Very small but great selection of books. They have an adult reading incentive for a canvas book bag. They were very helpful. Beautiful place to sit and read by the water. read more

Mission Branch Library - Book club book - Libraries Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Attention Mission district! Misson branch library has reopened for temporary services! Sfpl to-go until temporary site designated. Pick up your holds and reserves Tuesday- Saturdays 10am- 5:30pm. Looking to browse for books of different genres? Dvds or blu-rays? The BookMobile will be there 12pm- 5:30pm! Want the inside scoop? I hear that a site has been designated to open during Mission branch renovation near 16th street around January of 2022. Unfortunately, book mobile may not join our services at that site. So take advantage of the free books they give during their hours before January! Keep your eyes out for the updates and news for hours and operations! This is my favorite branch library, so I will definitely keep you guys informed! Stay hungry adventurous and happy yelping! read more

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They seem to have an issue with white people, I have been to 6-7 different branch libraries in San Francisco this is the only one where I get hazeled. (I'm usually the only white person at the Mission location). read more

The Mission Branch Library is conveniently located a short walk from the 24th St BART station. It is a small branch w/ two floors. On the ground floor there is a place to check in & check out items, place to pick up any holds if this is your local branch, a small selection of CDs & some DVDs. Also on the ground floor there is the Children's room along w/ a public restroom. The second floor features adult materials, teen materials, computers, & printers. It is on the second floor where all the books lie. I am a George Harrison fan as he is my favorite Beatle. His album All Things Must Pass is my favorite Beatles solo album. I was delighted to find two of his lesser known solo albums here including Dark Horse & Gone Troppo. I am looking forward to listening to these & also am happy that the Cds came w/ linear notes. I picked up a December Programs Guide at the Mission Branch Library & here are some things on offer: A Digital Photography Group that meets ever Wed One on One Computer Basics in Spanish Making a "green" gift for a loved one for the holidays ESL Conversation Group on Tuesdays for those learning English read more

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Went at around 1:50pm to 2. It was close. Would be better to update the schedule because it confusing.

Dear People Who Love Books So Much You MIGHT Occasionally Forget to Return Them to the Library, I do not have ANY library fines. Zero. Nada. Zilch. #NonHumbleBrag Thanks to the awesomeness of SF Public Library's Fine Forgiveness Program, you too can start off 2017 with a clean library slate. http://sfpl.org/index.php?pg=2000940701 However, you only have until February 14th to absolve yourself of your library fine sins so chop chop. Happy 2017, Amy C. p.s. Now how to expand this forgiveness program for student loans... read more

I think I'll always rate a library at least three stars. Just for existing they earn an automatic three yellow/orange stars. I've grown up with them. When I was young, my mom would take us to the library regularly. My brother, sister and I would scurry to each one of OUR aisles and get lost for half the day. Books are apparently a great baby-sitting technique...at least they were -for us. Sometimes I've struggled with the older, more complex models, but I've always found something work 'checking out' at every library I've ever entered. I especially love the kind of ones, where they don't mind you sitting slightly sprawled out (just enough to be slightly annoying) in the quieter aisles, while you read about how to empower yourself, and how to better appreciate the 'art of language'. Unfortunately, you can't really sprawl out at this location, but you can learn how to empower and appreciate. And that is the beautiful essence of a library - they're useful by their very nature. This library is a really great local and community resource. There's free Internet if you're willing to wait (sometimes a painful one) and are OK mis-spelling every frantic E-mail typed in a crucial 15 minute span (I haven't been back for awhile, so this could have changed since), good browsing magazines, a decent video and CD selection, and of course an impressive variety of great literature. The librarians at this location are also easy-going, helpful and patient. ALWAYS worth stopping by....ESPECIALLY if you have the time. read more

In the Mission District? Looking for a quiet spot to read a book, magazine or newspaper? Have time to read and take notes, finish homework assignments or make last minute revisions to your research paper/report and essay? SFPL Mission Branch is your answer! It is just within a walking distance from the 24th St/Mission BART Station! Oh yeah! Free Wi-Fi at all San Francisco Public Library Branches! read more

You get five stars because you're a library and you are a block away from my house, and I don't have to worry about returning my books to you because you are so close and I can drop them off on my way home from the bart and TADA I am happy. Plus the people that work at you are nice. Thank you Mission Library. read more

I do appreciate the varied hours of operation, but they're hard to keep track of - I often forgetfully stop by only to be completely surprised that the library's closed. Thank god for book borrowing, though - otherwise my collection would be wildly and very heavily out of control. I reserve a LOT of material, especially through the LINK + system, which allows you to borrow from other California libraries such as those belonging to the university system. Amazing! But be warned - the fines for overdue Link + items are killer! Speaking of fines, I had something like . . . $6.50 to pay for late books. Usually you can just check books out and ignore the fines until they are above a certain dollar amount, maybe $10. But the other day, for the first time in my life, I got the EVIL EYE by a library employee when he mentioned my fines, and I felt as though I had better pay up, or else. It was quite amusing and unprecedented. read more

I keep getting more and more jazzed with the Mission Branch library. The selection is always on point: oftentimes I find myself wandering around the CD area and finding music I've been searching for for years, or stumbling upon a great movie I've been meaning to watch, or grabbing books that will likely go unread (but hey, at least I'm still making the effort!). Conveniently located right by Bart and surrounded by great dining and shopping options, the Mission Branch is the place to be. My one reservation with this branch is the amount of characters that are always on the computers or hanging about outside, gawking at me as I walk around in my workout clothes. It's not the library's fault, it just takes away from the good vibes if you ask me. read more

You can't hate on a library. Free information, internet, books, CDs, DVDs, videos, fiction and everything all at your fingertips. The main SF Public library at Civic Center is certainly more extensive and impressive, but this little spot is good. They even have a good portion of the 2nd floor dedicated to Spanish language books and movies. I wish it was bigger, I wish there was more selection, I wish some of the people who hang out there would bath more regularly, but like I said before, you can't hate on a library. read more

People, listen up! I have recently re-discovered this fantastic place I used to visit in my younger years called a library. L- I- B- R- A- R- Y! It's like Amazon, but free! Seriously, folks, I had gotten into that bad habit of slapping my credit card down whenever I was curious about a book, clicking a few buttons on the computer, and waiting for the magic Internet Elves to scurry to my door a few days later with my desired reading material. Recently, though, I have been wanting to temper my consumer impulses a bit (and also shop local when I have them). So, I headed over the my local L-I-B-R-A-R-Y (say it with me, slowly) and checked a few items out. I also discovered that you can search the SF libe's website at home and reserve books. Holy cow! I now have 20 different items on reserve, all done from the comfort of my own home whilst sitting ass-first firmly on the sofa, martini in hand. Fantastic. And if I can't find what I want at this magic L-I-B-R-A-R-Y, I'm going to peel myself off said sofa and head down to my fabulous book-selling locals like Dog Eared and Green Apple. I promise! read more

First off, I must admit that I walked by this building a dozen times not knowing what it was. After paying attention to my surroundings, it has become my house of worship. I have a routine when I go in. Greet the staff at the front desk, walk up to new books, check out audio books then flip through some magazines. I even grab a few picture books (en espanol) every now and then. I love this tiny one stop place of literary heaven! (so much that I might be spotted here 2x's in 1 week) read more

My Netflix membership is on hold or vacation or whatever because 1) I was tired of paying for my DVDs to hang out at my place for weeks at a time without watching them and 2) I wanted to try getting my movie fixes for free through the library. The Mission branch has a really decent in-house selection of DVDs. Everyone who comes here knows about it because there's at least 3-5 people browsing the selection when I'm there. There's about three shelves worth of DVDs on the first floor for movies and TV shows, and another selection on the 2nd floor for documentaries, instructional videos and the like. There is a sizable VHS collection too. So far it seems I'm trying to watch every Hong Kong flick in the building. This weekend alone I saw two Andy Lau movies - Love On A Diet and Dance Of A Dream. I'm on a foreign film run at the moment, so I've checked out French, Chinese and Israeli films as of late. I've barely cracked the sizable Spanish selection. But it's great to find films I would've probably never thought to search on Netflix right in my neighborhood. For free! Woo! read more

Great location in a clean modern neighborhood right next to Philz coffee. However the library is very small and it is sometimes filled with homeless people. There are two group study rooms however You need to reserve it in the front and there is a time limit. I booked a room before and It smelled like a homeless person lived in there or somebody peed on the carpet. The smell was so disgusting I had to leave right away. read more

Oh I love you. As a bibliophile, I must say the Mission Branch certainly pleases fulfills me. I love the feeling of years & years of knowledge when I'm in the top main room of the library. I especially love the old pictures from 50+ years ago that make me feel like I have some idea who might have checked out the book before me. I ESPECIALLY love being able to go online, order things & then be able to pick it up. My recent obsession has been the Gershwin Brothers, Cole Porter & well...pretty much all musicals. The amount of music I have ripped onto my computer for FREE would have easily cost $100 this past month. I just wish they were open longer.... read more

My favorite branch At the ripe old age of 98 The oldest SFPL? A sturdy trunk of knowledge ADA-compliant read more

Small, but good enuf. They rent DVDs (for one week), music, and of course books. It's 2 stories, and the second floor is where its at - huge ceilings, gothic feel to it. And they have free wireless .. if you're lucky enuf to know when its open. read more

The Mission branch of the San Francisco Public Library is very small, and the selection of books is quite narrow here. The magazine selection, however, is quite expansive. In the late afternoon a table is reserved for teens studying after school. However, you'll notice that the table is always empty. Don't be that guy who annoys the librarians and sits there anyway. You'll have to squeeze next to the homeless guy with a cough at the next table. I wish that this library was open later into the evening, but then again not many are. Parking is tough to find (street only). Ultimately, I would rather study at a Starbucks than here. read more

Mission is my neighborhood branch and I heart it! I use the library to "preview" certain non-fiction books (ahem, cookbooks) to determine whether I will actually find them useful before shelling out $30 on any title that looks intriguing. I also use the library to discover new fiction authors, to find out what is going on in the community, to get book recommendations, to obtain government forms, to do research, to read magazines, to use the computer, to borrow DVDs and CDs, and to check out the art exhibits (at Main Library). And best of all, it's all free unless you don't return something on time. I love the self-checkout stations and the fact that you can completely manage your account online (renewals, ordering holds, paying fines). Yay for the public library! read more

I heart my branch library. This is the place to go if you want to read all the collected Love and Rockets comics without actually having to pay for them, and they have a good "Latino interest" section and some interesting DVDs (like "Burden of Dreams" - a documentary about the making of Fitzcarraldo, with a film of Werner Hertzog eating a shoe as a kind of bonus feature. Not kidding. The shoe is cooked by a very young and doe-eyed Alice Waters) and a very good selection of local writers (especially the more Mission-y ones.) Also, most importantly, when I was young and new to the city, someone stole my bag, which had a book in it from this library. The very nice clerks at the front desk made me a bet: they'd forgive my fines if I could answer two out of three questions from the US Citizenship Exam Booklet that they were studying. I made it, but just barely - my high school civics trivia hadn't atrophied completely at that point. Man, they ask some stupid questions on that exam. read more

I don't care if I'm number 77 out of 144 on the wait list for a new CD or a brand new bestseller, I will wait. The library is a beautiful thing. It's free!!! My only pet peeve....picking up a book, cracking it open, and it smelling like cigarette smoke!!! Blech! read more

I make weekly pilgrimages here to drop off books and pick up new ones. They have DVDs and CDs, too. The staff is friendly (although they didn't have any Spanish-language suggestions), and everything's FREE! This branch is open 'til 9 on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, so I can get here after work. My only complaint is that it's tiny, and now that I've seen the sheet music in the main branch I can't help but wish we had a music section in the MIssion. read more

Yet another great SFPL. I was surprised. Located in the Mission, I expected it to be more grungier, packed with bums. Instead, I was greeted by a clean, singular large room with a few outlet-equipped long tables and decent people seated around them. I wonder if gentrification caused a renovation, or if this SFPL branch was always great. It's nearly on par with the Inner Richmond library. It's a bit small, and so most of the tables were full, but I have no qualms otherwise. read more

Staff is nice, library is nice-- but too many bums :( gets loud (and smelly in the adult area) it's a nice small library if you just want to grab a book and leave. Great kids area, and the library holds children activities that are great. read more

ZOMG, I LOVE THE LIBRARY!!! Whoops, calming down. The Mission branch is great. There's a small DVD selection downstairs where you can just grab one on the way home (you might want to take a look at the DVD to make sure it's not too scratched). A nice spacious reading room upstairs with a whole lot of people staring into computer screens, "reading." Sigh. A good selection of books for the space, with nicely delineated sections. Someone needs to explain to me why the entire science fiction section is crappy mass market paperbacks. There are only so many Dune novels a person needs to read (one). But the awesome thing about the SF Public Library system is interlibrary loan. You go online, request your book/CD/DVD, and they deliver it to any branch you want. Free! It's like magic. Note: I do not work for the library. I work in publishing, so I am just as broke as you are. When you use the library, you are definitely supporting publishers (thanks!). But please also buy some books. Preferably at your local independent bookstore. Please. read more

I'm always fuckin there...watch, you can find me on the second floor, over at the Latino Interest section. Sometimes I'm there editing beedios w/ my headphones on *I don't got wireless in my casita* This is my favorite library in the WORLD period exclamation point read more

The nicest little kids reading room on the first floor. Such a nice layout for a small neighborhood library.

This is what a library should be. It has been a fantastic refuge during my unemployed stint. Let me bullet point why it's great. - free wifi - free computer access (with a library card) - hosts appealing and varied community events including: live jazz, movie showings, writing club - kind and helpful staff - a craft station for adults - quiet atmosphere The kids section is downstairs and out-of-ear-shot (re: I have never heard them playing even though I've seen many of them come and go). Check out the family passes - free access to a bunch of museums (including the Exploratorium) and pools. Each pass coves 2 adults and 2 children under the age of 18. See a full list of passes here: http://www.sfkids.org/content.aspx?id=12432 read more

Legit place to plug in and get work done without all the bullshit designer coffee, hipsters, and a $2 per hour surcharge for using a coffee bar the way it was meant to be used. I guess in San Francisco we've replaced struggling, brooding writers desperate for a quiet space to craft their art with clean-cut techies looking to hole up and absorb the culture of a city it without adding anything to it (unless you count "tech" as art but how many people do you know who are building an app for the greater good and NOT to sell it). But I digress... The Mission library is pretty bare in terms of books available for rent, but you can request a book from any of the other city libraries and pick it up here. Convenient! The wifi is free and fast. Wireless printing is available for 10 cents a page. Plenty of outlets. Beautiful architecture. And its quiet! Lot's of Mission flavor in the form of the homeless or mentally unstable looking for a safe place to get out off the street for a few hours. Never felt threatened and the Library staff is always on it if situations get crazy. read more

I love the SFPL and use it frequently, but this is a review of the Mission Branch... Poor layout, cramped, bad lighting and frequently rude librarians. This is just one of several branches that I use regularly, but this one I use reluctantly. Too bad it's already had it's renovation several years ago.... this branch could really use another makeover. And don't get me started on the number of bicycle thefts from outside the building and the library's reluctance to improve security... read more

After walking around town all day, I was excited to sit down and get some homework done at a large, quiet table. On the way, I witnessed a mob of cops arrest a male suspect right in front of me. Whew, glad I'm going to the library, right? Not so much better there. In the span of 30 minutes, a homeless man was wheeled out on a stretcher after passing out on the floor and cops were loudly arguing with a woman refusing to leave the restroom. Yes, it was quite a scene. I'm giving it two stars for the decent wi-fi and large tables available. But, I didn't feel safe here. I didn't stick around to see what happened next. It's really a shame. read more

Sure, there are bigger, fancier, more technologically tricked-out libraries. But the one in the Mission makes the top of my list because I can walk there, the 2nd floor reading room manages somehow to be both cozy and spacious at the same time, and it seems to have way more of the books I want than it should, proportional to its size. Sure, there has to be a little bit of the Community Thrift Store mentality in that you may not end up finding exactly what you want if you go in looking for something specific, but I can *always* spent five or ten minute browsing the stacks and find things I'm excited about reading. Bonus that the bathrooms generally seem to be in non-revolting shape. I will definitely keep coming here. read more

Open late, plenty of desk space and outlets, and a friendly staff - just what you want in a neighborhood library!

I love our local library. But let's get the ugly truth out of the way: the very first DVD we rented from here went missing after we returned it through the drop-box - and now we have been told to pay $25 plus $5 admin fees to replace it. Plus, even though we had it put on 'claims return' immediately and kept asking after the item, we still got some fairly shirty letters telling us we should return the disc or we would be charged etc etc. The fact is, the staff at the branch have been very nice about it and have suggested we just pick up a replacement copy ourselves if that works out cheaper (which it does) so it's not all that bad. Could have been the end of an otherwise lovely relationship.... But other than this one almighty cock-up, things have been running smoothly between us and the library. They've got some excellent documentaries and foreign films knocking around, and some good mindbending books like Ray Kurzweil's The Singularity Is Near or Robert Anton Wilson's Cosmic Trigger, as well as plenty of graphic novels and manga. You will notice if you comb certain section regularly that most of the good stuff rarely hits the shelves (if it hasn't been stolen yet) so it's all about reserving books online so that they can be put aside for you when they are returned or shipped over from another branch. You'll even get a nice little email saying 'all these dope books are ready for you whenever you are ready, citizen'. Of course, this being a SF library, and it being in Mission, you'll get some stinky old weirdo characters shuffling around, laughing at upside-down books or making strange noises at the computers. Plus there's normally this drunk latino guy swaying in front of the spanish language films. It's okay though because they hide the kids section round the back of the building so their books don't get peed on by all guys who clearly just come inside to try and find a toilet. ("There's no toilet here" is the branch slogan.) It's silly to complain about a place where you can pretty much ask for any book you please and they find it for you and let you borrow it for up to two months at no cost whatsoever. Libraries rule, and this one has more than its fair share of charms including helpful staff and a beautiful building. Plus the self check-out is great and the catalog system is easy to use. Just make sure to hand your returned DVDs to a human being - that drop box has been compromised. And if you stole The Shield Season 1 Disc 2 from this branch then you owe me some money pal... read more

Nothing to complain about here. It's FREE. FREE books, FREE dvds, FREE wi-fi. Recession friendly! I can't complain about the hours, since Mon-Wed they close at 9pm. Half the stores in the city close at 7pm! I've never encountered anyone really smelly there, either. I love the vaulted ceiling and huge windows on the 2nd floor, I love that it's a 5 minute walk from my house, I love that it's quiet and I can work there and not have to pay 3 bucks for a coffee. The selection isn't huge, but you can always request books/movies from other branches. The librarians are really helpful, too. Win-win! read more

Compared to my neighborhood branch (The Richmond), the Mission Branch is "behwy, behwy quiet," well-ventilated, not overcrowded, and they open their doors right on time without doing so begrudgingly. read more

This is my favorite public library in SF, particularly for the music selection. I usually come and browse and pick out some good, random stuff. They have an okay DVD collection and it is just big enough to have a good book selection without being overwhelming. Thumbs up! Plus, you can go to Papalote afterwards. read more

I like this place. It's quiet, cool interior architecture. Diverse crowd of folks. No hipsters. AND it's open late a couple days a week -- awesome! read more