My daughter and her tutor used the Hemingway study room on 5/20 at approximately 5:45 p.m. Unfortunately, the experience was extremely unpleasant and concerning. The group using the room prior to them left half-eaten sushi in the trash can, causing the room to smell strongly of fish. To help with the odor, my daughter's tutor, who is also a Glen Ellyn resident, placed the trash can partially in the doorway to keep the door slightly open for ventilation. An employee described as taller with dark hair approached them and stated that it was "policy" that the trash cans had to remain inside the room with the door closed. When the tutor explained the odor issue, the employee returned with a bottle of Febreze and sprayed it directly in their direction inside the enclosed study room, then placed the sushi-filled trash can back inside the room and shut the door again while reiterating that the door had to remain closed. My daughter became physically ill after the session and vomited when she got home. Regardless of intent, spraying a scented chemical irritant into a small enclosed space without asking the occupants was inappropriate and unprofessional. More concerning is that the obvious solution -- simply removing or emptying the trash containing rotting food -- was ignored in favor of masking the smell with spray fragrance. This situation demonstrated poor judgment, lack of customer care, and an unnecessary escalation of a simple sanitation issue. read more

Glen Ellyn Public Library - Instead of posting something like Please Do Not Enter they chose to just write STAY OUT. Great messaging for kids. - Libraries Near Me - Glen Ellyn, Illinois

What a wonderful, clean, friendly library! Came in to get a library card and the staff was extremely helpful and friendly. With a wide variety of book, ample study rooms, a cafe, and even a flight simulator, it's the perfect place to come and relax and find a good book to read. read more

Glen Ellyn Public Library - Libraries Near Me - Glen Ellyn, Illinois

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First time coming to this library to study. Such a beautiful 2 floor library; not too big inside. Impossible to get lost. The first floor is children's section, second floor is for teens/adults. There are plenty of study rooms to rent out. read more

DONT WASTE YOUR TIME HERE!!! Ally and Roseanna are the definition of poor workers!!! They kicked me out of a program since Ally said she didn't want to help me even though it was my first time coming to GEPL which means I never did anything to get me banned from the library or any library in general and when I asked Roseanna why I was kicked out even though I never did anything she made the craziest lies about me just to defend their actions. DISGUSTING. read more

We love this library! Small cafe with treats and warm food. A clean children's section with toys and regularly updated book displays based on holidays and current topics. My family are frequent visitors and we will be back! read more

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The librarians are so knowledgeable and helpful finding things. Even obscure books or information iis always available with their help! The cafe is good too. read more

Maybe 1 or 2 months ago I informed this library that a section where the private booths are located, the electrical outlets did not seem to work because the desk lights, even when plugged in, did not work and there was no electrical power supplied to those or the outlets. This was the first time I had gone to this section for more privacy in the library. So I returned a few weeks later and noticed that the library had corrected the problem and I was able to study quietly in this section and may have come back to that area again with no issues. However recently when I returned to the area, some of the under desk lights were unplugged and the cord was too short to reach the outlet. I was able to plug my surge protector to supply power for my computer & bluetooth transmitter. While I was quietly watching the news or something on TV I was streaming, some librarian rudely came over to interrupt me making accusations that I had too many electrical devices or something & questioning me of causing a short circuit of the area based on the first time I was in the area to report that there was no electricity to that section. So basically though the first time I was in the area to discover that even their under desk lamps did not work and I had not set up there to plug in any devices, & that area truly had an electrical circuit outage of their own fault or negligence, she decides to questionme for that all because I reported the issue to them a month ago that maybe they were not supplying power to that area, maybe a circuit breaker had tripped for that area. Maybe this library has problems with people of color and chooses to profile them & question those people for their own problems with their facilities. This is the first library that has taken the time to approach me to question me for something I initially reported as an issue with their facilities. I highly do NOT recommend this library and if you discover anything broken or any faults there, do not inform them because they will come back to you later to you or imply that you could have been the cause of that problem in their library & not want to take responsibility. They will probably use some profiling of individuals (person of color) to lay blame to something that was their fault over a month ago as well & will come back to you if you revisit the library to ask you if you were the possible cause of the initial problem you pointed out to them & had nothing to do with initially. They seem to remember or watch certain people. Other problems with the library is that it is too cramped. The study areas and tables are too narrow or the passage ways are too narrow to squeeze through especially if others are sitting or studying in those areas to get from the open area librarian desk section to the area to the south east I believe... the section where I used to set up with the semicircle desk/table. The library has never or had approached me when I would study and set up there. They had a problem in the other section that I reported an electrical outage in the northeast part. and it was their fault for not supplying electricity to that section over a month ago. Another problem with this old library is it does not seem to have adequate electrical outlets for one to do significant work and keep connected and your devices charged adequately without one have to bring their own surge protection. Maybe due to their outdated electrical system could be the reason why they were paranoid of someone shorting out their system for no reason. They need to modernize more and there are much better libraries that have better technology than this 1. They will not question the person or what happened with the electrical outage prior to since there was a problem prior to it being addressed. Maybe someone else caused this issue before it was addressed or pointed out over a month ago. They even seemed unaware to the issue initially. Then when you return, they will question if you may have been the cause of the issue even if things are working fine with the electrical outlets. It just did not make any logical sense to be approached this time about this & it was probably some profiling being done by the library. One can only conclude that this library did not want me there despite visiting it several times with no issues prior to informing them of their electrical problem & a few times afterward. This library seems unwelcoming at this point. So beware.avoid. Last year, I used to set up in another section bringing my devices,& surge protectors & I had never been approached by any librarian of any concern of their electrical issues or outage. Only after trying to help them with a problem on the other side do they have an issue with me or questioning me of something.. No good deed goes unpunished is truly true. This is one library to avoid. There are other, more spacious libraries & that are more modern that this one in an antiquated old building probably using socket fuses. read more

I was trying to register for my card online. Julia helped me so much, she actually told me I was applying at the wrong library entirely!! Which also was saving me lots of money. Thank you Julia for being so kind, helpful, knowledgeable, and intelligent!!! read more

This is a wonderful suburban library. The GEPL transforms to meet the needs of the community. - There are multiple, small conference rooms to support work from "home" folks or school-age study groups. - They have a large, regularly updated kids area that is always lively. - They added a small cafe with really good coffee, snack, and lunch options--not pre-packaged junk. - They have added a new maker space ("The Workshop") with sewing/embroidery, laser cutters, 3d printers, large-format printers and more. - They will process your passport application and renewal! - WiFi available inside and outside the building supports folks who don't have mobile data. Of course they still have books and movies and music with remote pickup and drop off. If you haven't checked out the library for years because "you get all your books from Amazon", I'd encourage you to go in and take a look around some time. There are a lot more services than just books. read more

i live in glen ellyn and grew up here.. this library needs to retrain its staff or get a new batch. with the exception of a few, most of the workers there are very rude. a complete overall starting with the powers that be and the high ups. the lack of manners, etiquette, and something (that can't be bought or fixed with money) called REAL CLASS. there's many other libraries in the area and i will recommend others to go elsewhere.  in fact, numerous times i have felt this type of attitude from the majority of the employees. this is what happens when you cater to a bunch of snobby, entitled, haughty, certain type of rich folks who have no idea how to behave like a proper human cause they've never been called out and had their egos checked. that dude whose manager of the cafe. forgot his name which will prolly make his sensitive, fragile ego get hurty lol. he was very rude, condescending, lacked complete professional behavior, just basic manners which a toddler starts to use, to my teenager who was just trying to order something. dudes like him need to realize that ass kissing to these residents with money but thinks he can be rude to a teenager, and he won't get called out? he has the manners of an amoeba. i've seen kindergarteners with better control. has he been monitored lately for his so called work performance? he's just a medium sized fish in a small pond. when dudes like him, who think they are better than others, leave his lil cafe deep down knows he's an insecure average dude on the street who has no real or true power outside his work bubble. i also have clinical depression and anxiety, have a hard time leaving the house and this was no acception. i was asking for help with the computer and printer. the three women that were at the circulation desk were not very friendly when i asked for help, smirked and made me feel stupid. is this the kinda people that the library board interviews and hires? this is a very poor reflection on their part. perhaps their bosses need to check, monitor and review hers or his or all work performances to see if they have the proper skills, attitude, and judgement about their employees whom they choose to hire and interact with the public to justify their huge paychecks, don't you think? just because this library caters to these extremely obnoxious certain types of rich folk, especially the ones who have to get their fancy overpriced sandwiches at the destination cafe. i realize my complaint makes no difference, but i have heard others complain about the rude staff here. doesn't look good for the overpaid corporates staff. but how can you hire good people when you are the same way. start from the top cause this library already has a reputation for being rude, unprofessional and very stinky. it doesn't matter as long you aren't affected. again, maybe the library should get some new leadership. those who have the skills but also have honor, integrity, honesty that reflects in those they hire. and your employees also should not make their opinions known if they disagree with something when they were rudely listening in on another employees conversation with a resident. it was none of her business, she is not the moral authority or spokesperson for humanity. again.. a complete lack of common sense, manners and very very poor employee training. indeed time to give an assessment to the president, vice president and other board members, the rest of the so called "leaders" to see if they are fit for their positions or if the corporates staff needs to complete remova alsol. they'll be fine cause they have money cause that what counts, righ? read more

I love this library and the entire library system that GEPL sits in. I can put books on hold from my home, I can rent books on my Kindle from home, and I can even request books if the libraries don't carry them. The staff here is also always friendly, and their self checkout system works great. read more

Glen Ellyn Public Library - Happy place! - Libraries Near Me - Glen Ellyn, Illinois

I am a frequent patron of the Glen Ellyn Public Library and cannot say enough good things about it. However, I will try.. The building itself is very nicely built and well taken care of in general. It is clean, well-lit, and offers accommodations for all. With the recent renovation (which, for the record, I was against...) the lobby has much more of an open and airy feel. The one huge improvement is the selves next to the front desk where all the holds are stored - it's self-service now, which is great! On top of that, they have scanners so you can check out your own books if you don't want to wait in line (not that I've ever seen one). So, if you really hate people you can avoid them altogether! However, I don't know why you would because the staff is delightful. From the front desk to the circulation desk (upstairs) to the children's area everyone I've ever interacted with has been friendly and more than helpful. The selection of materials is wonderful as well. They have a lot of books, periodicals, media... you name it and they have a solid selection. If they don't, then chances are that it can be loaned from another library in the network. The layout of the materials is very well thought out as well. Example: the children's books are organized by author, by topic (animal type, for example), or by theme. What a great idea! Even more, the library's website is absolutely wonderful and easy to use. But there is so much more to do than "just read" here. They have, in the children's area, a nice selection of toys kids can play with, activities (arts and crafts, story time, etc.) to take part in, and resources to help expand horizons (they have display cases where kids can display their collections and 3D printers where kids can make projects). For adults they host events that range from author visits to presentations, discussions, information sessions, the list goes on. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention more unknown resources as well, like the Conversion Room (which I've used and it's great!). From front to back, top to bottom, inside and out, the Glen Ellyn Public Library is a wonderful resource that you should be taking advantage of no matter your age. read more

I don't live in Glen Ellyn and never really thought it would be a place I longed to live until I came to this library, specifically for the kids area. It's a cool, old style building tucked away on Duane St. The library itself is under construction, but that's ok with me! When you first walk in, you basically see the youth are and holy moly! They've got a HUGE selection of books, dvds, cds, you name it! We can't actually check out books from here because we don't live in Glen Ellyn but it was still cool! The kids area is AWESOME! Compared to Wheaton and Naperville, it's light years ahead! It has a lego table and a train table, a doll type house with furniture, puppets, board puzzles, a lift up magnetic block table, a gears and ball rollercoaster wall, a lego wall, activity cubes, and ample seating for parents. I saw kids under 1 to 7 here having a good time, including my 5 year old. It's clean, it's well lit, beautiful windows with streaming light coming through if you want to read while the little ones play. This is now our favorite library for sure!!! read more

Glen Ellyn Public Library - Libraries Near Me - Glen Ellyn, Illinois

I work with children and often depend on the libraries nearby to fill rainy days. While the staff in the children's department are always helpful and friendly I find their programs to be lacking. Story time is offered on a limited basis and crafts are only once a month. I am completely spoiled by the amazing children's department of the Naperville Public Library that offers crafts one or two times a day, but crafts only once a month? The one thing I do love is that you can check out a canvas bag with a zipper with your books. Very convenient to not only carry the books but to keep track of them at home. read more

I have always been an avid lover of libraries. I grew up in a small town and had a little dinky library but I still loved visiting. Moving to a much larger suburb has introduced to a whole other kind of library. The Glen Ellyn library is good sized and I think there collection is fairly good-sized as well. They just went through some remodeling and that process was kind of an ordeal and sections were moved around and kind of a pain to find, but the end result is nice. I mentioned the collection here is good-sized but I do feel like they could do a little better in this department. I know when you look up a book in the system they also list the book at a few other libraries including Batavia, Bloomingdale, ST. Charles and Villa Park plus others. So I think it is easy to also get books from those libraries but I have no experience with that. I previously lived in Arlington Heights and that library was amazing so this one kind of pales in comparison. read more

Sometimes, I'll bike over to Glen Ellyn's library as it's right off of the Prairie Path trail. The best thing about this library is that they allow you get into the CDs for free. If you're studying and would like to listen to some tunes, they won't charge you like the other libraries in the area do. That being said, the library isn't particularly large and it's not the cleanest or best-lit place. It's just your stereotypical old, neighborhood library -- the type you expect to see on old TV shows. Except they don't nickel-and-dime their patrons and Wally Beaver very much appreciates that. read more

I can't help but notice that most of the negative reviews are from people who do not reside in Glen Ellyn. The fact that Glen Ellyn belongs to a larger consortium of libraries that allows borrowing by non-residents is an important feature. I have been a resident of Glen Ellyn and Wheaton for many years, and I've also lived in other states and used their libraries. I have found that the Glen Ellyn librarians are consistently cheerful and helpful and go far beyond what is required to help patrons. I have grandchildren who use the children's and teen sections and they are more than pleased with it. It crossed my mind that people are responded to in the way that they convey themselves. No one mentioned why they aren't using their own library. Perhaps the GE library would have more books available if those who don't care for it visited their own libraries! read more

Place could be so much better. The building is so big and beautiful, but I cant stand studying here. I can't attest to the quality of books or staff here, but the ambience is terrible. There is zero privacy when studying here unless you get a study room.However the study rooms are all glass and have a 2 hour limit. Every time I try and study here I get nothing done because of the amount of distractions around me. If you are trying to be productive, I suggest driving the extra mile and going to Wheaton Public Library. read more

This library offers a lot of programming and a fairly good selection of books, technology, etc. They have an e-reader "petting zoo" that allows patrons to become familiar with various e reader devices. Their youth department has an extremely wide selection of books, audiobooks, dvds, and games - however a little dated. The upstairs needs a little work with their selection and theft management of games. read more

The staff at the library is extremely friendly and helpful (and being a librarian, this is important to me). I mainly check out books so I can't comment on their other collections but I find the adult fiction and non-fiction collections to be somewhat lacking for a suburban library. I realize that they aren't as big as some of the big players in the NW burbs (and as a result don't have as large a budget) but I think they need to seriously take a look at their collection policies. They often have excellent programs and I also enjoy their book discussion group when I have the opportunity. Overall, I am proud to have this library in my town. The staff is receptive, the building is usually quiet, and what they lack in collection can usually be obtained via ILL. read more

Currently under construction so children's area is all but dismantled. Staff downstairs is generally friendly. Staff upstairs are terse when you ask questions. Nice seating areas for working and usually pretty quiet. There doesn't seem to be a lot of books; adult fiction and non are limited to an upstairs 1/3 of the floor. They do have quite a few computers to use and good movie selection. read more

Gorgeous library! It looks like a mansion from the outside! I appreciate that their children section is downstairs and the adults are upstairs. My boyfriend and I get movies here all the time. They are not a typical library that has movies from only the 80's, they have movies that just recently came out such as les miserable. I am so grateful to live right down the street! read more

when i lived in glen ellyn i used to come here all the time. small, a bit cramped, but it's a library. read more

Construction for the kids section is complete! Staff is very friendly, always willing to help. The architecture from the outside is unique and beautiful. It has this classic Glen-Ellyn look to it. But don't judge a book by its cover (pun intended hehe). The inside is updated and modern. And although it's on the small-side, it has everything you need from a library: study rooms, great selection of books, ample study tables, music selection, up to date magazines and newspapers, newly renovated kids section, and computers. I want to say "come one, come all!", but then it might get too crowded. But, in all seriousness, this library is quite nice and you won't be disappointed. read more

Very disappointed in the staff. In the children's area the staff is often crabby as well as the front desk being unhelpful and moody. Not all of the employees but enough to make it unpleasant. read more