Auckland Libraries blog

This week on Books and Beyond, Anton Blank discusses his new book Global Roaming , a collection of short stories that focus on the journey of identity.  Listen to this episode on the Auckland Libraries podcast. Auckland Libraries' radio show Books and Beyond explores the world of books with guest authors, recommended reads, gems from the Central City Library basement and... beyond.  Catch us on Planet FM 104.6, Sundays at 9.35pm. Listen to recent shows via the Auckland Libraries podcast .

We're excited to have our first standalone reference collection of Auckland fiction at Research Central , Level 2, Central City Library. Fiction lovers can browse the Kōrero paki nō Aotearoa/Local Fiction Collection seven days a week, and visitors to the city can find a pathway into our culture through our stories. Whilst focusing on Auckland fiction, the collection also includes work from wider New Zealand with an emphasis on Māori, Pacific and Asian NZ writers. Local gems include short story writer O.E. Middleton's 1972 collection The Loners – with each story beautifully illustrated by celebrated artist Ralph Hotere. We also have a complete set of the New Women’s Fiction anthologies first published in Auckland in the 1980s. These were important counters to the lack of publishing opportunities for women writers in literary journals and major anthologies at that time. Aorewa McLeod, Ngahuia Te Awekotuku and Vivienne Plumb are some of the many voices found in these vo...

Checkouts from Auckland Libraries’ main digital reading platform, Overdrive , reached 4 million this month, making us some of the biggest digital library borrowers in the world. Auckland Libraries is now eighth in the world for Overdrive checkouts and one of only two libraries outside of the United States to hit 4 million checkouts. We join Toronto Public Library, New York Public Library, Los Angeles Public Library, King County Library System, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Boston Public Library and National Library Board Singapore in the 4 million club. Since November 2013, over 78,800 people have checked out at least one eBook from Auckland Libraries' Overdrive collection and this figure continues to grow, hitting an average of 27,543 eBooks borrowed per week this November. Catherine Frew, Auckland Libraries Head of Content and Access, is delighted to see Aucklanders' eBook borrowing grow and attributes this to Auckland Libraries’ innovative approach to their digit...

​With approximately 20,000 visitors per day to our website, it's important that we deliver a digital experience that meets the growing needs of library customers.  We've put insights from customers at the heart of our website. Using your feedback, we've created a simplified and intuitive web experience that makes it easy to access the library catalogue, eBooks and magazines, major databases and heritage resources, as well as find out what’s happening at your community library. We encourage you to take a look around our new website and tell us what you think using the feedback options at the bottom of each page. Visit our new website now and find out more about our vision for the site .

Dr Majid Daneshgar from the University of Otago is the winner of this year's Auckland Library Heritage Trust scholarship 2016/17.  Dr Majid Daneshgar This is a scholarship awarded annually by the Trust to fund research into collections held in the Sir George Grey Special Collections at Auckland Libraries. Dr Daneshgar is preparing a catalogue of Middle Eastern manuscripts in Auckland Libraries. These include Arabic, Persian and Ottoman Turkish works collected by Sir George Grey and Henry Shaw. Dr Daneshgar reads in Urdu, Persian, Arabic, Ottoman Turk, and Malay (Jawi), and is in the process of completing a census of Middle Eastern and Islamic manuscripts in New Zealand. Libraries and archives that Dr Daneshgar has worked through in search of materials include the Turnbull Library, the Sir George Grey Special Collections at Auckland Central City Library, the Heritage Collection in Dunedin Public Library, and Special Collections at Otago University. A 19th centur...

The Library Connect team is the virtual team providing customer service to those who access library services without coming into a physical library.  The need for the service was highlighted when 70% of customer research participants stated their preference for managing enquiries remotely. The Library Connect team are Alison (pictured above), Meenu, Abi, Epi, and Jo. Their collective 100 years of library experience enable them to answer a huge range of enquiries every day.  They bring a wealth of library knowledge and experience from across the region. Each week they answer around 1000 calls and 400 emails. Their recent enquiries include: finding book titles using only descriptions of the cover and the plot of a book; introducing customers to the vast range of magazines available free from RBDigital eMagazines; talking customers through registering for Lynda.com to provide them with the opportunity to study from home; helping customers become confident users ...

We’ve listened to your feedback and we’re making improvements to Central City Library. Between early June and September Central Library is undergoing a refurbishment. This includes include installing new carpet, painting the walls and also changing the lighting for new environmentally friendly and brighter LED lighting. While this work is taking place we’re also taking the opportunity to make some further changes to the library to improve visitors experience when visiting. Level 2 works - 8 June to 3 July approx. Level 2 is now open and Sir George Grey Special Collections and the Central Research Centre are open. During the refurbishment, the newspaper room on Level 2 is closed. This will move to Level 1. Some papers may not be available during this time. Level 1 works - 4 July to 4 August This floor is entirely closed during these works to deliver new and improved study, computer and reading areas. The Citizens Advice Bureau will be offering a service from elsewher...