia’s first public Children’s Reading Room opened.

Though the 1941 German Bombardment destroyed the adult structure and invaluable assets, Children’s soldiered on. Despite the war, adult services resumed in 1943 and they were fully operational by early 1945 with 20,000 items.

Brass banisters and marble steps lead up from the copper bulletin boards and engraved schematic in the foyer. Inside is a tourist office and the security and coatroom depot, manned by Billy.

A plaque discusses the nearby Roman fortification, so it’s not surprising that during the renovation turning the lodgings into a library they uncovered the lapidarium in the Roman Hall where my delightful English speaking contact, Tatjana Aleksandrov, took me to drink Serbian coffee and lemonade as we chatted.

Used frequently for film screenings, lectures, concerts and more, cushioned tiered seating showcases the archaeological specimen.

When younger, Tatjana, the Head of Lending Department, wanted to be a detective but she decided to do Andragogy (teaching adult learners).

BGB has more than two million items, 158,000 members and a million visits annually. They’ve been making the collection accessible online since 2012 and were the first Yugoslavian public library with a computerized catalog. Most staffers went to university and everyone takes the month long, seven-course certification.

Almost 260,000 people attended the 3,000+ programs held last year and the database for print articles, Ebart Newspaper Archive, is great for researchers.

The main level is bright and airy and looks onto the verdant expanse across the street. BGB has wifi and air conditioning and the snack and coffee machines are great if you’re feeling peckish.

The multipurpose area for browsers of literature and paintings significant to Belgrade often hosts press conferences and other affairs.

Ten welcoming librarians and assistant librarians help patrons and answer questions. Above Circulation, doves of peace soar over bronze reliefs of the edifice and various local landmarks.

Fiction is categorized by mystery, fantasy, romance… Orange labels denote Serbian authors while the green are foreign. Perch on easily moved hassocks as you peruse.

We headed down into the bowels of the building where, like an iceberg, the majority of the books live.

The central building of the Belgrade City Library has 300,000 items. About 10% of the books are on the shelves in open access, the rest are located on the four subterranean floors which have an overhead foam and water system to protect the contents.

Irreplaceable materials are stored on moving shelves. Auto sensors ensure personnel can’t get squished by accident.

Emerging from below, Tatjana took me through the skylit courtyard of the Atrium Gallery where constantly changing exhibits make regular visits a necessity. Details on the current presenter appear on a big screen TV as an upright piano sets the mood.

The space is vital to the Belgrade art scene which often focuses on multimedia, while BGB emphasizes contemporary drawing, printing, sculpting, painting and nascent talent. Covered by news outfits and Likovni zivot magazine, each of the 20+ yearly shows produces a glossy catalog and they sometimes hold auctions or put on performances.

At the center, a square of floor to ceiling glass encloses the lovely Prizren Mosaic from Aleksandar Tomašević whose unique style using only regional stone and marble is featured elsewhere, including to the left of Zorica at the membership counter.

Annual user fees run from about $28 for foreigners to $4 for a child’s collective subscription. Kids from birth to the end of first grade, over 65’s, pregnant women, the physically challenged, blood donors and honorary members get free cards and the cost is often halved or waived for special occasions. Borrow up to ten items for 20 days and it’s possible to renew and reserve.

The website has two Serbian versions in Cyrillic and Latin script and an English one. Recommendations and promotions for an eclectic array of literary evenings and openings float past. The calendar has courses in financial and media literacy. Educators learn new skills, authors talk about their process and visiting youths are entertained by plays, music and quizzes.

A scrolling banner listing neighborhoods locates your closest facility and has a history of that town’s settlement and library. One was originally staffed by volunteers, gave French and shorthand classes and had football equipment and musical instruments. A real community hub, it even had an orchestra and organized dances!

Links go to Instagram, Twitter and YouTube accounts and the portal for digitized rare materials and old newspapers. BGB works with national divisions to support the Serbian language and the European Commission on several efforts aimed at increasing cooperation and communication so groups and scholarly organizations can benefit from combining knowledge and expertise.

On the 2nd floor, Technical Services classifies accessions via UDC but also by numerus currens, where running numbers indicate the order in which acquisitions became part of a specific repository.

In Tajana’s cozy office, I was struck by the abundance and diversity of art as, except for the rotating pieces in the main gallery, it’s all owned by the library.

Rays stream into the Arts Department Reading Room. It’s a convenient and peaceful spot to study or work. Desks are near outlets for your electronics and if you need a little break, feast your eyes on the gorgeous art tomes and maps stashed beneath precious urns and colorful compositions. Its stacks hold more than 18,000 encyclopedias, anthologies, journals and manuals devoted to film, theater, photography, music, archaeology, ethnology and the fine and applied arts. It too is a venue for many of BGB’s marvelous assortment of educational and cultural offerings.

Facebook has shots of New Year’s Eve parties, outreach at a family fair and colleagues signing up attendees and distributing BGB publications, T-shirts, bags and mugs (Tatjana generously gifted these to me), at their book expo booth. One post plugs the EU supported AVA Doc which makes short films and documentaries available to partner institutions in nine participating countries. Others honor national heroes, outstanding employees, bountiful benefactors or give short biographies of the myriad speakers.

In one video, Director Jasmina Ninkov discusses her new book Nova Biblioteka (New Library). Some cover BGB news or show clips from the extremely popular “Summer Plateau” sessions featuring al fresco interviews with representatives of different jobs like opera singer, ballerina, actor, journalist, TV writer and football commentator. Earlier in 2023 these folks worked as librarians for a day. It was such a hit, they did it again for two hours the day before I arrived.

Movie premieres, anime and sci-fi gatherings, seminars, psychotherapy panels, travelogues, an award and song-laden anniversary celebration, and teen workshops on making comic books and critical thinking are just a few of the options.

The many followers leave accolades, inspired comments and thoughtful suggestions. It’s obvious the library is greatly appreciated in the community.

A short walk away at the children’s section, Tatjana introduced me to Children’s Librarian Jasna Brkic who also spoke excellent English. This beguiling place sports a Juliet balcony, pillowed window seats, parquet floor and plush modern armchairs for adults by an ornate China hearth.

But the youthful touch is everywhere. Handmake bookmarks hang above a doorway, clay creatures, a paper mache castle and little gnomes dot the surfaces and a slide beckons from the middle of a room of face-out board books, wheelie bins and baskets of toys and blocks.

A piano, four computers, blackboard, and a puppet theatre encourage creativity and youngsters have 30,000 books and multimedia items to choose from.

First and second prize submissions in varying age groups for an illustrated literary competition of regional students are pinned to an easel. At the balloon strewn Reader’s Badge 2023 closing ceremony, the huge audience listened to a chorus while winners were rewarded with cash prizes.

Storytelling a few times a month for four to seven year olds often incorporates music, dance, pictures, dolls, and other props. There’s Manga, books in English and German (thanks to a large donation from the Goethe Institute) and titles from high school reading lists, but most materials are for children from birth to 15 as YA’s usually move on to the adult department.

Elementary kids, kindergarteners, preschoolers, sports clubs and the upper grades visit and two hours before we came Jasna hosted 25 children who listened raptly to a Norwegian writer.

Technoteka has a 3D pen, scanner and printer, virtual reality glasses, computers, tablets, Lego education robots… Such great hands-on experience for adolescents, it’s the first Maker Space in Serbia and holds modeling and printing programming workshops.

The Children’s Facebook page is chock full of photos of happy tots attending poetry classes, riding a giant stuffed dinosaur, lounging on beanbags, folding origami birds, making clay cows and ladybugs, putting on skits and decorating a Christmas tree with ornaments they crafted.

A favorite alcove is referred to as the Harry Potter Room for its gleaming dark wood glass fronted cabinets holding ancient reference volumes. A red and white washable tablecloth makes cleanup easy after arts and crafts projects. Jasna and her Children’s coworkers have made this such a fun and enriching division of BGB!

We were enchanted by Belgrade, its friendly citizens, great food, tree shaded streets, Bohemian quarter, silver domed roofs, and vast glittery temples. But the library adds to the charm as it provides so many opportunities for people to enjoy the intellectual and creative achievements that abound in this magnificent metropolis.

Well done Biblioteka grada Beograda!

Close to Tunis and Tripoli and just fifty miles from Sicily, Malta guards the entrance to the Eastern Mediterranean and has been strategically important for millennia. Inhabited as early as 5900 BC, it’s been fought over or controlled since ancient times by most of the major civilizations present in the region.

Known for the Knights Hospitaller, beautiful beaches, and a hot dry climate, this fascinating destination has megalithic temples older than the pyramids and Stonehenge. But I was on my way to a different stone structure, the Librerija Pubblika Centrali or Central Public Library in Floriana (CPL), an easy walk from the capital, Valletta.

I was originally coming in April of 2020, but the pandemic changed everyone’s future that year…

Inside near the Maltese and EU flags, bold signage points to the Book Shop and various divisions. By recycling bins for batteries, paper etc., flyers on a bulletin board highlight new initiatives and the Iguana app and a stand has copies of the free arts and culture magazine. Framed paintings decorate the corridor where I finally meet Maria Muscat, Manager of Outreach and Events.

My tour coincided with the annual Malta Book Festival but despite it being off-premises, Maria kindly took time from a very busy week to show me around.

Amazingly, though the archipelago is only 122 square miles and about half a million people, they have 57 public libraries! Comprised of two central locations (CPL and the one on Gozo, a quick 45 minute ferry ride away), seven regional sites, and 48 branches (37 on Malta and 11 on Gozo), residents can register, in person or online, for free membership giving privileges to any and all of them.

Starting in 1856 Malta has had at least one free library, but options really opened up in the 1930’s as they added titles for children and ramped up usage. By the late 1960’s there were already 47 district libraries. Now, nearly every village and town has a facility lodged mostly in councils or state schools. Floriana is in charge of collection development and training for these smaller ones, but the personnel are paid by local governments.

The University of Malta didn’t have a library curriculum until recently, but you need a college degree to work here, then a one-week induction course followed by on-the-job training and continuing education.

Maltese is a Semitic language but the conflicting alphabets of its medieval Sicilian and Arabic roots (to say nothing of the numerous dialects, some with only a few thousand speakers) mean they’ve been trying to standardize spelling for centuries and road signs sport a couple of variations on place names.

After chatting a bit, Maria and I headed to the new space, where quotes from an eclectic assortment of literary luminaries proffer sage advice just below a colorful lineup of pipes.

Completed in June, this initial stage of an exciting renovation project increases accessibility and programming possibilities. Future renovations will revamp the adult area and have a Makerspace. Puppet shows, crafts and games, speeches, the chance to try virtual reality goggles, and sweet treats made its grand opening / CPL’s 40th anniversary fête great fun for all ages.

Eye-catching displays in the Junior Department present graphic novels for youngsters 0-12 (who are limited to borrowing from Kid’s) and over 13. Big Dewey categories on shelf ends point the way to titles in multiple tongues.

CPL and the National Literacy Agency collaborate for age 0-3 storytimes every Saturday and on special occasions. The costumed Halloween party had face painting, STEM sessions and VR coding.

The spot also has a plastic indoor jungle gym and slide at the other end. Nearby, a rug of puffy clouds in a blue sky sits under brightly hued tot-sized stools.

On CPL’s Facebook, an eight week teen course on comic book art has cool clips of the work in progress. The output will be compiled and published in conjunction with the NGO co-sponsor GNLM.

The page features new acquisitions and interesting employees, advertises activities, thanks donors and student helpers, spouts statistics and honors Maltese authors. Learn about origami at the Japanese tea ceremony. Delighted participants at Carnivale and Christmas celebrations get prizes, demonstrations, a bake sale and readings.

It’s used for announcements, informing of closures due to training seminars, and introducing new assistants. Photos show outreach at street markets, school visits, and team gatherings where certificates and trophies are awarded for longevity of service.

Perusing the latest annual report, I see the public organization is thriving. Ebook usage has gone up exponentially since 2018 and circulation is rising significantly.

The Reference Room (email them for an appointment) is very attractive and has more cubbies for pupil’s bags and towers of tiny plastic chairs by an old card catalog. Cases of bound tomes and archival boxes line one wall.

Open six days a week, CPL has the most items in the system and had more than 90,000 checkouts last year. Formerly a barracks, today’s administrative offices were once flatlets for British officers. Most of the 30 staffers here are full time and there are books in Greek, Japanese, Tagalog, Hindi, Spanish, Italian, and even Latin.

Despite the narrow target audience, Malta has a small publishing industry, so there are plenty of popular materials in Maltese, and in English, the other official language. Rather than rely on fines, they usually work with customers to get overdues returned, particularly the rare things.

An enclosure at one end of the study area has seven PCs or link your own computer to the wifi.

CPL subscribes to Libby. A wide selection of e-bestsellers was available when I looked and a number of e-magazine choices too. They have Overdrive audiobooks and videos and hopefully more movies soon via Kanopy. All perfect solutions for visually impaired and housebound patrons, as well as those in the outer reaches of the isles.

The Talking Book Service has Maltese texts, especially enjoyed by the elderly. It’s a vibrant vernacular and is frequently heard as natives are justifiably proud of their country’s illustrious past. Users pick two pen drives for four weeks or volunteer to add your voice to the holdings.

And Octavo (aka oBooks), the Maltese ebook app, is catching on using the tagline “One account, thousands of reads.”

The website lets you reserve, renew and view your past record remotely, but you must return to the lending library. Adults and juveniles get three weeks for three physical and three electronic titles. Recognizing the learning needs and often shorter volumes of under 17’s, youths are allowed eight checkouts at once (vs. four for 18+).

I notice a large print rack and a vast assortment of fiction and nonfiction in Maltese in a Melitensia section by this pretty arrangement.

Malta Libraries (ML) is the overarching entity responsible for CPL and the public institutions, plus the two research oriented national libraries (one on Gozo), and NBO, the National Bibliographic Office, which shares Floriana’s building. Obviously, this makes cooperation between all entities easier to achieve and the catalogs detail items from over 100 institutions, including special and private collections all over the country.

ML gathers and preserves documentary history for the islands, so NBO takes care of technical standards, accession records, digitization and posting. They have everything written by or in Maltese, or in or about Malta and are the legal depository, striving for two copies of each unit. Donations are welcome and while some gifts might not make it into the stacks, they also produce irreplaceable pieces of Malta’s heritage that are made immediately available, either at NBO or on DigiVault.

ML is on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook or get messages about events by email. You can publish your essays or attend the yearly lecture series.

How wonderful to see CPL and ML’s dedication to the enrichment of the people and that Malta is willing to devote extensive resources to such a vital cause!

The jewel of a sparkling mountain-ringed bay, Kotor was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. By day, the stunning enclosed Old Town and improbable fortifications draw cruising tourists in from the azure Adriatic, but it’s calmer later when reclaimed by citizens and overnighters.

It’s then that Biblioteka Kotor (BK or Kotor City Library and Reading Room) takes advantage of a balmy night to showcase a novelist publicizing her latest, Succubus, below a Juliet balcony in an ancient courtyard. Even adolescents get their own al fresco evening appearances by children’s authors.

But filtered sunbeams on polished parquet floors proclaimed it was daytime when I met Jelena Vukasović, a professor of Serbian languages, as well as a librarian.

Luckily she spoke some English and a BK member and her friend since first grade, Iva Martinovich, helped translate, explaining she had brought a present as it was Jelena’s birthday (and tomorrow was Iva’s – both right before the Independence Day long weekend).

Jelena explained that to become a librarian in Montenegro, you must work in one for a year, then go to a two-week training course and pass the exam at the National Library. She emphasized how helpful the institution is to employees. You’re assigned a mentor who is very supportive during the learning period and these experts give advice on everything to facilities around the country.

The biblioteka started in 1952 and joined the Nikola Đurković Cultural Center in 1964. In 2004, a grant from USAID let them buy equipment and begin putting holdings into an electronic format. So in 2007, BK became part of COBISS, a network of the “national bibliographic systems of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro” and has now contributed 13,500 listings.

Aside from a few Russian and English items, BK’s 30,000 titles are written in Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian and Montenegrin and it gets donations from patrons and the faculty of the University of Montenegro.

The library does an all-ages storytime two to three times a month.

Customers can borrow two publications at once for 7-15 days, the loan span depending on others’ needs. It’s €3 per month or €10 a year but pupils and pensioners pay €5 while those just starting primary school pay nothing (or wait until World Children’s Book Day when K-12ers get a free card). Renewals and reserves are allowed and you pay a small fee for the internet or printing and copying services.

There are seven librarians and the manager, Marija Starčević, my email contact. She told me about an installation of posters creating a retrospective journey marking Biblioteka Kotor’s 70th anniversary. BK also hosted a roundtable on defining literacy in the 21st century. An interesting topic – its meaning has certainly changed in the years after computers were invented…

The library has air conditioning, but cool fresh air and the bars of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game floated in through the ornate grating. Beneath the outside greenery, under a shade tree, the street performer asked if anyone knew the name of the song. No one could remember, and I had to restrain the Jeopardy fan in me from shouting down the answer.

Vertical slats line the spiral stairs to the whitewashed walls and arced windows on the second level. Grand oil portraits and dark modern paintings grace the gleaming space.

Online, the main page has slots for Ask the Librarian, linguistics and the COBISS catalog (it recently reached a million local records – and counting!). A banner raises awareness for a Turkish earthquake victims fundraiser and links go to library associations and bookstores.

Blurbs show personnel at professional conferences, guesting on Radio Kotor’s “Weekly Conversation” and attending classes on new software. Ms. Starčević attended a seminar on Open Science and new windows were installed. An announcement reveals that digitized issues of the satirical Kotor serial “Karampana” going back to 1926 are now available.

Kid’s Corner has news about contest winners, celebrations of World Book Day, and shots of school visits and book talks (BK does a lot of outreach). For Lunar New Year, tots made lanterns and masks, wrote characters in Mandarin, found out about the culture and major holidays, and got predictions for the Year of the Tiger based on their Chinese zodiac sign. It’s all free to the girls and boys of Kotor. No wonder it was fun making videos on why they love the library.

BK rises to the occasion to meet the goal of “nurturing and promoting the written word” with quality offerings on diverse cultures, the arts and patrimony. Plays from Youth Theater, a walking tour led by an authority on Kotor’s historical monuments, moderated discussions, and workshops on shipbuilding are a few of the options.

In winter, they have a literary and art contest on the “Kotor Carnival” theme and Facebook‘s got loads of photos of an exhibit of local kid’s artwork at an economic forum in their twin city, Xi’an, China – a partner for fascinating programs teaching juniors about Dragon Boats, the Silk Road, the Great Wall, moon cakes at the Autumn Harvest Festival, and how to use chopsticks.

And the library itself is a welcoming and accommodating destination for education and pleasure. Comfortable upholstered maple chairs and furnishings on maroon tiles beckon and the vibrant red metal shelving by matching seats catches the eye as do coloring supplies, cabinets of treasures and a collection of dolls in costumes from around the world.

Looking back on social media, I saw young entrants reciting speeches, tales and poems, singing and playing guitar at BK’s annual municipal oral competition. The winners move on to Nationals where nineteen places send contenders.

Presentations on the significance of water resources, 3D printer classes, a lecture from a pediatrician, and on Municipality Day, “Secrets of the Kotor Gardens” are some of the other choices.

Jelena stressed the importance of the Maritime Museum of Montenegro (above). It has a mass of seafaring material, ship’s diaries and portolan charts from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, in Italian, German, French, Latin, Croatian and Serbian.

BK is in the process of scanning its archive of 856 old and rare monographs and magazines. It’s so vital to preserve ephemera and they cooperate with the nautical organization, which, because of the area’s seafaring past, is really the history society. The Kotor archives are there and Pomorski Muzej often helps on children’s and adult programs and has written books, including a recent picture book, on the city. Plus it’s collaborating with European entities to assist BK’s digitization process by training staff and purchasing machines.

The website has a section displaying new juvenile acquisitions and gifts of adult titles, and an advertisement for the new Unapazwall database containing 40 million free international academic articles and open access to content from 50,000 publishers and repositories.

Leaving, I finally noticed the sign that had eluded me when I was late and running all over trying to find the library earlier that morning. I almost stepped on several cats lounging at the entrance as BK’s quarters are right above a cat museum that feeds the ubiquitous feral, but friendly, felines that populate this charming burg, delicately drinking from fountains and swaggering through outdoor cafés as they go about the day.

The residents are extremely lucky to have establishments such as Biblioteka Kotor guarding the precious legacy of this magical pocket of the globe!

Across from a leafy park, the diamond paned door of Javna Ustanova Biblioteka Sarajeva (JUBS) beckoned. Of the 16 facilities under the Public Institution Library of Sarajevo’s umbrella, this is the main one, and I had come to meet my contact, Amela Đelilović-Malešević, Head of the Department for Working with Users of Library Services.

Despite nonstop showers, this fascinating city in Bosnia and Herzegovina (one of many spellings (and abbreviations, but I’ll use BiH)) was our favorite place on the trip. Site of the 1984 Winter Olympics, it’s surrounded by hills and mountains. Skiing and bobsled runs mix with the minarets and steeples here in the Jerusalem of the Balkans, where the enormous Turkish influenced pedestrian area has a mélange of shops and cafés, absolutely fantastic food, and the most interesting and communicative people I can recall meeting.

The personnel at JUBS justified this impression. Everyone was very friendly and charming and spoke excellent English while we discussed the extensive requirements for becoming a librarian in BiH. To work here, you must have a four year university degree like Arijana and Amela, who both did comparative literature and librarianship in the Faculty of Philosophy. Next you must work for one year in a library and then take a ten day expert exam (!) at the National and University Library for your diploma.

JUBS has fifty full timers, mostly women, but no security guard because, as Arijana, Head of Adult Services, told me, “We are strong women!” quickly amended to “strong and smart women!”

In fact, several employees are tall enough to eschew the ladders used to access the highest ledges. Somehow they manage to house 30,000 volumes, squeezing two levels of paperbacks beneath the enormous arced windows and using carts for spillovers. But it still seems spacious with potted plants, lots of natural light, and the crisp contrast between white trim and furnishings and the fire engine red walls and circulation desk – its front adding three shelves for more items.

Leaving this welcoming cadre, Amela and I chatted about our similar tastes in fiction. She showed me Harlan Coben’s Promise Me, and I told her I’d met him and was coincidentally reading him at the time. We both enjoy crime, an escapist genre she prefers to most Bosnian authors who write about the war and its aftermath, which can be so upsetting to read.

She told me each year JUBS has between 8,000 and 10,000 newly registered users and last year saw 97,557 visitors borrowing 103,581 books – about a hundred a day in this locale. They have a management board and a supervisory board, no volunteers, and a one million euro budget from the Ministry of Culture and Sport for salaries, books and materials, activities and all overhead costs for the 16 departments.

Some patrons come every day to study and the space to the left has nine more tables and gooseneck lamps with green shades to accommodate them. Magazines and journals are nearby, back issues slotted underneath. Daily papers are available online or as hard copies.

A blackboard stating “In this world you can buy and sell everything but integrity has no price.” and plexiglassed documents in various intriguing scripts line the pale green tiled corridors giving away the building’s former identity as a children’s hospital in the seventies and eighties as we go upstairs…

…to the office of the director, Ms. Merima Lendo who greeted me warmly despite being in the midst of an appointment.

As usual in Europe, author’s rights are a costly problem, but JUBS has bestsellers and paperbacks, all in Bosnian (similar enough to Serbian and Croatian to use the same translation), but it files authors by nationality – English, American, French etc. For nonfiction, it’s the Universal Decimal Classification.

Kindles go out for fifteen days and you can reserve a book and pick it up at its home branch and have COBISS, the online catalog, keep lists of your favorites and use the mCOBISS mobile application.

The website opens to a gorgeous shot of Sarajevo split by the shining Miljacka River’s many bridges. On one, Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s assassination triggered World War I. Floating in the center of this cityscape, “Near You” leads to a map of locations. The changing banner has a captivating electric blue shot of tomes exploding like glass and promotes the catalog and opening hours. An Ask the Librarian icon has a prime advertising spot on the upper left and headings link to the organizational structure, code of ethics, regulations, forms for public purchase and reporting corruption, and the contact details for various departments.

News on the sidebar mentions winning an award, a current affairs workshop and more than 60 happenings at the canton’s version of “Old Home Days.” From pop-rock and jazz concerts, folklore and theater performances, and kid’s shows to exhibits and health exams, there’s a plethora of programs. Centar, one of the municipalities, takes the holiday as an opportunity to encourage reading by once again offering its residents free annual memberships as the system charges about eight dollars annually and about $30 for monthly use of Children’s. The American Corner doesn’t cost and if you are between 15-35 and live in the Opcina Centar district, the card is free, plus the city has grants to promote reading to young people.

Digitalizirana zbirka JU Biblioteka Sarajeva links to its own impressive 46 pages showcasing digitized historical materials, periodicals, monographs, manuscripts and maps about the city and country it has compiled. New scans include the first primer and Sarajevo Flower Garden, a bygone political and literary weekly.

Fata showed me an 1870 Arabic newspaper and pointed out an ad from a shop for women’s accoutrements in an 1876 Cyrillic, Arabic and Turkish paper. They’re part of the Memorial, Sarajevo and Native Collections – all rare items that must be viewed here. She’s also in charge of the maze that is the Book Depot (last copy in this library).

Facebook‘s many entries are evidence of how JUBS contributes to the cultural scene. Photos reveal outreach to elementary schools, a talk from an author who hitchhiked from Croatia to New Zealand, a tour by young journalists, fairytales from around the world at the winter festival, poetry readings, and a gentle announcement of newly digitized war posters with thoughtful questions considering emotions related to the 1992 siege.

Calls for applications to a short story competition and other literary contests appear and almost daily portraits honor dead and living regional and world writers on their birthdays. A raised fist celebrates International Labor Day and old headlines from Oslobođenje, the national daily, mark important anniversaries from the 1984 Winter Olympics, gleefully cheering the first Yugoslavian to win an Olympic medal, the animal mascots, and the kids involved in the closing ceremony gala.

Pictures show Christmas gifts being distributed by Santa at Epiphany, visiting Bosnian and Macedonian librarians, the renowned book fair, donations of benefactors, and Ms. Lendo at a ribbon cutting ceremony for the opening of new premises. A publishing house and writer’s group join forces to plan for World Poetry Day and there are notices of local events, strategic plans, the German Reading Room, new acquisitions and a list of the most frequently borrowed things.

The biblioteka has a Twitter feed, YouTube videos and WebMail.

As I said goodbye to these kind folks, Amela gave me two lovely hardbacks about the institution along with a pen, brochure and bookmark, all featuring the cute owl logo, as souvenirs. Walking a mile down tree shrouded rain drenched streets (the excessive moisture caused severe flooding in northern Bosnia and Italy) to the Children’s Library, we talked about her long ago trip to see relatives in the US and that this shaded avenue is closed to cars after five p.m. making one more pedestrian zone, this one perfect for cyclists and rollerbladers.

I didn’t have time to see the American Corner, but it has 2000+ English titles, US magazines and newspapers, documentary and classic films, and computer and book clubs.

Reviewing its Facebook page and Instagram accounts, I saw posts about anti corruption grant sessions and congratulating all BiH citizens on Independence Day, and shots of well attended talks on design, creativity and technology, study abroad in the US, media and information literacy, and Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander heritage, as well as lectures on eating disorders, astronomy, and from the US Embassy’s press secretary on (US) football’s role in its society.

The bright and cheery children’s place is a section of a large community center decked in bucolic pastel murals, but here the floor is striped in the bold hues of Bosnia’s flag and the color scheme continues as I enter.

Children’s librarian Dženana Ahmić presides over the sunny space and told me that there are three primary schools nearby. The students come on organized visits, especially in September, the first month of the term.

Once a week story times for ages five to six are fun for parents too and the tots do arts and crafts based on their book choice.

Rebuilt in 2019, it gets about thirty youths a day, from preschoolers accompanied by mothers to early high school adolescents aged 14-15.

The vivid telltale tints of thick graphic novels tempt teens as does the loft where the reference books are stowed. In fact, youngsters hanging out up here often have to be reminded to be quieter.

But what a cool view!

Back downstairs, the front is decorated with kid’s drawings pinned to corkboards.

Enticing artwork on these covers makes them very attractive to children’s eyes as does the free book bin.

JUBS has 10 reading rooms and anyone from BiH can get an annual membership, even those temporarily living in Sarajevo, but you must have a card to come (so thanks for letting me in!). Loans are for 15 days, 30 for professional items, but in demand things like those required for K-12 education go out for a week only. Renewals are allowed and customers get internet, but the wifi is just outside too.

Javna Ustanova Biblioteka Sarajeva truly is a wonderful asset for the citizens of this captivating city!

The second largest city in Croatia after the capital, summery Split lies on the eastern shore of the sparkling Adriatic. The clear waters accessible from seaside promenades extending far beyond the cruise ship port beckon water worshippers who ignored the early May chill.

But I was heading a bit inland to Gradska knjižnica Marka Marulića (MM) or Marko Marulić City Library. Named for the 15th century father of the Croatian language and a mere mile from our hotel, oversize planters line the street of the leafy neighborhood where its distinctive shape stands out.

The product of Ivan Vitic, an architectural modernist who built it for the Yugoslavian Army, it had a restaurant before MM took it over in 2008, but now the large tiled patio is fringed by bushes in raised stone beds. Short concrete posts light up the night so it’s easy to park bikes or even a café racer near a book drop painted graphic novel style by the front doors.

Peruse plexiglas and cork bulletin boards on rollers advertising the upcoming schedule before going through security gates by a promotional banner and the book sale.

Conveniently, standup internet terminals and color photocopies are right inside.

By a recommended materials array, a table has brochures and numbered maps of landmarks. Download the app and listen to short stories pertinent to that sector.

In an alcove under drawings of ships, public PCs have MS Office installed and are separated by privacy panels. A silver directional pole lists what’s on levels -1, 0, 1, 2 and points to the stairs and bathrooms.

My contact, Maruška Nardelli, Adult Department Head (once my job too!), came out smiling and introduced herself. She is the system’s ebook buyer while a colleague purchases physical ones. MM has ten branches – impressive for a city of only 160,000 people and 342,000 in the metro area. They even have a facility on the island of Solta.

Passing an elevator and this sunny gallery leading to a periodical reading zone, Maruška mentioned one librarian is a painter and often exhibits here as do other artists, illustrators, and even the Astronomer’s Union, who erected one on the solar eclipse last fall. Sculptors presented polymer clay on glass bottles and 2D portraits made from bending wire in this everchanging corridor.

I noticed rare tomes and realia in five illuminated vitrines as we headed towards Odjel Za Djecu (Children’s), discussing qualifications. She did Spanish and Italian literature degree for four years at university then two years for her master’s degree, but these days, because of EU standards, specializing in librarianship for four to six years is allowed.

The EU also has a requirement that every school in its countries must have a library and librarian (a wonderful rule, but difficult to implement…) and Maruška was very excited about the launch two months ago of Bibliobus. Some of the library-starved villages on the route have roads so narrow it’s parked at the edge of town. Bibliobus already has 520 new members – some had never seen a library before.

MM and the EU’s European Social Fund have been cooperating on this project for two years. Financed originally by the EU, for the next five years Split-Dalmatia (the county) will pick up the cost. There actually was a mobile one before, from 1975 to 1993, but this sleek vehicle has internet, two female drivers and a librarian.

Renata escorted us around the bright and colorful Youth Department. Adorned by youngsters’ creative efforts, eye-catching puzzles and toys stashed in cubbyholes abound. Play areas have cushioned mats, bean bags and all sorts of foam creatures for lounging plus couches for parents. A mini kitchen, accountant’s supplies, baby’s bassinette and ironing board is practice for being a grownup but the barre by the mirror encourages movement and funny faces.

Every Saturday MM has art sessions for kids ranging from mask making for Mardi Gras and Valentine’s celebrations, to origami and paper kites, so the decor changes regularly. Lego robotics, storytimes, puppet theater, game days and young reader’s club are popular as are magic experiments, movie making, 3D printing and dance. An enterprising musician gives two weeks of free guitar lessons, then if you like it, pay to continue. His pupils put on a Christmas concert last December. Summer brings chess, camera, coding and drama classes.

Practical linoleum eliminates stains from spills and sturdy wood furniture house piles of games labelled by age. A gnarly-fingered screaming skeleton draped in black and selected items hang off shelf ends and some sport half-moon ledges for on-the-go research.

Eight elementary and three or four high schools are nearby. In Croatia, if you choose a career in the trades you do a three year program on plumbing, hairdressing, electricity, carpentry etc. For university bound adolescents, MM has Lektira (books high schoolers must read).

Young Adult has a conversation pit layout, its own computers, teen tomes and big screens and consoles for gaming.

Multimedia has video games, consoles and graphic novels too. Some DVDs are arranged by category – e.g. classics or a specific comedian… – and the rest by title, ideal for browsing. They have audio books and CDs though the music disks aren’t being borrowed as much these days since Split has a booming economy, excellent wifi and is quite modern. In fact, a cabinet presenting antique technology and trends has a VCR, old cameras, and an R2D2 model below the now ancient Harry Potter glasses and a stuffed Hedwig. Happily the choice of posters on the walls include Charlie Chaplin, Queen and Jimi Hendrix, so some things never go out of fashion.

The active Facebook page has shots of experts coaching juniors about internet safety, an exhibition of elementary school works and thrilled boys and girls greeting the Bibliobus. It features volunteer profiles, links to radio interviews and a sepia of the Roman ruins and tower being excavated. Pictures show professional networking encounters and outreach to elder centers where guest actors interpret parts of plays for them plus a plethora of other events.

Lively graphics solicit attendance – someone on staff is quite talented! After a film, a moderator runs the discussion. There’s a program “Do robots dream of electric books” and cakes iced in odd letters highlight the Glagolitic Workshop (the 9th century script is the oldest known Slavic alphabet). A panel on teaching science, an art soiree, a three month course in German and a packed audience at a travel lecture vie for attention.

Instagram has over 1100 posts and 2000 followers and the Vimeo account and YouTube channel have a bunch of clips. 

I visited MM’s main location which gets about 1000 patrons a day while the others see about 500 total. The library has a half million items and customers can take five books and an e-reader or toy for three weeks and two media units for five days. Books are eligible for two renewals if not reserved and everything should be returned where borrowed.

It’s 13 euro for the first annual family membership then discounted rates start for immediate relatives, large groups, YAs (free to under 14’s), the unemployed, pensioners, those with special needs, full time students or pay a daily 1.30 euro fee. And it’s free for Golden Split Card holders – a supplement for the very low income aged of monthly cash stipends and other benefits. ILL is possible for a fee and up to five a month e-titles are lent for 21 days, two at a time.

Between the stacks, sink into practical purple pleather armchairs. Nonfiction is classified by UDC, not Dewey, and signs list subjects as fiction distinguishes genres. Fantastika has a tall lit unit next to the even bigger Ubavno (romance) section. Hooks attach to fencing grid for lots of face out display and desks have foot high thin angled lamp bars attached to the side. Most shelves are off the floor so a vacuum can be run underneath.

On the plate glass hawk silhouettes attempt to keep birds from crashing into the windows above a row of XXXL Knjige (fat books – I love these categories!).

Users have countless options from folk tales and appearances by film makers, a photojournalist, and a paleontologist to Italian language classes and talks on their traditions. There are conversations about preventative action and the consequences of joining the EU (Croatia joined in 2013 but until this year was not part of Schengen zone and didn’t use the euro). Take a quiz on AI or go to a presentation on the messages gleaned from graffiti and tattoos.  We’re assured the lecture for everyday folk “Treatment of chronic wounds with fly larvae” is not quackery!   

Authors promote new novels and guides and there’s haiku and poetry evenings. Numerous lectures on medical, nutritional and social issues run the gamut from dealing with diabetes, stress, mental health during COVID, to parenting, learning disabilities, Montessori and forums for speech therapists. If it will aid the populace, MM’s got it covered!

“Speed dating” lets citizens question Croatian writers for a few minutes at a time. At the Science Festival, topics include breast cancer, nurses’ ethics and childbirth during a pandemic. One group showcased Russian dance, old songs, composers and poems and the ambassador from France sponsored a language and culture day and screened Godard offerings. Taste Taiwanese tea, check out the Esperanto Society’s gathering or figure out how to build sustainable communities. Multiple events honor International Family Day, Woman’s Week and World Autism and National Cerebral Palsy days. All this in just the last year!

The Heritage Collection contains materials about Split or written in Split or by local authors. A thousand postcards of Split from the 1800’s are already digitized, all out-of-copyright things written before WWII are being scanned in and the Spataline “Native Collection” is online.

The website also has links to the daily paper and laws, catalogs, companies, guidelines, standards, regulations and instructions for librarians as well as the mission, reports and detailed explanations of the organization’s hierarchy. Find contacts for each knjižnica including the intriguingly translated “Boat Girl” (the Brodarica branch) and suggestions by age and type (comics, music, movies, e-sources…).

Marko Marulić is responsible for all school and public libraries in Dalmatia, so funding comes from the city, the county and the Ministry of Culture. The annual materials budget is €200,000 but as books are about €15 each, it’s getting tough.   

In winter several locations are open 8-8 Monday to Friday and 8:30-1 on Saturdays, but a few take half hour breaks twice a day. So workers can take vacations, summer hours vary a bit more.   It’s got 69 employees, all but two are full time.

Downstairs, Tech Services processes new acquisitions amid endless rows of older unpopular titles, though some are offloaded to the Little Free Libraries scattered around or to the sale cart. 

By a huge mural encouraging learning, a wheelchair elevator next to a small flight of steps makes the three lecture halls accessible to all. A pretty lobby has a rainbow of padded seats beneath paintings of Split and a tapestry of the city in ancient times.

Moveable dividers make the spaces flexible, so it’s not a problem to have movie nights and meetings at the same time. Anyone can rent them unless there’s no charge because your program has social value.

This handsome room has a ramp on one side and an electric piano. MM’s logo is embroidered on the chairs and printed on the lectern and souvenir pens.

With so much happening, it’s no surprise Gradska knjižnica Marka Marulića won the Croatia Library of the Year award last year. Residents of this beautiful region are lucky to have this valuable resource and such knowledgeable and helpful personnel available to them! It was a pleasure touring this superb institution and I am so grateful to Maruška (and her great English) who took the time to show me around.

Although the language of libraries is universal, I was glad to have a Turkish speaking person with me when I visited four story Fatih Belediyesi Kariye Kütüphanesi (Kariye).

The entrance leads through a turnstile to stylish gray benches in a pristine tiled hall. Creatively painted accents brighten the walls. By the water cooler, one of the city’s beloved and ubiquitous cats stalked passed.

At the far end of the large sunny lobby, Children’s is found in the basement, keeping the upper study spaces quiet. In heavy use, so I couldn’t visit for photos yet, a peek down this marvelous flight of steps was irresistible.

One of 39 districts in enormous, transcontinental Istanbul, Fatih has only 370,000 people, but Fatih Belediyesi Kütüphanesi ((FBK) or Fatih Municipality Library) has an impressive twelve buildings, three of which include dedicated youth areas (all locales have shelves of titles for them), and a theological facility.

It was nice to get a chance to meet and chat to Merve Çakır and her coworker. (All mistakes are mine, as their English, and that of the man who helped translate for me, was a million times better than my grasp of Turkish.) I asked about the requirements for librarians. You must go to university. Merve taught and studied Information Documents, and her colleague from Kid’s was originally a teacher.

I received permission to take pictures from Büşra Özgör, Librarian Manager at Fatih. Her excellent English was indispensable in explaining the system to me.

She told me Fatih Mayor M. Ergün Turan is very interested in and prioritizes libraries. Having free laptops, wifi, printers, resources and a safe, serene spot to work is essential for learning.

In fact, FBK is so committed, there’s a sparkling cafeteria off the foyer. Free tea, coffee and soup provide sustenance to fuel those hardworking young minds. Since refreshments are dispensed at specific times, it’s a nice respite for all and the promotional screen above the recycling bins can be a great advertising tool for a captive audience.

Artwork adorns the second floor where intense adolescent scholars maintain complete silence in the 56 positions at long partitioned tables. Others work on the PCs lining the sides. The Kütüphanesi is air conditioned plus Bay and Bayan Mescids for praying are available – all guaranteeing maximum comfort and limiting distractions.

Thinkers gaze out the rows of windows at the Golden Horn a bit beyond this heavily treed neighborhood.

Always wanting to make education as pleasant as possible, Büşra said FBK tries to increase teenagers’ motivation using small surprises like candy, and sometimes technological gifts.

Justifiably proud of the organization, she urged me to visit the beautiful (Central) Fatih Merkez Library, (on the link, scroll down for the video) but I didn’t have time, and I missed the airport library (!) too.

A stunning view of the nearby 4th century Kariye Camii mosque is perfect for ponderers needing a break. Famous for Byzantine frescos and mosaics, it sadly was temporarily closed.

Open 24/7, FBK serves 6000 users a day. Unlike many European libraries, residents fill in an online form and it’s free, so they have 157,444 members – quite a large percent of the populace.

Büşra told me that in the Republic of Türkiye, both towns and provinces have public libraries. FBK has novels as well as academic and history books.

Patrons looking for a social media presence follow Fatih Municipality Library on Instagram for events and updates. It had over 1500 posts and each branch has its own account. I loved the slogan The Future Is In These Libraries from @fatihbelediye.

They have concerts and films and in the eating lounges, barbecues or customers play Risk, chess and Monopoly. Seminars, talks and lectures from experts on cultural topics and life in general are offered.

As we still had some time before the tots were done at noon, we popped over to Kasım Günani Library, (KG) 700 meters away. Compared to the tourist hordes in (admittedly spectacular) Sultanahmet Square, our walk took us down quaint back roads where vivid facades, fretted balconies, and fantastic Ottoman architecture predominated. The wonderful combination of classical wooden houses and patterned stone turrets and minarets was a delight to behold.

Fatih municipality is on a peninsula comprising old Constantinople. Bordered by the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus Strait and the Golden Horn (quickly crossed on foot via the fisherman filled bridge), KG is even closer to the water than Kariye.

The library sections of KG are on what the US calls the first and third floor as the second level is conveniently a school for children.

I met Özge Denizci, a teacher, who kindly showed me around.

They have eight computers and the low hanging lights and gorgeous mahogany arched windows and bookcases by the many numbered desks and roller seats invite you to relax and open your brain to thought. A kiosk holds informational brochures and again, lush greenery is visible outside.

After an uphill walk back to Kariye the coast was clear, so I made my way down the story-bedecked staircase, passing a tree of palm prints, a girl carrying a load of books and adorable mushrooms and forest animals.

Reserved for five to ten year olds, Busra said the designs are “inspired by the colorful worlds of our children” and it sure looked that way to me.

The children’s librarian mentioned teaching writing and crafts – that day she was instructing them on how to make robots emphasizing using scissors and glue. Every Saturday there’s a special program – the next one scheduled was sculpting clay.

The Youth team teaches mothering classes and children read with parents, learn drama, music, art and leisure activities and choose from 6,000 titles and a myriad of games and toys.

FBK want youngsters to be able to find a passion, discover talents and be confident and valuable members of society. What an enticing place to do that in!

This alcove is ideal to get lost in oral tales, use the stage for a play, or put on a puppet show.

Kids get a chance to practice skills and stretch their imaginations. Little ones adore the nooks and crannies and an artist’s palette shaped table wrapped around gigantic paintbrushes that’s ready-made for drawing.

Storytime is thrice a day, except Sunday and Kariye Çocuk Kütüphanesi brings in professionals to assist teachers. Juveniles borrow three items for 15 days and it’s open 10-12 and 12-2. After 4, pupils do homework.

Fatih has such noble goals to ensure the success of the inhabitants of the most magnificent part of this dazzling metropolis, and this fabulous institution is lucky to have extremely knowledgeable and accommodating personnel.

Thank you so much to Büşra and FBK staff for making my visit very enjoyable!

After negotiating the one-way streets about a mile inland from Junkanoo Beach, we came upon the graceful lines of Lillian G. Weir-Coakley Public Library (LWC). In a verdant block, conveniently abutting C.R. Walker Senior High School and the gazebo and shaded picnic tables of the Southern Recreation Grounds, there’s plenty of parking in a lot encircling a lovely old shade tree.

Open Monday to Friday 10-5 and Saturday 10-2, the foyer has a notice packed bulletin board and promotional banner.

The facility is spick and span with tiled floors and glowing dark wood furnishings. Antique sconces on the pale yellow walls supplement overhead fluorescence and they have wifi and air conditioning.

At the checkout, Mrs. Genesta Stuart-Baker, the Library Supervisor, introduced herself and we had a pleasant chat.

Renamed in 2004 for Mrs. Lillian G. Weir-Coakley who ran the institution for more than 37 years (her portrait is behind the desk), LWC has a fascinating history. The current edifice opened as the Grant’s Town/Southern Public Library in 1951, replacing the previous one burned in the tragic 1942 Burma Road labor protests that eventually led to independence from the UK in 1973.

In the youth section, two long tables are perfect for learning groups and colorful titles join a rack of magazines for youngsters. Nearby, customers can peruse posters full of facts about sea grasses, crustaceans and fish above three of the internet and word processing terminals.

The Commonwealth of The Bahamas is about 100-300 miles east of Cuba and Miami and has more than 3000 islands and cays spread over the 5400 square miles that comprise most of the West Indies’ Lucayan Archipelago.

The third richest country in North America by GDP per capita, thanks in large part to tourism and offshore banking, bits of England remain. The Bahamas recently started a national health program and still drive on the left.

Though the population is 408,000, almost 274,000 of the people live on the 80 square miles of New Providence, where Nassau, the capital, is located. Just 30 of the islands are inhabited, but amazingly, 19 of them have at least one library.

Libraries have existed here for over 150 years, but the geography obviously presents quite a challenge, so in 2009 the Ministry of Education’s National Library and Information Services Bahamas (NLIS) was created as a helpful umbrella organization to move towards equitable access among the 60 plus branches on New Providence and the Family Islands.

The Director of Libraries at NLIS, Ms. Dorcas R. Bowler, kindly gave me permission to take photos at LWC and let me know about their protective privacy policy that prohibits photos of personnel and patrons.

Listed as a top tourist attraction, I had planned to write about the Nassau Public Library downtown in Parliament Square. Built as a jail in 1873, dungeons and cells were converted into reading alcoves when its purpose changed. Unfortunately, due to overdue restoration, no tours are being held right now.

NLIS has some lofty goals including compiling a catalog of the holdings at all the sites and a national bibliography and indexes. Striving to meet the slogan, Information for Life, the system provides databases and runs the National Literacy Services. Since the pandemic, they’ve also made Zoom and training courses available for kids and teachers at home and in school to use as resources.

A red carpeted staircase leads me to the bright and airy second story. Three additional computers under framed pictures of Martin Luther King and other heroes overlook the leafy surrounds. Working shutters prevent glare and windows that open to catch the breeze can keep it cool naturally.

I met Mrs. Flora Fernanda, library clerk, and Mrs. Elizabeth McBain, who handles special collections. Shelves are filled by Bahama related or authored items, histories of the islands, anthologies from the local poetry society and travel guides. I spot a survey of the literature from 1724-1992 and encyclopedias and reference volumes near a classic upholstered leather chair in front of cabinets of records.

Mrs. Fernanda showed me around the upstairs, carefully opening the ancient red bindings enclosing delicate broadsheets heavily interspersed with maritime news as befits this ocean environment.

LWC has a team of six and annual membership is $5 BSD for adults, free to students in grades six to twelve and $2.50 for first through fifth graders. The dollar is worth the same as the US one.

NLIS has a Cadets program for adolescents to volunteer at branches across the islands in summer and produce a host of content for Community Radio Station, InfoLight 90.1FM, on literary, cultural and musical topics during the school year.

The web site lists the locations and has a page for the hours, contact details and history of each.

NLIS has Ask the Librarian or text or call for a quick answer. Gale, Learning Express and Ebsco are some of the online research options. A blog has study tips, advice for instructors on engaging children with books, and announcements for a reading competition, meet the author event, textbook drive, and employee honors and staff training.

A link encourages donations. Policies are clarified and thoroughly explain the reasoning of department decisions. Books circulate for two weeks and can be renewed once if not on hold. Audios and back issues of journals go out for a week, while visual materials get three days and interlibrary loan and reserves are free.

Find procedures and forms and sign up for a card or read a digitized book. There’s an offer for trustee training as all New Providence locales have their own boards but NLIS hopes to craft an overarching one to make things easier.

Facebook has recommendations and videos of talks and prize ceremonies.

What a pretty place and such a congenial crew. I am so glad I got a chance to visit!

When we first encountered the enchanting forests and hills of this region of Idaho on a road trip more than 20 years ago we were reminded of our native New England and hoped to be back soon.

But time has a way of vanishing, so when we were on a western road trip this summer I knew we had to go back, and fortuitously it would move me one step closer to visiting at least one public library in every state (ID is my 49th).

McCall Public Library (MPL) serves 3500 or so year round residents and innumerable tourists in this bustling burg on sparkling Payette Lake. It seems to have exploded since I was last here and vacationers have scads of great restaurants, a boat filled harbor and almost every type of all season recreation at their disposal.

The charming, but tiny, 4200 square foot building shares a patch of grass, picnic tables and a veggie patch in a raised container with city government. It’s downtown by the transit center and the water and peaks beyond are visible from the smooth brick walkway. After hours checkout and parking are out back and a wooden owl stands sentry by the returns slot and a shaded knotty pine bench.

Heidi Strohmeyer (right) and Kristin Kindall were very friendly and helpful. Since I haven’t been to any libraries (other than my local, Columbine of course) since Tahiti nearly three years ago, I was curious how they’d coped during the heights of the pandemic. Heidi mentioned in more dangerous times al fresco programs at the firepit were very well attended and they often still do book talks there.

The plexiglass at the main desk is for COVID, as is a hand sanitizer and tissue station. Glancing back at calendars and media, it was touching to see how another institution immediately responded to customers’ needs. Though ordered to close in March, they linked to medical information and data, virtual field trips and tours and people could still get new cards in less than a day by phone to use the e resources. In May 2020, the image of the bronze dancing children out front, masked, and joined by similarly attired flesh and blood kids, bravely announced a “soft” reopening. Users could Zoom on the MPL account before getting their own and this February when short staffed due to Omicron for a bit they provided curbside service and answer questions through the door and wifi was available in the parking lot or on a computer in the foyer.

Like all intuitive libraries, MPL loans some interesting things – bikes and helmets and repair kits, plus home canning supplies, sewing and karaoke machines, radon and soil tests, a wifi hotspot, a conferencing video camera and wildflower knowledge starter packs. Children get Book Bundles on subjects as varied as Trucks & Diggers, Life Around the World, llamas, bears, dogs, sharks, princesses and Spanish/English bags too. For early learning and fun and games selections there’s Batman Cave, a pedometer, a ukulele, Dash Robot, a microscope, and birding binoculars and field guides. Makey-Makey explores electricity or you can play lawn checkers or croquet.

MPL is open Monday to Saturday, doesn’t charge fines and has holds self pickup. E-books, magazines and audiobooks are downloaded via the ID Digital Consortium’s Libby and Overdrive accounts.

The Friends of the Library (FOL) operate an offsite booksale in an historic log cabin and helped donate the mural of fairy tale characters on the left below.

For the SRP, jellyfish mobiles dangle from above and a translucent teal canopy of sharks, rays and sea turtles is like looking up at an aquarium. Heidi said the cool letters spelling out LIBRARY on the side of the building were done by high school artists who each painted a board and along with third graders did the marine life drawings just below the Children’s ceiling and elsewhere.

This cleverly named Spoke & Word bike cart was a Girl Scout project and they take it around to town happenings.

Youth has comfortable seats for parents and cushions for storytimes or older knees. Tokens retrieve SRP presents from a bubblegum dispenser. Wedged in a corner between shelves pillows create a tot’s hidden spot.

Bins holding blocks, railroads and figurines and puppets on pegs encourage youngsters’ imaginations as they tend zoos, fight battles and rescue princes, queens and the world from dragons. Toddlers learn about our 50 United States and their claims to fame while crawling on the rug chasing the right oversized jigsaw piece. Paper and crayons on the tiny furniture lets them color while resting for a minute.

Adolescents have lots of offerings to choose from. Apart from the many storytimes, they go to movies, Dungeons and Dragons, arts and crafts, coding, Legos, and all day “staycations” full of games and puzzles and tournaments over school breaks. The Facebook page sports pictures of SRP winners and kids rocking out at a concert, making slime mustaches and on the waves for Boat Day.

Conveniently close to Kid’s, this conference room serves double duty for storage and events. Though obviously bursting at the seams, they still somehow keep it pleasant and tidy.

Prior to arriving I’d contacted Meg Lojak, the director, who told me “We are a tiny but mighty library.” but that they would soon be able to suit the requirements of the population for the next fifty years. Though sadly I came on her day off so couldn’t meet her, she gave me a lot of information on the enlargement project, and when I mentioned working for Douglas County Libraries, said that coincidentally, the architect is Dennis Humphries of Ratio. His firm under a previous incarnation did the amazing 2003 redesign of a Safeway grocery at my former POW, Philip S. Miller Library in Castle Rock, CO, then the headquarters for the system.

The expansion will attach a stunning, airy 12,000 square foot two story facility to the 50 year old structure. Highlights are the balcony, study rooms, gallery, Citizen’s Hall and enchanting nooks and hearthside seating. The plan is to remain open during construction of the addition, then move into it and renovate the old library, which will mostly be used by townsfolk and for programs.

Perhaps in keeping with the outdoor lifestyle common here, you’ll enter Base Camp for coffee and chats and the FOL and recreation department. Completely ADA accessible it’s got a hand’s on learning enclosure, dedicated tween zone, and a Children’s Discovery Garden just outside their section. The twenty year 4.2 million dollar bond paying for it was approved by voters in 2021 and donors are helping on the costs of the new Idaho Room and fireplace. Taking just 18 months they hope to finish in August 2024.

COVID has influenced the design, and moveable partitions can make bigger areas when necessary. The best HVAC and windows that open will improve air quality while the extra footage (including the new outdoor components) and emphasis on decentralized computing and stronger wifi will let people really spread out and socially distance. A flat roof may seem odd for a snowy realm but this style is much stronger now and the insulation from eco friendly snow will cut winter heating bills and patrons won’t need to dodge falling icicles. The problem of too tall stacks will be alleviated since 25% more space for materials means everything will be in reach. Seems they’ve thought of everything!

The current Teen Corner has high bar style tables and chairs and a display of board games, hot YA titles and flyers for activities geared to them.

On the monthly calendar, I saw the ground breaking celebration on August 17 when demolition of the old fire house next door that allows for the expansion began. A food truck, live music, popcorn, bubbles and free books made it quite the party. Also listed were book group, a forum on dementia, and a weekly ESL class. Things ramp up in September with ID author CMarie Fuhrman available for questions and conversations at weekly Write Here sessions, Tech Tuesdays and a sewing class.

A peek back shows lectures, poetry readings, math workshops, seed swaps with horticultural experts and author visits. MPL participates in the winter carnival and since McCall’s a frozen paradise they had lots of pandemic friendly outdoor entertainment last winter like firepit discussions, a snowman building contest and an appearance by the winning musher of the 100 Mile Idaho Sled Dog Challenge and her canine companions.

In Adults, sun from high windows streams in for Christmas cactus, plants and readers in upholstered chairs on castors. A turnstile carries new novels and by the DVDs patrons fill out cards recommending favorites.

The laptop kiosk and wireless printing is perfect for pandemic spacing as people can borrow one of five and work well away from others.

I asked Heidi about the fairy lights wrapped around the overhead beams. Mainly used for nighttime presentations (perhaps the only illumination for the popular travelogues – how romantic), in winter they’ll turn them on as a pick me up. It may be dark and cold then, as witnessed by the bright light therapy lamp to checkout for Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Heidi also works in special collections so made sure I didn’t miss her favorite, the lovely Idaho Room. Stuffed leather armchairs, oak trim and a high ledge supporting framed sepia photographs complement the cabinets of antique newspapers and irreplaceable tomes.

The website has their searchable digitized local history and genealogical data and links to Libraries Linking Idaho Databases which accesses Scout TV shows on the state and online research videos for ID students and teachers plus full text academic and general databases. Learning Express gives tutoring and job resources.

Mini employee bios and information on FOL, the Board of Trustees and its Expansion Committee members and strategic plan can be found online as well as curated film lists. The newsletter reminds people to register to vote, of the two Spanish speaking employees (including Meg), and to take ID’s annual needs assessment survey. There are patron quotes, job postings, interviews and Library Snapshot featuring memorable users, volunteers and donors.

They have a 3D printer and Makerspace instruction. This enticing piece with a heart for McCall’s place in the state changes hues – a great ad for learning to operate fascinating equipment.

McCall Public Library does a wonderful job catering to its clientele, but oh, how fabulous it will be when they move to their new home in 2024 and can truly maximize resources and accommodate the needs of the community!