Bucket list libraries

I love libraries. You probably love libraries too. (If you don't, what's even wrong with you?) I've been going crazy on Pinterest lately, just looking at all these beautiful pictures of the most amazing places in the entire world and now I kind of need someone to share them with. So now, in no particular order, my bucket list libraries. 


Trinity College, Ireland

By Diliff - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Source

Um, yes. This is like one of the great libraries of ye old times, with mahogany and ordered shelves. But why are all the books roped off? RELEASE THE BOOKWORMS.

The King's Library, England

I'm once again sorry for the quality of these pictures, but if you want to read me rave about this library then read this post. 

Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris

By Vincent Desjardins - Flickr: France, Paris : Bibliothèque nationale de France, site Richelieu, salle ovale 1897-1936, CC BY 2.0, Source

Private library, France

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I realize I probably can't have a 3,000,000,000 collection of books (my mother calls it reality) but this looks like a pretty reasonable goal. For goodness sakes, it has a spiral staircase AND a ladder. (It just needs to be a slidey ladder, like in Beauty and the Beast.) And I love the aluminum/white feel to it. 

El Escorial, Spain

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I basically have this huge weakness for globes and books. 

Admont Abbey Library, Austria

By © Jorge Royan / http://www.royan.com.ar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

THIS IS BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. I'VE FOUND THE PLACE. IT'S REAL, GUYS.

Virgilio Barco Library, Colombia 

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I feel like I could get lost in there. There's no place I'd rather get lost in. 

Jay Walker's private library, USA

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José Vasconcelos Library, Mexico

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The National Library of China

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Karl Lagerfeld's private library, USA

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Basically PLEASE. Now that is how you stack books. 

Private library, USA

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Seriously, I'm such a sucker for ladders. I don't know what it is, but ladders and spiral staircases are just perfect. And this one is two stories. I'm basically in love here. 

And the winner (in a heart-breaking way)...

Detroit Public Library's Mark Twain branch, USA

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This was a well-used library in the 40's and 50's, but after the city encountered financial troubles they couldn't continue to repair it. The library decayed, and thanks to asbestos, lack of funding and much-needed repairs the building was demolished in 2011. Today, there is nothing but an empty parking lot. (Source.)

Thanks to Google Maps. If you want to check it out, it's on the intersection between Gratiot and Seneca in Detroit. 

While I may not be able to check out any books, I'd like to go to the empty lot. If this post has taught me anything (and you can take whatever you'd like from it, I'm a blogger, not a teacher) it's that humanity as a whole values knowledge. We build giant buildings to store our books in, we protect ancient manuscripts with everything we have and we open the doors wide so others can benefit from our accumulated knowledge. We spend billions of dollars, make repairs, raise buildings from the ground and line our books up one by one with the utmost care. 

But humanity isn't perfect. Things go wrong. That empty lot is proof of that. And I just hope that for each brilliant, glorious, crazy gorgeous leap we take for humanity we remember some of our failures. 

Which one was your favourite? If you could visit one, which one would you visit? What are your library goals?