Coleraine Library

Its an excellent library.
Apr 23rd, 2023

Mar 21st, 2023

Dec 31st, 2022

Brilliant great facilities. Not at all like the old days plenty of new books newspapers magazines computers. Noticed they had a knitting circle in one of the rooms when I visited. What's not to like
Nov 18th, 2022

A tough review here: Coleraine library has always had acoustic issues because of its open design, so it's a bit on the noisy side. It's still one of my favourite libraries in the world, perhaps from nostalgia (as a kid who went on to become an English professor, sitting in there later at night reading poetry). That said, the redesign, with communal seating on the upper level, is a little disappointing (personally think it should have been kept to a couple of sides). Book selection isn't that great either, if you have any experience with stronger public libraries (and the curation is a bit odd too, and not in a good way). My main problem remains *some* of the staff. I live abroad these days, but was so, so excited to visit the library again last Christmas, and, despite being a member since I was a toddler (I'm now 39), they wanted to charge me money to use the wifi (bearing in mind that my parents still pay rates, and still live in Coleraine). My membership had lapsed (being abroad), and I had some grading to do, and I found it so money-grubbing and weird (especially given that I'm not a stranger to the staff). There are a couple of staff members I know there who remain just sour and rude (along with a couple of lovely staff members), and it's pretty upsetting to have to deal with the former when I'm there. Any reasonable library would have said, "Hey, we'll get you on the wifi, and we're so pleased you're enjoying your trip back home. Next time we can get you signed up again, if you're moving back." No such luck at Coleraine Library. It turned something I was so excited about into something so disappointing.
Jan 9th, 2023