I love the books they have! I love graphic novels and they have everyone I could think of. It is…read morealso close to my home.

front desk staff is friendly and helpful. new branch director is full of energy…read more reference librariann Joanne needs people skills. she talks very rudely to patron adults and kids. i love how since they have reopened, they are trying to have classses book club, kids kits. library is always clean and neat. this has become my new library home

Library: a place you went to get information before the Internet existed…read more The Walker Branch, built in 1890, is the oldest structure owned by Chicago Public Library. I'm so glad a previous reviewer posted a photo of the exterior, thank you. This was the library I used when I was in high school. There are so many stately old homes & buildings in the Beverly/Morgan Park neighborhoods that, at the time, I didn't appreciate the historic significance of my library. To me, it was just one more building like all the others I was accustomed to seeing. One of my close friends lived in an 1800's Victorian in Morgan Park. To us, it was just a nice big house. Big enough so that a bunch of girls could hang out there, in an upstairs parlor, without Penny's parents bugging us.....because, looking back, I doubt they were even aware of our presence. I recall being in a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Beverly. Being unfamiliar with the architect, I remember thinking how unusual the place appeared, with all the built-ins. Sounds like I shoulda spent more time at the library. But I actually did spend a lot of time at this library, doing research for school papers. Remember, there was no way to look up anything online. You had to find it in books. First you had to find the books. If somebody got to the library ahead of you & checked out the books you needed, you were S.O.L. (poop outta luck). Up the creek without a paddle. Scared you gonna flunk. I remember the library closed early in the evenings, like maybe 8pm. It was closed on Sundays & holidays. Problem. Because in order to get to the books you had to get to the library. Walker was the closest library to my house at the time but still kinda far to walk, impossible in frigid winters/snowstorms. I graduated high school when I was 16 so had no driver's license during most of my H.S. years. So I had to find a ride to get to the books. Or "borrow" my mother's car, which I did once when I was 15. I drove to the library in a '59 Impala convertible....with the top down. I remember wearing sunglasses to disguise my age. But I had the damn top down & even drove around the neighborhood a bit, like a hot-shot, hair blowing in the wind.....on my way to the library. I didn't get caught. I only did it once. I did know how to drive, btw. Most kids did know how before they were legal. And not many cars on the road back then, not anything like now. I didn't even see another car that day I drove to the library, a disappointment because I'd hoped a friend might notice me. So yeah, although I didn't appreciate architecture, I sure did appreciate a massive white convertible with big fins & a turquoise interior. Kudos to Mom. These days, I appreciate the Internet. I still love books and libraries but more for pleasure than for research. At Walker Library one time I had to do research for a paper on Marshal Ferdinand Foch. I was selected to read my paper to the class. Had the teacher not introduced me with the pronunciation of "Foch" as fosh with a long O (although I've since heard it pronounced fawsh)......well, that woulda been embarrassing cuz I thought it was fahk. If I'd gotten caught in that convertible I woulda been foched, per my incorrect pronunciation. Walker Branch Library, creator of stories & source of good times, I'm glad your historic, 128-year-old walls can't talk.

I'm on a quest to visit every branch of the Chicago Public Library…read more The Walker branch of the library is such a unique building! Inside, there is a nice little reading room referred to as the "ethnic room." I think I would spend a lot of time in that room if I lived near this branch. This branch has separate floors for children and adults which is really nice. It seems like they have a pretty nice assortment of materials for teens and for adults in general. But what I really like is the building; the setup of this library is just so unique and so different from most libraries. From what I understand, Walker donated the building to the library system. The front door is wooden! A nice, quiet space where it seems one could get a lot of work done.

I'm on a quest to visit every branch of the Chicago Public Library system…read more This branch is pretty basic. There is a lot of natural light, which is really nice, and a lot of workspace. They have an extensive "Irish Collection." This shouldn't come as any surprise, but I did find it funny that it would be larger than the Chicago collection. The librarians seem okay, though not super friendly. The bathroom is kind of gross. Overall, an okay library.

Good library. Well organized. Clean. AC works very well too. It seems like they have a huge…read moreselection for the kids. They also have tickets for museums and other chicago venues.

The Vivian G. Harsh collection is the Chicago Public Library archival collection hosted at the…read moreWoodson Regional Library. I've wanted to visit for a few years, since I learned this collection exists; however, Washington Heights is so far away from Ravenswood! I attended a virtual lecture that one of the archivists, Beth Loch, held about preserving your family history and it was excellent. She also mentioned a pilot program where the archive is giving a small number of archival protective items (box, folders, etc.) to the public for folks to begin to preserve their own documents, so I decided that it was time to take a trip down to the Woodson library (and it lets me cross off one more CPL branch on my quest to visit all the branches in the system!). This is a deep and rich collection African American history which began by Harsh herself, which she began when she the first African American woman to serve as a branch manager in the CPL system. She collected a great deal of items herself whilst the director of the branch, and the precursor to the Harsh collection, called the Special Negro Collection and established by Harsh herself, was held at the Hall branch in Bronzeville. Harsh herself is a fascinating woman, but this review is about the collection and space specifically, so I'll try to tone down my fan-girling. The archive holds the papers of several important African Americans, including Richard Wright and Timuel Black. Richard Wright (author of Black Boy and Native Son, amongst others) and Vivian Harsh actually knew one another, and there are photos of them together in the library. Many other African American authors, writers, organizations, and the like have donated their papers and historical documents to the archives. This area of the library is wide and open with lots of tables for folks to do work and research. There's also a rare documents room that is kept locked and for use when reviewing particular items. It also has photos of important folks in the history of the library and the archives, as well as some interesting artwork. Jacob's Ladder, by renowned sculptor Richard Hunt, is in the center of this space. I learned that it was originally installed in the 70's and the artist's vision was that people would be able to walk through it to the other side; however, people would slip on the brick and children would hop on the bottom half of the sculpture and potentially hurt themselves, so there are now stanchions around the base of the two-piece statue. There are several large round discs surrounding the base of the sculpture, which once held plants native to Africa. However, when they moved the archives to this branch, the plants had to go (of course you don't want to have plants and their humidity near a collection of documents you're trying to preserve). They later filled it with fake plants, I believe, and now they are empty and covered over whilst the Chicago Cultural Center (which is responsible for placing artwork in public city buildings in Chicago) determines what new artwork will be placed in the space. There is also a somewhat haunting woodblock print by Willie Cole called Stowage taking up a large swath of the western wall of the room. As there was someone sitting near it and we're in the second year of the pandemic, I couldn't get terribly close to the plaque explaining the work; it says, in part: "...this woodblock... uses the iron and ironing board as icons to conjure both the labor of his African American female forbearers and the primary shapes of African sculpture." Hopibara by Williams, Hope in the Community by Omwony-Hope, and Tempest by Searles are some other beautiful artworks on display in the archive. The librarians were great. I was wondering around taking photos and stopping to read the information about the works, and when I neared the desk where one of the librarians had been working, a second one came out and said that they'd noticed me wandering around and asked if I had any questions. That's when I learned who Harsh was, as well as learning a bit about Charlemae Hill Rollins. Both these women are fascinating and I seriously would like to write a book about them... I just need to learn how to write a book.... There's so much history here, and I really find archives fascinating. I wasn't totally joking about wanting to write a book, and that's mostly because Vivian Harsh (and Charlemae Hill Robbins!!) are fascinating women who are important not only in Chicago and African American history, but in the history of libraries as well. But a part of me wants to do it also because to have access to the archive would be a dream! If you're here, it's worth a quick stroll through this section of the library to check out the artwork and maybe learn a bit, too. Review #620 - January 10, 2022 2022 first review

The staff is very friendly and helpful. The environment is quiet and calm setting…read more The library is never crowded and I can access computer and scanner as soon as I walk in. I really appreciate the staff at Scottsdale Library. Thank you

I'm on a quest to visit every single branch of Chicago Public Library…read more The Scottsdale Branch is a smaller one. So, of course, it doesn't have as big a selection of books, dvds and music found in some of the other branches of the Chicago Public Library. This branch is a quieter one, and it seems like the computer terminals are a little easier to "get" than at some of the other branches. The museum passes are hard to find here, though not as hard as the Lincoln Park branch. Overall, a nice, small, quiet branch that could use some updating.

Nice little city library on Kedzie Avenue just north of 87th Street. This location of the Chicago…read morePublic Library looks very new and is spacious and easy to get to. It has a fenced in parking lot to ease your parking concerns. On the day we were there they were having early voting for the Chicago election and as such had a lot of people outside handing out voting suggestions. But on a normal day we are sure the library is much easier to park at and get in to. Inside it is the typical Chicago library - loads of tables/chairs and lots of room. They have a large meeting room on the first floor that was being used for the early voting. This is a nice addition to the neighborhood. We needed to update our CPL library card and that's why we arrived here - their hours are a bit better (opening at 10 am) than many of the other branches which only open at noon on some days. The personnel we worked with were all delightful - especially the lady at the door greeting us with a smile and a hello. All in all a nice library location - give it a try.

This is a small branch on the far south side. I stopped in because they are hosting a virtual…read moreprogram called Introduction to Oil Pastels next month (January 2022), and I needed to pick up materials. Undoubtedly they would have sent them to Sulzer Regional, which is my neighborhood branch, but I like visiting libraries and since I think I've visited more suburban branches than city ones, I wanted to check out a new one (I promise the pun was unintentional!) This branch has a nice piece of artwork called Forever Gwendolyn above the checkout desk. The artist is Preston Jackson. From the Brainerd branch page on the CPL site, this work "celebrates three phases of the life of Gwendolyn Brooks, poet laureate of Illinois and the first African American woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize in poetry." It's a pretty small branch, to be sure. When I was there no one else was there besides a librarian and security guard (and another employee in an office or something), though a couple other folks came whilst I was in the lot and figuring tour where I wanted to go next. When you walk in you can basically see the entire branch, with the exception of the community room; but as I mentioned before, things can be shipped between branches so one has essentially the whole of the Chicago Public Library at their disposal. The library has really beautiful cathedral ceilings and clerestory windows to let in lots of light without sacrificing much needed wall space to hold the library's collection. Putting on my plant mama hat I can't help but think of how great a space this would be for plants that don't like direct sunlight! There is also a small parking lot at the branch which is nice since that's not to be taken for granted at a library in Chicago. It's also a block from the Brainerd station on the Metra Rock Island line. The librarian on duty wasn't overly friendly and didn't say anything until I spoke to them about picking up the items for the workshop, but they weren't rude either. A large courtyard with several benches takes up the skate between the entrance and parking lot, which I'm sure is a welcoming place to enjoy in the warmer months.

Used to struggle with reading in school and my peers would tease me when reading aloud. There was a…read moretime when I absolutely hated books. I eventually received tutoring and help from a high school guidance counselor and mentors at the library. In my early twenties I couldn't put books down. I love the feel of a book in my hands and I enjoy turning the pages. Moving along with evolving technology; I also enjoy online books as well as recorded books that I can listen to during my commutes. I appreciate that the libraries offer so many opportunities for one to be creative with books. So many ways to stimulate and cultivate creative imagination. The library also has a lot of different events and activities for families and the communities. I appreciate so much how Chicago Public Libraries have helped me to blossom, my children to thrive and now my g-baby loves the experiences as well.

I have always loved this library! I was a volunteer in college and my son was in the summer reading…read moreprograms all through elementary school! The authors in the theater and various Black History programs. KEEP UP the good work!

The Library is a hidden gem for the area. It has an awesome video collection, and the electronic…read moreresources are top notch. The Library is too small, but the furniture has been upgraded. The study rooms are very nice.