Libraries

Brian Cleary poses with a newly published copy of Bram Stoker's "Gibbet Hill," illustrated by Irish artist Paul McKinley.

Amateur Historian Discovers Lost Story by 'Dracula' Author Bram Stoker Hiding in Plain Sight at a Dublin Library

History forgot about "Gibbet Hill" for more than a century—until a fan of the Gothic horror writer stumbled upon the haunting tale at the National Library of Ireland

With its exquisitely vaulted ceiling and inlaid walnut bookshelves covering three floors, the East Room was designed as a treasury and showroom for Morgan's rare book collection.

This Savvy Librarian Was the True Force Behind New York’s Iconic Morgan Library

It fell to Belle da Costa Greene, a Black woman whose racial identity was kept secret for decades, to catalog J.P. Morgan's immense collection of books and art

The previously unknown composition was discovered in the collections of Leipzig Municipal Libraries in Germany.

This Lost Mozart Composition Hasn't Been Heard for Centuries. Now, You Can Listen to It

More than 250 years after a teenage Mozart wrote "Serenade in C," a copy of the piece has surfaced in the collections of a German library

One of the lost works discovered in AMU's University Library with annotations from the Brothers Grimm

The Brothers Grimm Did Much More Than Tell Fairy Tales

A recent discovery in a Polish library of 27 books that were thought to have been lost sheds light on the breadth of the German scholars' work

The title page of one of the Folger’s First Folios.

How the Soon-to-Reopen Folger Shakespeare Library Came to Be

A full 82 copies of Shakespeare’s First Folio will go on view as the renovated Washington, D.C. institution makes its debut

After its century-long disappearance, the book was returned in good condition earlier this year.

Overdue Book Returned to Colorado Library After 105 Years

The Fort Collins library waived the fine, which totaled over $14,000 when adjusted for inflation

French author Arsène Houssaye wrote the book in 1879, then gave a copy to French physician Ludovic Bouland.

A Book Bound With Human Skin Spent 90 Years in Harvard's Library. Now, the Binding Has Been Removed

In the late 19th century, a French physician took the skin, without consent, from a female psychiatric patient who had died

Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer: A Memoir topped the list, followed by George M. Johnson’s All Boys Aren’t Blue.

These Were the Most Challenged Books in America Last Year

Titles with LGBTQ themes dominated the American Library Association's newly released list

The Library Company reading room on Juniper Street in Philadelphia c. 1935, one of the group’s main locations from 1880 to 1935.

How Ben Franklin Invented the Library as We Know It

Books were rare and expensive in colonial America, but the founding father had an idea

Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe was the ALA's most challenged book in both 2021 and 2022. 

Book Banning Attempts Are at Record Highs

A new report from the American Library Association found that the number of challenged titles increased by 65 percent in 2023

Completed in 1709, the library has more than 22,000 books.

You Can Spend the Night in the Secret Library Tucked Inside St. Paul's Cathedral

Airbnb is offering two guests the chance to sleep amongst 22,000 books in an area normally off-limits to visitors

Libraries across the country are sharing their most checked-out books of 2023.

Public Libraries Reveal the Most Borrowed Books From 2023

Titles that appeared on multiple lists include "Lessons in Chemistry," "Spare" and "Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow"

Charlotte Brontë’s attraction to the strange and horrific was an early vehicle for her love of storytelling.

An Early Charlotte Brontë Story Speaks to the Author's Lifelong Fascination With the Supernatural

The 1830 account details an eerie encounter with a stranger who predicted the death of the writer's father

“Had it not been for the testament given [to] him by Mr. Foster, which received a second bullet, I doubt if you would have ever seen him again,” wrote journalist Benjamin Perley Poore in a letter to Merrill's father.

The Bible That Stopped a Bullet

In 1863, a New Testament tucked in the pocket of Union soldier Charles W. Merrill prevented a musket ball from mortally wounding him

When it comes to historical markers, the hidden truth is this: In any given state, as many as a dozen entities could be putting up signs at the same time.

Why Historical Markers Matter

Few realize that the approval process for these outdoor signs varies widely by state and organization, enabling unsanctioned displays to slip through

Brooker began collecting in 1959 in Paris and has been assembling his library ever since.

Trove of Rare Renaissance Books Could Fetch $25 Million at Auction

T. Kimball Brooker has amassed a collection of more than 1,300 texts from the 16th century

The Handmaid's Tale is one of the books removed from libraries in Iowa’s Mason City Community School District.

Why This School District Used A.I. to Help Determine Which Books to Ban

Iowa schools are struggling to comply with new laws banning books that aren't "age appropriate"

The new app provides access to banned titles based on readers' locations.

Readers Can Now Access Books Banned in Their Area for Free With New App

Based on users' locations, the Banned Book Club provides e-book editions of titles banned in nearby libraries

U.S. authorities have returned a rare copy of a letter by Christopher Columbus, which vanished from Venice decades ago.

Stolen in the 1980s, a Rare Christopher Columbus Letter Returns to Italy

The document is among several missing copies of the letter to be recovered from the U.S. in recent years

Desiree Perez, Roc Nation's CEO, walks through "The Book of HOV" with Jay-Z.

In the 'Heart of the City,' a Tribute to Jay-Z

The Brooklyn Public Library is celebrating the rapper’s life and career in a new exhibition, "The Book of HOV"

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