Comments on: Which ones have happy endings?

Which ones have happy endings?

geoff. — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 07:50:48 -0800

Red-Hot and Filthy Library Smut. Scanned photos of the insides of some of the world's hottest, youngest and dirtiest libraries. Some of the best from the book by Candida Hofer.

By: geoff.

geoff. — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:10:16 -0800

Uh oh, you dirty pervs. I think we broke it.

By: jonson

jonson — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:11:32 -0800

Dude, you are SO pandering to 50% of the judges. Shameless!!

By: GuyZero

GuyZero — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:20:24 -0800

"Sex Libris". Heh.

By: The Jesse Helms

The Jesse Helms — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:22:58 -0800

Can't see the site, but I did run into students having sex in the Georgetown library frequently as an undergrad. All over the place. I should have mapped the locations and overlaid the Dewey.

By: Western Infidels

Western Infidels — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:24:02 -0800

Loaded very, very slowly for me, but it was worth the wait. Beautiful pictures. Thanks for posting.

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:40:21 -0800

This post needs a "barebook" tag.

By: Justinian

Justinian — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:41:56 -0800

If I had a gazillion dollars I would buy me Trinity College Library.

By: stinkycheese

stinkycheese — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:56:55 -0800

Librarians do it between the covers.

By: jacquilynne

jacquilynne — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 08:57:31 -0800

Libary of Parliament in Ottawa is absolutely stunning. I give serious consideration to running for office every time I see it.

By: Jilder

Jilder — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:00:37 -0800

*fans self* You should see what the amateurs are doing out there, too - the Bookshelf Project is very sexy too, in a rough and ready kinda way. Some of the images even have their own notations! *goes for a cool shower and a lie-down*

By: Turtles all the way down

Turtles all the way down — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:04:04 -0800

jacquilynne--your Google skills far exceed mine: I was going to post the same comment but couldn't find a picture that wasn't embedded in a Flash site. I'd highly recommend to anyone a visit to the Library of Parliament, and for that matter the rest of the Parliament buildings, to anyone visiting Ottawa. (Although when I think about it who would visit Ottawa and *not* go to Parliament Hill? Never mind!)

By: Turtles all the way down

Turtles all the way down — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:05:16 -0800

Did I emphasize the "to anyone" part enough in the previous post? I did. Good.

By: Shane

Shane — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:07:57 -0800

Reminds me of the intro to Polanski's Ninth Gate. I think Frank Langella's character is in Hell, it looks a lot like the best of these photos, but he can't touch any of the books.

By: jacquilynne

jacquilynne — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:12:47 -0800

I did an image search for 'library parliament ottawa'. I'm not sure that qualifies as l33t g00gl-fu.

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:19:21 -0800

The New York Public Library at 42nd Street has a great reading room. I love libraries. The British Library is one of my favs, interesting reading room. The history of libraries. These days my favorite libraries are all on the monitor of my computer, Google is my ocean to explore. There's the Internet Archive, Gutenberg and the Internet Public Library. And all the spontaneously, ever-changing created web books, blogs. But there is something truly special, sacred maybe, about being in a library, a really good one, surrounded by those beautiful creations, books.

By: Turtles all the way down

Turtles all the way down — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:37:49 -0800

I did an image search for 'library parliament ottawa'. See? I typed in "pretty beaver book place." ;-P

By: SenshiNeko

SenshiNeko — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:38:42 -0800

I'm embarassed to admit that this post made me think of jessamyn.

By: robocop is bleeding

robocop is bleeding — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:44:23 -0800

That truly is some library porn. Those reading rooms strike me the same way big silicon breast implants do: wonderful to look at, but likely difficult to navigate and harder to use.

By: stbalbach

stbalbach — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:44:59 -0800

The Library of St. Gall takes the cake in beauty, age and importance. It's a UNESCO World Heritage site, dates back to pre-Charlemagne.

By: blucevalo

blucevalo — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:46:20 -0800

Libraries have been hands down my favorite places in the world to spend time ever since I was a little brat who had to stand on tiptoe to see over the check-out counter. The photos at this site reinforce why this is the case. I definitely need to find this book. Thank you for this.

By: jessamyn

jessamyn — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:53:18 -0800

woah.

By: ilsa

ilsa — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 10:29:46 -0800

Thank [diety] I don't have to dust any of those places....

By: redsparkler

redsparkler — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 10:30:18 -0800

*gah*

By: Mister_A

Mister_A — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 10:41:54 -0800

mmmm books

By: Hogshead

Hogshead — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 10:53:42 -0800

What, no London Library? The one that I'm not surprised to find absent is Eton College Library -- as distinct from Eton School Library -- because it's not very well known to those outside the school. It's one of those places where you walk past a small, not terribly impressive glass case on your left as you enter, and you wonder what's in there, and you glance at it and it's the school's Gutenberg Bible. Like that. Plus the wood panelling is lovely.

By: geoff.

geoff. — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 11:01:15 -0800

Here's more information about the book it came from: Libraries - Candida Hofer (Introduction by Umberto Eco) * ISBN 0500543143 * ISBN-13 978-0500543146 Amazon for $62.97

By: Staggering Jack

Staggering Jack — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 11:34:41 -0800

Thanks for the links. I think the Seattle Central library somehow fits into this category, like a cybernetic pleasure bot with fishnet stockings.

By: jacquilynne

jacquilynne — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 11:49:25 -0800

Huh. Is the constant change of lighting patterns in that room as annoying as it looks when you're actually in there?

By: Turtles all the way down

Turtles all the way down — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 11:52:14 -0800

I think the Seattle Central library somehow fits into this category Whoa dude! Looks like the alien mothership just touched down.

By: QIbHom

QIbHom — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 11:57:23 -0800

Wow... Library pervs may also enjoy Paul Dickson's _The Library in America: a celebration in words and pictures_, ISBN 0816013659. The Library of Parliment in Ottawa is beautiful. And, unlike the US Library of Congress, children can tour it, which is why the only thing I remember from my trip to Ottawa is that library, and the only thing I remember from a trip to DC two years later is...actually...I don't remember anything from that trip.

By: Andrew Brinton

Andrew Brinton — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 11:58:10 -0800

It's the Seattle library. On those 3 days when the sun is out, you don't want to be in there anyway.

By: jfuller

jfuller — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 12:09:12 -0800

> If I had a gazillion dollars I would buy me Trinity College Library. The contents of my HD look just like that, if you could only see it.

By: loquacious

loquacious — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 15:01:29 -0800

Dear God. Please fetch me my fresh underpants.

By: jb

jb — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 16:43:55 -0800

The British Library reading room isn't in the round room anymore - it's moved up to Euston Rd. Now the round room is for reading texts at the British Museum. To be honest, as pretty as the old British Library is, there isn't a chance in hell they could fit everyone in that uses the current building. I can't imagine fitting in everyone in the humanities room, let alone everyone else.

By: stet

stet — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 19:50:29 -0800

robocop is bleeding writes "Those reading rooms strike me the same way big silicon breast implants do: wonderful to look at, but likely difficult to navigate and harder to use." Heh, you're missing the biggest advantage of ornate libraries. I've seen the Suzzallo reading room at the University of Washington intimidate undergrads (honest-to-Ranganathan undergrads!) in to an awed and cellphone free silence. If the price I pay for that is a longer trip to my book, it's a price I'm willing to pay. Or, more succinctly, SHUSH, BITCHES!

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 20:43:25 -0800

you can almost smell 'em.... wonderful!

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 20:54:16 -0800

the round room is for reading texts at the British Museum oh wow, thank for that info jb. I used the British Library to read 18th Century texts in the mid-1970's. Had to go to a special room to do it. I was researching a book on demons I wrote. Got to look through huge old handwritten, -spooky- demonologies, all wonderfully illustrated. Have you ever read AS Byatt's book, Possession about the couple working the the British Museum Library? It's one of my favs.

By: IndigoJones

IndigoJones — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 05:34:52 -0800

At Home With Books shows what can be done with just a tad less than a gazillion dollars. Included is Keith Richard's library, which is really quite nice.

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 09:34:51 -0800

omg Keith Richards reads? And reads that much he has a quite nice library? Whoda thunk?

By: stbalbach

stbalbach — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 20:36:29 -0800

Good suggestion IndigoJones