Our hometown library in Kent, Ohio is a great place to find interesting reads. It is much larger now and has an extensive collection.
They have a large number of public computers, rows and rows of them and there are spacious tables next to windows looking out towards the Cuyahoga river or towards downtown.
Kent's non-fiction selection is really quite good although as of late they have not had a tremendous amount of new books coming in due to State of Ohio budget cuts.
They have an inexpensive coffee shop right next to a really nice outdoor patio with tables and chairs as well as an indoor area with a ledge for study or for laptops. Yes, they have WiFi throughout and although I have never tried it, many people seem to be using it.
The staff are helpful and if you have a special request, such as for tax forms, or a request for obscure information, they will efficiently find it for you.
Perhaps the absolute greatest thing about the Kent Free Library's architecture is that when the new library was built, the century old Carnegie library was restored and integrated into the new library containing local history information. The restoration of old wood paneling is beautiful, and makes the perfect spot to read a book about Kent or Ohio history on a chilly Fall day. The historical Carnegie library is on the north end of the library just past the coffee shop.
There is more to the Kent Free Library than what I have mentioned here and I know there are computer classes, talks, and other events. The whole building is new and very clean. read more