The librarian here is amazing! She is so caring and kind and speaks directly to your child while getting the library card. She carefully explains all the programs and check out procedures. All this customer service, and they don't even collect money. Take note LGE. read more

Always clean and well organized. Great place to study, do hw, or just look around. Decent film and music collection too.

This is a very noisy library. They have an open area for kids, and you can't blame the kids for being loud when they play. But the whole point of going to the library is to have a quiet place to read and study. The library is clean and staff are nice. It's just terrible design to not enclose the children play area. If you need a quiet place to study, move on to other libraries. read more

This is a library that has been here since my dad was a child (60 years). It is very well maintained and has a wonderful selection of books and a play area for kids. They have made good use of technology with easy self check out and return options. They also have 2 computers for kids with educational games. I come here with my son a lot and he loves it. Even when we forget to return books on time, they have an auto-renew function so that we don't get charged a fine. They have a box where you can donate old books and buy books for just $0.25 each. They also have an area in front of the library where you can pick up free games and puzzles that people have donated. Lastly, I know it is a fine detail but on top of all of this they have a working vending machine with drinks and snacks which makes it a nice place for students to hang out or study after school. A wonderful community resource in my opinion and a good use of taxpayer dollars. read more

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Always inviting and located in the perfect location. Along a bus route that makes it easy to get to from Westmont

I'm a fan of my small neighborhood library. I usually reserve books I need using their online catalog and get an email when they are ready to pick up. The library is convenient for me and I'm usually in and out in less than 5 minutes since I don't use any of their other services. But today I had a great experience with one of their staff that helped me with my Teacher's library card, replacing missing books and finding information on disaster drills for kindergartners. Helen was so helpful and went above and beyond what she needed go do. I am very appreciative of kind people and look forward to stopping by again to say hello to Helen. read more

This library is my top choice for studying and conducting research. Since the pandemic, it has been my go-to place for working on my project funding proposal. The librarians and staff deserve recognition for their professionalism and dedication to continuously enhancing the library experience. They always greet visitors with a warm, friendly smile, making everyone feel genuinely welcomed. I can always sense their sincere willingness to help, which is truly remarkable. This is one of the few places where I feel my tax money is well spent ! Jo b well-done ! read more

I enjoy it. Close to where I live. Really quiet my new born dtr loves it here there's a place she stays at n they provide toys for them. Great area read more

Here is another San Jose public library. One awesome thing about this branch is it has not one but TWO kiosks to return your borrowed items! This is a total game changer. The parking lot is small so expect to circle the lot a few times before finding a spot. There is a nice children's section with some interactive toys. The dvd section is not as large as other locations but the three week borrowing still applies. read more

This library is not very good for the following reasons: (1) their supervisor/manager is very rude, like a wicked witch on a broomstick flying around the library (more on that later); (2) their wifi is inconsistent (I've been there on days when it works fine, and other days, it didn't work at all); (2) they could have better hours, like how the Milpitas, Saratoga, and Mountain View libraries stay open until 9:00 PM some days; (3) they are not tiny but not very big either (and it's better when libraries are larger with a wider variety and size of collections); and (4) other libraries (like Milpitas, Mountain View, etc.) have reservable study rooms for 1 or more people, but theirs are only for groups, not individuals (which is inconvenient in today's day and age when we all saw a rise in remote meetings, and sometimes a quiet place like a library is convenient for having a remote meeting in a room to yourself). On to the #1 reason why this library is awful: although some staff are polite, patient, considerate, and helpful, others are simply not, and the supervisor/manager is the worst. They should have a big sign on their entrance: "GET OUT five minutes before closing time, or else our wicked witch of the west supervisor will keep flying into your personal space on her broomstick every minute, instructing you to put your computer away when we are not even closing yet." One day, I heard one of the regular staff do that to another patron, not just giving a friendly reminder, like, "We're closing in five minutes," but instead directing him, "Put your computer away." It was blunt and rude, but I didn't think of it again until they did it to me on another day. It was five minutes before closing time, and the supervisor came over with this rude look and instructed me during a remote meeting I was having on my laptop right by the entrance, "Put your computer away." I heard the very loud announcement the guy makes over the intercom throughout the whole library at 30 minutes before closing time and again at 15 minutes before closing time announcing that they're closing. It's not possible to not hear that. I don't need to be singled out repeatedly by this lady every minute. I told her I know and that it isn't closing time yet, that my meeting is ending in a minute, but she just walked away without any acknowledgement. I know how to put my laptop away in less than a minute and exit, especially when I'm seated right there by the entrance. The problem isn't just the fact that they give so many excessive individual instructions and reminders of what everyone already heard; it's how the supervisor does it. She has a rude and unfriendly demeanor, getting in your space and telling you what to do when you don't even need to put your stuff away or leave just yet. I asked the supervisor a minute before closing, as I was leaving, do all patrons need to leave five minutes before closing time? I honestly thought maybe I missed that requirement, and she said no. I told her I don't need to be singled out and told to leave every minute, and her eyes got big in a confrontational look, and she got this aggressive intonation and basically yelled at me that some people don't hear the announcement. I don't believe that's possible unless they have a hearing disability, and you shouldn't be rude to the hearing impaired either. I understand they need to get everyone out by 7:00 PM, but can't they do it in a courteous and considerate way? Other library staff at other libraries do, without making you feel like you're being kicked out before you even need to exit. read more

Great, quiet place. Very knowledgeable and helpful staff. Wish they were open more hours.

This is your stodgy-cardigan-wearing-library's younger cool teenage sister! It's very popular with families and has a vibrant exciting energy. It's more like a community center. They have a number of monthly events targeting to kids & teens, but also have ESL and internet lessons every week too. There's a monthly book club and they bring in authors to speak on occasion. All of the check outs are handled by scanners, but the librarians are friendly and available if you have questions. It's pretty modern inside, with lots of large windows - yet interestingly designed with light wood, high ceilings and chrome. West Valley has an impressive dvd collection of new popular series - including things like Six Feet Under, Veronica Mars, Buffy - which you can check out for a week. They also have a lot of cds, and even manga. They have a very large international book and media section too. Since this branch is small, they don't have quiet the book selection as some larger branches, so they lose a star. But coming here is fun - so I'd recommend checking out. edit to add: Twice now I have had issues with strange fines showing up on my account. They're straightened it out twice, but it is alarming and something to keep an eye on. sorry - you lose one star! read more

West Valley Branch Library - Libraries Near Me - San Jose, California

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Love this little library! Lots of books and helpful personnel. Convenient hours, too.

I love my local little clean library. If they don't have the books I want I can always request them on the website. When I do this I get my books pretty quickly. Staff has always been nice and helpful. read more

This review is solely based on my experience with the story time sessions they have here. So story time is on Thursday at 11am in the community room and man was it depressing. So the community room looks like a stone coloured bunker. There is a kitchenette (?) in the corner and when I was there there was a big bag of Mac Donald's and a soda cup on it. There is nothing kid like or book inspired about the room. Afterwards most mothers stay so the kids can play, but if you are new to this event don't expect to mingle. Most moms separate themselves in groups of their own ethnicity (and don't interact with others and strangely enough so do their kids.) It's just not worth going to if you can have story time at the library in Saratoga (which is really cool!) read more

I have been to many libraries (Santa Clara, Campbell, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Palo Alto) and this is the worst library for people who want to read and study in a quiet environment. People talk on the phone at the seat (they are supposed to step out) and chat with friends as if they are in a coffee shop. Some people are playing games with the device sounds on!! The worst part of this is that no staff is monitoring anything. You can do whatever you want in this library. In Mountain View and Palo Alto library, there is always staff who would come to you immediately and ask you to step away from the area to talk on the phone and I think that's the way the library is expected to be. Apparently not this one. read more

I really like this place. They always have really popular and well reviewed books just... sitting there... and it's really fun to browse them and find, unexpectedly, the Tartine cookbook, or something. It also has a pretty extensive romance and mystery novels section as well as good paperback selection for YA. I like how airy and open the place feels. It's not really good for studying or concentrating since there's always a lot of kids and families there, or people tutoring. I like how there are power outlets on a long communal table. The same people have worked there for like 10+ years; there's this one rather shy librarian there who just gets older and nicer looking each time I go. ANYWAY. The information booth isn't as helpful, sometimes people are a bit cranky, and it's a little hard to find parking on peak hours. In general, though, a nice place to relax and read. read more

This is the nearest library to my house, however it does not match up to the libraries in Singapore. This place can easily be reached by walking or by public transport. It is a huge hit for kids. It is not a great place to study for college students because it is not open everyday. If you want to some nice travel videos then come here read more

This is a near library from my Rent house.The library staff is very warm and patient to introduce all service. There is a Chinese room can lent books and seat here to read magazines and newspapers and novels esp. the works by Mo Yan,Noble literary prize owner in 2012. read more

It's a cute, safe library. It rarely has the books I want but if I'm not looking for something specific I like browsing here for smaller crowd and personalized help. It's also a nice and quiet place to get work done. read more

I am utterly disappointed in the public library system for San Jose. My experience today was filled with rude people and patronizing managers. I was a student at San Jose State and I have been an active user of the libraries for years. I am a teacher in San Jose and I use the San Jose Public Library system for my classroom, as a resource for my students and their families, and as a personal resource for my family. All of that being said, I doubt I will be using it, or recommending it, in the future. My story: I requested two books that I thought might be good to add to the collection in my middle school classroom, but I wanted to read them before I buy them. The books took an extremely long time to get in, even though they didn't seem to have a waiting list, and when they finally did come in, I got the email right before a weekend. I have a family, and they have a busy life, so I couldn't get to the library that weekend. I am sure many people know how fast time flies over the weekend. The West Valley Branch is closed Sunday-Tuesday, so the next time I could go in was Wednesday. Unfortunately I had a church meeting that night. I had to rush home from work, feed my kidlet, and rush off to the meeting. Alas, no library. On Thursday I went to the library, literally less than 10 minutes after it closed, which was earlier then I realized, and so no book that day. The following day I flew out of town for the weekend. I went to the library today to pick up the books, which was the next day they were open, and they had not only returned the books to the "back room," but I had been charged for them. I was told, in a very condescendingly magnanimous way, that they had "waited until Wednesday as a courtesy since the books had actually hit the 7 business day mark the day before," a day in which they were closed. The books have totally disappeared and there is no way to get them back, again, even though there is no one on a waiting list for them. I noticed on the screen that the extremely rude assistant manager showed me that the books had been pulled at 11:19AM, but they were unavailable for me to check out now. That was when I saw the fee. I know that there is a fee if you don't pick up requested books, but I had never given it much thought. Well, it's $3.00 per book. I then was referred to the manager who apparently thought I was three and spoke to me like the witch probably spoke to Hansel and Gretel, and she ended up waiving the fees, after a tedious and long explanation about the library's policy. I also noticed at that time that there were three more fees for the same thing that I didn't realize I had even paid. Now, I admit it is kind of a sad testament to my life that I paid fees I didn't know I had, but I have a very active 4 year old who has inadvertently placed a book somewhere in the car and I have not realized I didn't return it until a few days too late. I have always paid those fines, because I know that it is my responsibility to return the books on time. Why the outrage? Well, it's simple. I don't believe I am the only busy parent. I work about 35 minutes from the library, which happens to be close to my house though, and there are no libraries convenient to work. It is easiest to use the West Valley Branch. We have sports, church, friends, and family obligations, which again is not unusual in this area. All of that being said, when the library is closed three days out of seven, and has operating hours that mirror most work places, it is unreasonable to think that a family can always get there within a seven day time frame. There are some weeks that it simply won't happen. I think that is is fine to charge a fee for overdue books, although the price is quite high in my opinion, and I get why they don't want people to constantly request books and never pick them up, but there should be a fine after a specific number of books are not picked up, not after a set amount of days. Sadly, no one in the library seemed to care. I can afford the fees, but there are many families who can't. I think that the way the library system in San Jose is being run will discourage families from using it, and I can't in good consciousness support them any longer. I also really dislike rude people, and I met several there today. read more

it's not that big, but it's bigger than the library near my house, which was recently closed for construction. so i headed over here to see what my options were. it's located on the corner of san tomas aquino and saratoga, right past the fire station. one of the first things you'll notice is a giant artichoke in front of the building. it's part of their "green" theme, since the building was designed to be energy efficient. there's other vegetables inside, like a bok choy shaped like a chair in the kid's section. also in the green theme is the mobiles hanging from the ceiling. they are made of out recycled trash, water bottles and whatnot. there is a fireplace in one section of the library, with couches in front. it's the electric kind, with fake logs. their foreign language section is pretty large, especially indian languages and chinese. they also have a teen reading room with lots of magazines, as well as a silent study room. i wanted to check out some workout videos, but most were already checked out. so i requested them via the website by punching in my library card number and PIN no. You can request books and media from other libraries via the same system. if you put your email id in their computer system, they'll send you a reminder 3 days before your books are due. there are lots of community events here, meetings and clubs. the young adult librarian runs a manga club, and a video game playoff every month. there's a knitting club as well. they frequently have story hour for the kids. when i was there last month, they had a bookmark contest for kids going on. also for kids, they have these multimedia backpacks that include books and toys. they generally have only one reference librarian out at any given time. the librarians work in the back, and they cycle out every hour or two. the checkout registers are self-serve. read more

It was so easy to get a library card here (nothing like my old library). You can fill out the form online, then just show up with your ID and within minutes you'll have your shiny new library card. The librarian was friendly and helpful and we were able to find tons of children's books for my niece. They have self checkout, which my niece thought was so fun! Plenty of parking, and a self return outside so you can drop off your books 24/7! read more

Good tables & lighting for studying & close to my house. However, they close much earlier than other libraries & aren't open on some days. I will probably go to the Cupertino library instead since they are open later and more often. It's nice to have the option to go here though. read more

I love this cozy little library that happens to be down the street from my daughter's Japanese school. It has nice natural light, cozy corners, and windows in most study areas so you don't feel like you're in a mausoleum (unlike Sunnyvale library). They also have a decent selection of Japanese kids books, considering that they are a branch library, and have a Japanese storytime once a week that I'd love to take my younger child too. If only it was on a weekend! I think it is unfortunate that there is such a stiff fine for lost books ($20 restocking), that added to the replacement fee for the book itself makes it really expensive to cope with a lost book. And unfortunately, with a six and two year old in the house, it is all too easy to lose a book. I think libraries are important to a community and am happy to support them, but wish I could do it differently. Librarians have been very nice about the situation, even though there seems to be very little that they can do about it in terms of waiving fees etc. :( My daughter is in love with the kids' reading space- it is so welcoming and cute and so much nicer than either her school library or our home Sunnyvale library. I wish I lived down the street from this place! Also, it makes a huge difference now that they are open 6 days a week. The previous schedule was ridiculous- I was NEVER in the area when they were open so they might as well have existed. My daughter is sad about the early closing times, though- we could only go together in the evening after her school, so usually I have to come by myself. Please, San Jose, continue funding your libraries... and consider later hours!!! read more

I love going here staff is so nice! They keep the Library so clean. My favorite Library. Keep up the good work:) the only thing that bothered me there's a lady who is always walking around with a brush in her hand that has a mirror on it and she came up to my daughter and was putting it in her face and every time I go I see her doing that to people it's creepy. read more

Taught me almost everything I know! Been going here for all my life so wanted to give them some props in place of all these bad reviews. For how many libraries have closed down/ barely operate, I'm glad they still have this one open for well over 25 years. Gives kids a good spot to chill after school too. As annoying as all these middle schoolers and high schoolers can be, I'm glad they're out there putting in effort read more