I was lucky to have lived a mere two-mile walk from our local library in the Dublin suburb of Drumcondra. This was one of four libraries built between 1935 – 1940 by Dublin Corporation. All four were designed in this Art Deco style by Scottish architect, Robert Sorley Lawrie.
Drumcondra Library was opened in 1937. The spacious interior was typical of libraries of its time – the walls lined with bookshelves, some chairs, few tables. The main desk was immediately inside the door and to the right of this was the children’s section where I spent many, many happy hours. I’d grab one of the stools, and move around the waist-high shelves, taking down book after book and flicking through the pages. In the early days, I was only allowed to take home 3 books, so it was always a difficult decision, and I would spend hours trying to make the right one. Then the rules changed, and I was allowed to take out 6. All hardback books, of course, there were few paperbacks then.
Across the road from the library is Griffith Park – a pretty green space with trees, a river and a playground. Lots of seating too and I’d take my heavy bag across, find a seat, and look through my books one at a time before starting the trek home.
Libraries were different then – quiet and hushed. I lived in a small three-bedded semi with eight siblings and my mother – so for me, the library was a magical place where I could sit, inhale the scent of the pages and lose myself in the words.
Just looking at this photograph of the library can elicit feelings of contentment and I’m back perched on that stool, a book on my lap, escaping into a story.
Valerie Keogh’s brand new novel The Librarian is out on 21st April. Pre-order now: https://mybook.to/TheLibrarianSocial