Great library! It offers computer access and a wide selection of books to enjoy. I really appreciate the seating with outlets--it makes getting work done much easier (see photo for reference). The only downside was that my seat didn't have a table to go with the outlet, though that was totally my choice haha. It is on the smaller side, and you'll need to park in an underground garage and take the elevator up to reach it. read more

See all

Haven't been here in a little while, love this Library. I used to take baby girl here when she was a baby for story time and play time was so much fun. Came here with my best friend her son and baby girl after school to check out some new books to read together. I used to just buy books but got overwhelmed with so many that it's easier just to rent a book plus gives us a reason to read new ones together. All the employees are really friendly. My friend had to get a library card I already had one so checked out 3 books. Usually park underground the lot is always full but found handicap thank goodness near the elevators. Nice courtyard they do tree lighting near here too during Christmas time. It's a cute little area for the library. Return book time is 3 weeks which is nice. Thank you for your help in finding books and for your friendly smiles. Baby girl and I also found a puzzle on the table we were trying to do for a bit too. Love this library. Have a beautiful day, thank you for the beautiful books and friendliness. :) Aloha read more

OC Public Library - Brea Branch - Puzzle we found lol - Libraries Near Me - Brea, California

See all

So I been on a search for my new library card to add to my collection. So after searching for nearby libraries, I decided to register for a free one online. In order to get my card, I had to pick it up at the library. Parking is located in the underground lot below the civic center. Parking is free so no need to pay. The lanes are pretty small so be careful and drive slow. After taking the elevator up to the ground floor, the library will be towards the front to the left. The library itself is pretty cute and bug. They have areas to sit and read a book and a huge selection of books. The librarian at the front desk was very helpful and friendly. She gave me all the perks about using my library card so that was fun. And of course, I found a book that I been wanting to read so will be back to browse their collections again. Overall, great library, great selections, and a huge variety of books. Happy reading! read more

This library is small and cozy. They do have individual desks which is nice! It is a great place to study and the parking is underground which makes me feel safe about my car. read more

I had a really frustrating experience with the library's study room reservation system. I reserved a room, but was asked to leave because of an overlapping reservation. What didn't make sense was that there were at least two other reserved rooms sitting completely empty -- no one showed up, yet those spaces were still considered "unavailable." It feels like the policy prioritizes the reservation system over actual use, which defeats the purpose of having study rooms in the first place. If someone isn't there, there should be a reasonable grace period before the room just sits unused while others are kicked out. I understand rules are rules, but there needs to be some flexibility or common sense applied. Otherwise, it just creates unnecessary frustration for people who are actually trying to use the space. read more

This public library is located near the Brea Mall with plentiful underground parking. It is in the same area as Curtis Theater and the police department. Staff are friendly and space is clean with numerous tables. Few things to consider: public restrooms are outside near the elevators and is a bit creepy when homeless people linger and loiter around, sleeping or charging their phones. Also, the library is not open on Sundays and has limited hours on the other days they're open. It would nice for public libraries to all be open daily so everyone can enjoy a space that their taxes pay for. read more

Me & my friend wanted to find a place to study / rehearse a speech & found this library near us through Yelp. It's super clean, quiet and the front staff was so nice and helpful letting us reserve a room for two hours for free with no need of a library card. Looking at the beautiful building it's a great use of our tax dollars to be funded here. Maybe it's because it's a Saturday but it was perfect & peaceful studying here. Parking is plentiful in an underground garage. read more

Super clean and fun library. Great place to study/work/be productive! Spacious with lots of seating. No food allowed but a drink with a lid or cap is okay. read more

This library is great! The area is amazing and fun and it is right by the Brea Mall - perfect for a quick break from work or a full day of different activities. There are individual rooms available if you are looking for a quiet space or need to do group work. I have found found them to be accessible and easy to reserve even with little to no advance notice. The librarians here are very helpful and the kids section is colorful and vibrant. I love that this library invites focus in its noise level and clean ambiance. If anything, it could benefit from more charging outlets, but overall this is a great library to get work done at or unwind with a new book. read more

This is a nice library; BUT, the library is a popular hangout for the homeless and they stink up the library really bad, rant & rave inside the library really loud & all the padded chairs they sit on are stained dirty by them; the library is never cleaned so you have to do it yourself; homeless people hangout inside, sleep on the benches outside & when they use the bathroom it is unbearable to be inside because of the foul odors they leave behind, this library is really meant for homeless people in need of a place to stay rather than a place for educational enrichment. read more

Although the remodel has made this library newer and cleaner, with more study spaces, there are hardly ANY BOOKS in this library. There's much empty space to wander around, but few BOOKS. The children's section still is great, but don't go here if you are looking for an ACTUAL BOOK. I guess the Library of the Future is book-free now. Too bad. read more

So many things wrong with this library. The city needs to make the redevelopment of the library a priority. Using the restroom requires a trek over into the NEXT building. The interior and fixtures in the library are all dated which show and smell their age. There are only a few spots with available electrical outlets. There are power strips available which mostly don't work except for one power outlet on each strip because some moron in the library's purchasing or management dept. decided to buy the MORE EXPENSIVE power strips with attached motion sensors. WHY? This is an unnecessary waste and idiotic use of public money. The motion sensors on these power strips do not work 99.9% of the time which means the 4 ports controlled by the sensor will never turn on. No amount of hand waving in front of the sensor will ever turn those 4 power outlets on the strip on. That now leaves 2 remaining outlets- the Always On and Master. The Master has no rhyme or reason as to when it turns on/off. So essentially that is a useless power port as well. Now you're left with the one working outlet out of six- the Always On. As stated before, good example of amazing idiots working in the library's administrative offices who approved an unnecessary expenditure at taxpayers' expense. It's not their money. Who cares? read more

OC Public Library - Brea Branch - Which genius approved the purchase of these useless expensive motion detector power strips? Could've kept it simple with a basic strip. - Libraries Near Me - Brea, California

See all

I loved this library when I was still living in Orange County. It was always open when I needed to grab books and other materials for my classes in both high school and college. Very convenient! The staff was always friendly and helpful if I needed to find something, but for the most part I was self sufficient. At the ends of some of the book shelves, there's charts that show where different genres are located, which is super helpful if you're the self sufficient type like myself. There's a children's area that has shelves filled with picture books to children's encyclopedias, to chapter books and more. If you check with the information desk, they'll give you a flyer that shows when craft days and readings are with the little ones. They even have a summer reading program that offers little incentives along the way, which is super cute! There's computers you can access with your library card # and personal pin. I believe there's a max time you can use the computers, but if there's a lot of them available then it's usually no problem as you see people there the entire day. You can print as well, just load your card with money and each page will be deducted from it. The library has books (of course), DVDs, audio books, e-books which can be checked out online, CDs, and I think they might still have VHS tapes but I could be wrong. There is a limit as to how much material of each kind you can check out at a time, but it also depends on if you have an adult library card or a minors. Overall, it's a nice little library. It's not the biggest, but it's the perfect size to get what you need done. It's quiet for the most part and everyone who works there is friendly. read more

Brea has a nice architect library with a unique style to it. I was for the hell of it on my day off vising a friend that lives in this area. So i stopped here first to kill some time. NIce size library. Kind of small. But they have a number of books and magazines. Couple magazines for sale that they try and get rod of because of overstock books. Staff are real nice here. Nice quiet childrens book area with a whole bunch of videos and dvd movies. Nice atmosphere. Id love to visit again. read more

Yesterday's visit to the library was very pleasant! Ashley was extremely helpful and you can see how she takes great pride in her job. I've been a Brea resident for over 29 years and have visited the library MANY times over the years; yesterday's visit was definitely one to take time to write about and share the great experience I had. There was a blonde haired gal at the front check in area who was also very pleasant! Great job ladies and Brea Library! read more

I called in yesterday to inquire about the availability of a book, but even though it wasn't available, Lori took the time to not only look it up but give me several options in terms of reserving it, reading it as an ebook, or even borrowing it as an audibook which I didn't know was an option. She really took the time to explain all theoptions to me and was as nice as could be about all of it. I really appreciated her friendly service which is why I'm giving the Brea Library 5 stars. Thanks Lori! read more

Small and not many books. Its just one floor and small place. Not much privacy or not so quiet either. I was disappointed Need to find another good library to go to study in the area. read more

I am very appreciative of this public library. It is small, and quaint. I have been using the online reservation system, and it has been good. Everyone should discover OC Public Libraries and their vast system. Thank you for all your hard work. read more

For the past THREE hours I have had to listen to the beeping sound of a lift, falling tools, and loud building engineers fixing some damn thing in the ceiling. I understand this is their job, but the lack of courtesy for the staff to come and let their patrons know of the noise disturbance is inexcusable. This library always has something wrong with it. It's falling apart so either shut it down or stop the 50,000 events in downtown Brea and put some money into this place. I had to leave and wasted time and gas to come here and now leaving with a migraine. I'm so sick of this place. Never again!!!!!!!!!!! read more

Another small library with quite an interesting route.... I took State College blvd from fullerton to venture to this library. I've seen the building from the brea mall, but the library is easier to see than to drive to. You park underground and take the elevator up to the beautiful building. However, the library is older than the building.. The interior fools you quite a bit, but do not be disappointed. It is not a dusty old hag! I found the books I needed with the help of the kind librarian. They have some wonderful help at this library, the people who work here are nice and approachable. They have a smallish selection, but it is certainly a cozy library that is centrally located to some wonderful shopping places including the brea mall and across the street to a two story target! read more

This is a pretty small library so it's not the greatest place for finding adult books. I just use the holding system to get the books I want. It's pretty great for kids though. They carry a good amount of kids books which I constantly raid. They've got summer reading program with prizes for the kids. I got a ton of them back in the days. The place has some pretty weird hours, such as only being open at night on Wednesdays. read more

Really cute & easily accessible library. Came with my niece and nephew and got 30 books for them. They allow max of 50 at a time. The staff was very nice and helpful. They had a good selection of children's books too. read more

See all

This library is awful! They don't enforce anyone to be quite at all. I am sitting here listening to someone on her phone....loud as can be! The lady with dark hair (shoulder length) who works there is very loud as well! No consideration for anyone who is trying to study . read more

I went to this branch for the first time yesterday. This is not a good option for people who have mobility problems or the elderly as there's a long way to go from the parking structure to the library and if you don't use the elevator, it's uphill all the way. It looks as if the place was built in the 1980s before the Americans with Disabilities Act. Also, the library isn't clearly marked from the parking structure, so for first time visitors it's confusing. When on my way back to the parking structure, another first time patron stopped and asked if I knew how to get to the library. Also, the restrooms are in another building. The friends of the library bookstore is small, but had a nice selection of books and the volunteer was helpful. I bought some books for the neighbor's kids. read more

I went there to apply for a library card. The parking structure is underground which is nice. But for people not familiar with the area, the parking entrance is not easy to find. It's actually between the embassy hotel and civic center. You can take the elevator to go up to the civic center. The civic center has a gallery, a theater, a police station and the library at ground level. It's not crowded at all on a Saturday morning. The library has two staff members, Dan and a girl (I did not know her name). The girl greeted me as soon as I walked in. She showed me how to use their computer to apply for a library card. When i was done, Dan processed it for me. They were both extremely nice and courteous. The library itself looked a little bit dated and the book volume was not big. For the bathroom, it's outside the library between the gallery and police station. It's not difficult to find but it is a small walk from the library. If it's just for the staff, I would give five stars. For the library, I would give four stars. read more

Small Library that needs a full library. No charging outlets. If u want to study avoid this place

It's a nice quick and quiet library. Great for stopping by to get some studying/work done. Not many people attend the library, so it's not crowded which is great! read more

Small or no childrens section worth mentioning thats decorated for little ones and seperate.adults have most of the library.children are low on the priority list here.no restroom.outlets not repaired&have been down for weeks.worst library so far in california i have been to.staff not very friendly.i expected so much more from the city of Brea.im extremely disappointed. read more

cool place to get stuff done. right by the mall read more

OC Public Library - Brea Branch - Libraries Near Me - Brea, California

See all

I like to come here to work on my paper. It has a clean and quiet environment. Not a lot of people. The only thing is that the place does not have many computer power outlet to plug in my laptop. I also wish they have more study tables. read more

Very small library with not many electrical plugs. The internet is slower than what I expected for a Friday morning right after they opened, and the fact that there werent many people there. I hated the parking structure, there was water everywhere and since the parking structure is underground it was pretty stressful to get to. They also don't have many signs up telling you where parking is; I came from out of area and I had to circle the block about 3 times before I even found the parking structure. Weird library but very quiet and also nicely air conditioned. read more

The ocpl.org website is a joke. It is so incredibly frustrating. I tried to renew my book online and it told me to enter my PIN, which I had never received! I then spent half an hour trying to figure out the help options to see if I could find some clue as to what my PIN would be. No luck. Please do not email me to let me know that I can renew a book online if that is not even a realistic option. I asked my cousin about it and he said the same thing (i.e. he never got a pin so he could not use the website). Other than that the library is small but the workers are nice for the most part. They could use a bigger audio book collection in my opinion, but so far my major complaint is with the really annoying website/PIN issue. read more

The library itself is great. It's not the largest or most well-stocked library I've come across, but it has a fine amount of media and most anything you need can be ordered in. There's a printing and computers there as well, which are fine/average. I do have a bit of an issue with the staff there though. They always seem very unhappy to be there and almost always act reluctant to help or assist in anyway. I always say hello when I walk in and goodbye/thank you when I leave and not once has any staff member responded in any way. At first I thought it might just be one or two unhappy staff members or maybe it was a particularly tough day for them, but I have come to find that it is every person, every day. Anyway, it's a perfectly fine library but the entire staff needs an attitude adjustment. read more

Well as a senior, I had a bucket list. Guess what the library was one of them. I've made my children go and learn how to use the library but I never took the time for myself. So I found out it's all computerized which was great! So now I order books online and movies! Great part is I don't have to check it out or check it in they just do it automatically... I found the staff very amazing especially when trying to teach someone knew about online library. I continued to call them with questions as I learn, and never once did I ever hear, like I was bothering them or they were busy, they were very sweet. Oh and get this you can get magazines! Why go by good housekeeping now?? Read for free OMG! I love the underground parking, elevators, so on a hot day can't get any better. I want you register online you can use all the libraries in orange county, I found that great also. But, I still go in because it is a nice place to grab a book! read more

I visited the Brea library recently to finish up a paper for law school. It was a weekday morning so the place was basically empty. I really like how they have an underground parking lot for the city hall + library area so my car doesn't have to sit under the sun but there were not too many spots available even though the library was practically empty. One of the things I really liked about this branch was that the wireless internet was easily accessible. Unlike the Diamond Bar library where you need to have a library card with a pin number to access the internet, this library did not require you have a library card. This was great for someone like me who was not going to go to the Brea library often and it would have been super inconvenient to get a library card just for that one time. One thing about this library is that the amenities seemed to be a little old, especially because I am used to the Diamond Bar library which is only a few years old. Also, there were not too many electric outlets around so everyone using a laptop had to crowd around one corner. read more