During high school and intermediate I would often stop in here after school. Get some books, or…read moresome comics, the usual story. I wasn't unique in this, and today you still find hordes of school kids here in the afternoons. The staff are pretty accommodating of this onslaught, as they are of the equally busy one of retirees they get earlier in the day. This is one of the libraries that lives up to the 'community' part of 'community library', getting to know the locals and working to be an integral part of Pt Chevalier. Oh, and also there's books and stuff you can get out. Or read there if you want, there's plenty of seats.

Amazing library for a small community. I am recovering from surgery and spent the last two days…read morehere doing research, reading, and surfing the web. I have felt extremely comfortable and the staff has been extremely helpful. The bay is literally a two minute walk away for a breathtaking view and nice lunch. This is a must stop for any book lover!

Just look at it! St Helier's is a cute little library, it's like something out of a storybook…read more I always think of the St Helier's library as a 'ladies' library' - although I'm not quite sure what that means. I think it means it's just very pleasant. It's tidy and quiet inside and the seletion of books, as for all public libraries, is selected to suit the community it serves - so if you can imagine what the ladies (and gents) of St Helier's would most like to read, then that's what they have. The childrens' section is particularly cute (although very small), and they have lots of nice displays. There's also a good community noticeboard and they hold bookclubs there too.

I won't say much but second the great reviews. This is a great library and as a backpacker i spent…read moremany days in here using the wifi, getting info, etc. Not many backpackers here, mostly locals. Quiet. clean. very nice :)

Less helpful people working there now, but those still there are super helpful. Free wifi!…read moreVery nice study desk area's with power points for plugging in your laptop, and overlooking green areas outside. Very good thinking area. Lots of dvds still available for rent

This is my local library and one of my favourite places. It is as kid-friendly as could be and I…read morelove that I can walk in here with my kids and we each go our own way before meeting up later. I still have moments of amazement where I'm like "books for free!!!!!". It's one of the great pleasures of civilised life to have access to more books than you could ever read in a lifetime and best of all, it costs nothing! The librarians here are particularly helpful and one in particular always goes out of her way to make recommendations to my 11 year old daughter which I am so appreciative of. I will say though that there are a couple of (male) part timers here who are grumpiness personified. Yeah we know libraries are cool and yes, you must be very cool to work in one but let's not forget, it's still a customer service job. Like I said, the ladies are all lovely so go figure.

The majority of Manakau Rd seems to have converted houses as business offices which are a little…read moredisconcerting to enter. Thankfully Epsom Library has a nice shiny sculpture and car park to set itself apart. Regardless, I often forget about this little library. Epsom has a neatly spaced out library with very helpful staff members. Their friendly advice and knowledge of the other library branches is an excellent benefit. The sunny bay windows with private chairs and power points are perfect for the solitary study of the studious. And there are no near-by bars to distract you. Actually there isn't much near by so have a coffee before you arrive. It's no flowery, latte-art city library. Epsom has a good, standard, silent library that only misses the long wooden tables and green desk lamps.

This is a small library, with a decent selection of books and some tables and chairs. There are a…read morecouple of chairs near windows that have (quite unstable) single person desks and power points, but otherwise it's not very laptop friendly. I once set up at one of these window seats, only to have to move about 10 minutes later due to an ant problem! The staff are friendly, and they have a children's play group thing in the mornings on certain days, which can get a little boisterous - great if you have kids, though!

Great local library with a friendly community vibe. Don't know what the other person is on about…read morethat it's as noisy as a train station. They do run regular children's activities on one side of the library and for anyone who has a soul - that is a GREAT thing :)

The library is located in an enormous old building at the top of Parnell Road and houses a great…read morecollection of books from childrens to cookery and everything in between. It's not the biggest in Auckland but it has everything you really need, including wifi so I'd recommend bringing your own laptop rather than waiting for the library's own computers. With only four of them, it can often be quite hard to get online during busy times (although I have never found myself waiting more than half an hour to get a place) and they can be painfully slow at times. The staff are all really friendly and helped me out when trying to print off things and to order me in a book from another library in the city. There is ample amounts of parking at the building, which is great as the location is a bit of a climb!

Since its rebuild Devonport Library is stunning inside with its woodwork .Upstirs there are lovely…read moreviews towards the harbour. Each branch library has differences in books and DVDs etc. Devonport is no exception to this which is why I often travel there by ferry

Whilst I live in central Auckland, I regularly come across on the Ferry to come to the public…read morelibrary here. While it doesn't look like anything special from the outside, it possesses a community vibe that I find really attractive in a library. Lately I've been to too many soulless corporate behemoth like libraries that while they do admittedly have a better selection of books, and fancy things like microfiche (has anyone ever used one of these things?), they really lack that certain 'je me sas quais' that you find here, and friendly librarians who would happily hang out and chat with you all day about book selections etc! It definitely helps too that it has one of the best views of the waterfront from the picture windows at the back, in the Auckland area (for a library anyway) So settle in, find a good book and lose yourself for a while.