Books and Reading

Books and Reading | Leabhair agus Léitheoireacht 

At Cork City Libraries we have books for adults, children and young people - classics, bestsellers, biographies, travel, foreign language, literacy, sport, history and much more. We also have large print books, eBooks, eAudiobooks, DVDs and CDs. With over 500,000 items in stock to choose from, you are sure to find a book to suit you.  And with the national catalogue and delivery service you have access to 12 million items! Enjoy a quiet reading space in any of our local libraries, relax with a good book in the comfort of your own home or explore our many eBooks that are available online.

We also support books and reading through our many book clubs and various events throughout the year such as: World Book Festival, One City One Book and author visits. Please visit our What's On section to find out about events, programmes and festivals in your library.

View our range of books, CDs, DVDs here at the Library Catalogue . 

New books and booklists are highlighted on our Facebook page. For occasional articles on literature and recommended reading, visit our Library Blog.

Healthy Ireland Booklist

Healthy Ireland funding has supported the development of a health and wellbeing book collection has over 100 titles covering the three Healthy Ireland themes – Eat Well, Think Well, Be Well. Each book was specially evaluated nationally to provide individuals and families with reliable, accessible information to manage their general health and wellbeing. The collection includes books for children and young adults as well. The collection is available to borrow in every local library free of charge. You can also reserve the books on the national online catalogue : 

Your Good Self Booklist

Bibliotherapy, the use of books and reading to help cope with emotional, physical and mental health, is increasingly acknowledged as being of great benefit to help people deal with life’s difficulties.

Bibliotherapy includes the use of fiction and non-fiction books and reading for pleasure to enhance people’s lives and provide means of enjoyment and respite from the daily grind. In recent times book prescription schemes have been developed in a number of countries and such a scheme is now operating in Cork City Libraries – we have copies of recommended books available in all local libraries and Central Library. Among the topics covered are eating disorders, anger management, depression, OCD, sexual problems, dealing with sexual abuse, panic attacks, relationship problems, stress and anxiety, relaxation techniques and parenting skills.

Sensory Books in a Bag

Visit our Growing Imaginations page to find out about our Sensory Books in a Bag available to borrow.

Toy Library

Visit your local library to find a range of jigsaws, board games and story sacks available to borrow.

Technology

Cork City Libraries has a collection of Zoom H5 audio recorders and GoPro cameras available to borrow by community groups. We also have a Laptop Lending project to support schools. To enquire about borrowing these devices, email elibrary@corkcity.ie

Stock Donations 

If you are considering donating a collection or making a bequest, first please consult section 6 of our Collections Development Policy, link below. If your collection meets our criteria, you can make contact at collections@corkcity.ie and a member of staff will be in touch.

Expressions of concern

Cork City Libraries aspire to hold a balanced collection available to all. We subscribe to the principles in the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions Statement on Libraries and Intellectual Freedom. Cork City Libraries have a collection that exceeds 600,000 items, therefore it is not possible or feasible that staff read, watch, or listen to every item before purchase. Our staff select material according to the criteria listed in section 4 of our Collection Development Policy 

A City Reading A Collections Development Policy for Cork City Libraries.pdf (size 6.3 MB)

If you are concerned about an item held by Cork City Libraries, you can request an Expression of Concern form:

• by visiting your local branch of Cork City Libraries
• by emailing collections@corkcity.ie
• by writing to Collection Review, Cork City Libraries, 57-61 Grand Parade, Cork T12 NT99.
• by downloading our Expression of Concern Form

Please note any complaint or expression of concern must be submitted using the Expression of Concern form.

A member of staff will contact you to acknowledge receipt of your form. We may ask you for further information, and we will explain what will happen next. To ensure a fair process, reviewing the complaint is likely to take time. Every person has the right to question library resources and your concerns will be taken seriously. We promise to deal with you respectfully and confidentially. We expect complaints or expressions of concern to respect library staff as set out in the Cork City Council Code of Conduct.