I love libraries and St. Charles has a great library. The librarians downstairs are kind and…read morepatient with the little ones. They have lots of fun (and free!) programs for the kids. Summer book reading club is our favorite. Our oldest loves to go to the Lego build times. Feeding their creativity is a strength of the library. I'm an eBook reader and I've been satisfied with their OverDrive collection. And they've increased the check out time to 21 days! And the biggest change we've appreciated as a family is auto-renew. If a book is due but nobody has a hold on it, it will check it back out to you. If you haven't had the chance to use their services besides book check out, you're missing out on some great programs!

St. Charles library appears clean and organized. I was looking for books on the human body for…read moreelementary age children and most of the books are gender-affirming and not science-based on biology. Many books show explicit cartoon illlustrations of same-sex couples in bed together, including descriptions of oral sex and masturbation. This is not age-appropriate for young children. We will not be visiting St. Charles library anymore.

I like the Winfield library and can usually find something I want to read. I don't mind having the…read morestaff order material...it's easy to do online and I can walk over and pick it up in a couple of days. For me that beats driving over to Wheaton or elsewhere.

I am solely basing this on their youth area! If you are simply there to check out books it's fine…read more Not really a great space to stay and play. There's no designated play area and the couple of toys are kind of tucked away. We went in the late afternoon and it was pretty dead. I really hate to say this but the librarians didn't greet us or look our way at all when we came in. Definitely not a problem, but it didn't feel super welcoming like we are used to at other places even if it was just a smile acknowledgment.

This library is really quite beautiful. It's large and grand, reminiscent of the Carnegie…read morelibraries, though this is not one of them--the building at their current location is actually only about 45 years old. When you walk in, one of the first things you'll see is the independently operated cafe. Really handy to have at the library, but just check their hours as they don't run concurrently with the library itself. We headed down to the children's section which is on the lower level. It is a really comfortable space for kids and parents; they a rather large toy section with a play flower shop, kitchen, and lots of bins full of toys. The tables had some other activities like little puzzle books or coloring stations. They had bins of books that weren't shelved with the rest of them, but rather organized in the bins by alphabet blocks for easy access to look at with the kids. And there was lots of seating for parents to relax and watch their children. I don't check on the Batavia library since I don't live in the area, but when we were at the cafe waiting I saw on their media screen some of the events they host flash by and they looked interesting. They have in person and virtual events, it seems, which I love for its convenience, accessibility, and inclusiveness. The outside of the library has over a dozen outdoor tables, so grab something at the cafe and enjoy!

I've been visiting this library since 2008 when my husband and I first met. We were living with a…read morefriend in Batavia for a short time, and we would come here to get some space. One of my favorite features of this library is the fireplace and the windows surrounding it. It's my favorite place to chill, read, crochet/knit, just feel like I'm in another place. Since I've been married and had kids, we've taken our kids here multiple times too. They really enjoy the downstairs children's area. There's a lot of activities to do down there and things to play with. They also have a good selection of children's books, DVDs, children's programs during the day, and lots of places to sit. Most of the people working here are very kind and helpful. There is one woman who works at the information desk in the back of the adult section between the main part of the library and the fireplace room I was talking about earlier. She has a strange attitude. I was sitting by the fireplace and it wasn't on and the room was very cold. I went and asked if they could turn it on. She says to me, "Well, we only turn it on when it's cold outside." But then she reluctantly got up and went to turn it on. It was blazing for a second, then went out. She was already back in her seat at her desk ignoring everyone. I didn't understand why she was working here because she seemed so bitter about helping the community at the info desk. ‍ other than that, it's a great place to hang out!

My daughter and her tutor used the Hemingway study room on 5/20 at approximately 5:45 p.m…read more 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.

What a wonderful, clean, friendly library! Came in to get a library card and the staff was…read moreextremely 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.

I took my 16 month old son and our experience was great! It felt so nice to see him roam around and…read morehave so much to explore! We will definitely be back!

I am not a cardholder (library hop to change my scenery), so my review is only on ambiance. I…read moreabsolutely adore the floor-to-ceiling windows on the second floor; the sunlight while studying keeps me sane. The 'cafe' downstairs is a bit tinier than I would like. And I was a bit disappointed that a majority of the library is the second floor, with the first being the cafe, front desk, a little lounging corner, and a kid's space in an entirely different room. So, a majority of noise and people were upstairs, making it a little difficult to concentrate but with some nice headphones you're all good!

This place is located in a nice neighborhood. Great place to just hang out. It is quiet so that you…read morecan do what you need to do.

I thought this library was great UNTIL I visited Palatine's (see my review there to see what's so…read moregreat). CS library is laid out like a traditional library and it's not that easy to find things unless you look up the location. It's a smaller library, but it's clean and quiet. They do have a decent collection of DVDs.

Really big library with a great location downtown Naperville! A nice children's section and tons of…read moreprogramming for all ages. Something unique that not every library has is the extensive selection of video games, movies, music and even board games you can check out! And of course a ton of books and study space, libraries are the best!

Only rating based on the kids level, but we enjoyed this library! Ample seating with a diverse toy…read moreselection. It was really nice. We went in the morning and it was starting to get crowded by 10:30 ish.

This is a Christain college and I am Hindu…read more My husband and I love this library and campus. I had to pay to join the library, and it was worth every cent. The grounds are beautiful to run, and at no cost. Not one negative thing to say about Wheaton College.

I attended Wheaton College as a student, but after graduating I still come here to study & check…read moreout books. The college library is open later than the public libraries so it's a good place if you're studying for a professional certification or have a work project. They are open until midnight week nights and have shortened hours on the weekends. My one complaint would be they are not open on Sundays due to the Sabbath. I understand school policy regarding these hours, but it leaves limited other public options for study spaces. Besides the hours, there are just enough study spaces for the amount of traffic that comes in and out of the library. During midterms and exam weeks I would not recommend trying to find a study spot, it will be too full. As a student or a paying community member, you will have access to the interlibrary loan system where you can check out books from any of the partner colleges in the IL area. It makes for cheap rental of books rather than buying a textbook online. I would definitely recommend paying to be a member if you need access to the library system for renting books or if you need resources on biblical topics. They have one of the most expensive collections of resources as far as reference material for biblical texts, archeological books or peer reviewed journals available online.

Cute and updated!! Great area for young kids and imaginative play. It's small but very nicely done.read more

Came here for story time for the young one - cute space, well organized and staff are quite…read morefriendly. This review mostly pertains to stuff probably for younger kids however we enjoyed ourselves immensely. We went to the play area in the back before story time where they have Legos, a play area that includes cooking and fake food, lots of word books and cushy stools for kids to lay around and jump on. There's also electronic interactive tablet type things against the walls that I saw kids playing with which looked cool as well. We did the story time and it was quite interactive, the leader was super engaged, kind to the kids, really tried to get all the kids involved. Story time seems to be open for any age but it is recommended that you register online as there is a wait list before the event. When you register online, it asks for how many people in your party, just count the kids do not count the adults. That's the pro tip we were given once we arrived by the staff lol. I loved our experience and will be back for more story time (for my daughter not for me hahaha although I did enjoy the story and dances as well).

Came to this library for the first time and Britta in the teen space was so caring, give her a…read moreraise!

If you have a Wheaton address but live in "unincorporated Wheaton," this library is the worst…read moreexperience. It is a beautiful library, but unless you have a library card, you are treated with so much contempt. Want to purchase a library card? Get ready to spend a crazy amount of money. They claim the amount is based on the property taxes you would have paid, but I have always found the quote to be much higher. Also, if you rent but the building you rent from is in "incorporated" Wheaton, you don't pay property taxes, but you do get a library card. The librarians are generally irritated if you ask them simple questions, such as "how do I reserve a room" or "where can I print?" This week, I saw a woman ask to reserve a room and she didn't know that you need to leave an ID because the librarian didn't tell her, then the librarian got upset when the woman didn't hand over her drivers license right away. The library is supposed to be a community place. I just don't understand how it is full of unkind people.