For Bookworms : children entranced by the magic of words … and the worlds they conjure.
National Library Board (NLB)
NLB manages the National Library, 26 Public Libraries (including three regional libraries) and the National Archives.
It offers over a million e-books, e-databases, e-magazines, e-comics, e-newspapers, audio books and music tracks.
To borrow an e-book or e-resource (audio books or music tracks), library members who have registered online for an e-membership can log into the public library website and search for titles. If available, the e-book can either be downloaded on to a computer (pdf) or read online via the website. Some downloads have an access period of 21 days, others have no time restrictions.
With NLB Digital Accounts, e-resources, renewing book loans and paying fines can be done online.
Just for Teens : Teen Spaces : Verging all Teens (VAT)
Jurong Regional Library offers a dedicated Teens Library service – VAT- a library created for teens by teens, to inspire teens; a trial by the NLB to allow teenagers design and manage a library space just for themselves, under the guidance and mentorship of NLB librarians.
My Tree House : A Green Library for Children
This is the centrepiece of the enchanted forest themed childrens’ library in the Central Public Library in Victoria Street. The 3.3m tall treehouse has a canopy made of 3,000 spray painted recycled bottles, suspended in the holes of fishing nets fastened to metal rims, giving the canopy its shape, which coupled with dim lighting, gives the illusion of a hideout. The shelves of books are flanked by ‘trees’ in green and yellow.
An interactive quiz wall makes up the Knowledge Tree, with children using their shadows to select answers while a camera detects their presence. The Weather Stump is another interactive installation, showing real-time temperature, rainfall, wind speed and direction from the Marina Barrage.
This is a ‘green’ library, from its infrastructure to its programming and collection of books. Structures are made of recyclable and sustainable material, the lights are LED energy-efficient and the 45,000 books are mostly related to green topics from animals and plants to the weather – a focus on the environment.
100 Victoria Street, Singapore 188064
+65 6332 3255
Mondays through Sundays : 10.00 a.m. to 9.00 p.m.
Closes @ 5.00 p.m. on the eves of Christmas, New Year & Chinese New Year
Closed on Public Holidays
Esplanade Library
Singapore’s first performing arts library. It offers information and services in the areas of music, dance, theatre and film. You can rent music scores, DVD’s, CD’s and more. (We find this especially convenient if you need a music score for an exam or a performance, and do not wish to buy an expensive book online for just one piece of music).
It is one of the few libraries in the world to be located within a performing arts complex.
1 Esplanade Drive Singapore 038981
+65 6332 3255
11.00 a.m. to 9.00 p.m. daily
Closes @ 5.00 p.m. on the eves of Christmas, New Year & Chinese New Year
Closed on Public Holidays
Bookdrop hours: 7.00 a.m. to 2.00 a.m.
Woodlands Regional Library
With a focus on children, the fourth floor of this library has a reading area for young people styled as a fantasy forest with toadstool seats.
The library now boasts a collection of rare and old books for young people – 7,000 volumes in the Asian Children’s Literature Collection, including Asian folktales and histories, novels, folklore, Chinese myths edged in brocade and a Japanese ‘toy book’ with three tinier illustrated books wedged within its pages and bilingual books in English, Chinese, Korean, Nepali, Tamil and Thai.
Members of the public can browse and borrow volumes up to a century old, most can be taken home for 3 weeks. But 800 of the rarer volumes, including century-old novels and unique titles from Laos and Cambodia are displayed behind glass, and readers have to fill reservation forms to handle them and return them the same day.
900 South Woodlands Drive Woodlands Civic Centre, #01-03 Singapore 730900
+65 6332 3255
Mondays through Sundays : 10.00 a.m. to 9.00 p.m.
Closed on Public Holidays
Bookdrops : 24 hours
NLB’s Mollies (Mobile Libraries)
A new ‘Molly’ – mobile library – hit Singapore’s roads in September 2016, as a part of NLB’s committment to promote reading and make books available to all children. This newest of the 3 Mollys launched since 2008 has been designed with accessibility in mind, with a new hydraulic wheelchair lift for the disabled and their caretakers.
This Molly carries 3,000 books around Singapore, along with a magnetic whiteboard for activity sessions, and book borrowing and returning stations at a convenient height for young readers.
Fun Fact : Libraries on wheels have been around in Singapore since the 1960’s.
The Mollys are designed to serve communities who may have difficulty accessing a library on their own, especially children with special needs, orphanages and those who may not have the wherewithal to visit libraries and borrow books.
