From 1 May 2024, BorrowBox will offer library members access to newspapers and magazines as well as eBooks and audiobooks. The Libby and PressReader services will no longer be available to library members.
There is something very comforting about whodunnits. Unlike real life, there are never any unsolved mysteries or loose ends; the murderer is properly unmasked, Scooby-Doo fashion, at the end; and the whole thing is a gentle exercise for the old brain cells as we get to play along, working out clues and chasing red herrings. They’re the television equivalent of toast: warm, cosy, and easy to digest. A whole host of detective series is available on DVD in libraries now, including a pretty hefty set of Miss Marple that would make an admirable murder weapon in itself. MorseGood old Morse: the jag, the crosswords, the ale, the classical music, and of course the long-suffering Lewis. Brilliant! A Touch of Frost D.I. Jack Frost solves crimes the old-fashioned way, while battling with bureaucracy incarnate in the form of his boss, Superintendent Mullet. Foyle’s WarD.I. Foyle, and his two assistants, Sam and Milner, solve not just the usual murders but also crimes involving profiteering and the black market, relevant to the WWII setting. Great props and costumes, very authentic. Midsomer MurdersThe chocolate-box pretty county of Midsomer is somewhat overrun with gruesome crime, and by this stage there can’t be many villagers left. Nonetheless, Inspector Barnaby and his various sidekicks manage in each episode to find another body and another murderer.
Hallowe'en is sometimes thought of an American feast, with its trick-or-treating, pumpkins, fancy dress parties and scary movies, but long before this – indeed, as far back as Celtic times - our ancestors celebrated Samhain, the beginning of the dark time of the year. The Ghost Town Image Gallery showcases the Irish, and specifically Dublin, traditions of past times, with more than a nod to the celebrated Gothic writers and the haunted places of the city.
Dublin is famous for many things, not least its nightlife. While many people imagine that Dublin’s international profile as a night spot only began with the establishment of Temple Bar, this selection of images from the Special Collections of Dublin City Public Libraries demonstrates that the fun didn’t start then. Fairs and taverns provided venues for entertainment from the Middle Ages and in the eighteenth century Coffee Houses were dens of political dissent and gossip. During that same century the theatres often saw more action in the pit than on the stage, or if throwing oranges at the actors was not to your taste you could while away the evening with a trip to a Charity Sermon. During the nineteenth century thrilling melodrama and wild vaudeville graced the Dublin stage and organisations such as the YMCA hosted lectures on the new advances in science. Going to “the pictures” became an important part of a Dublin night out in the twentieth century, but the city also played host to international luminaries such as Laurel and Hardy and The Beatles. And in the Dublin of the early 1980s you could get to a U2 concert for just £1.20!View images from A Great Night Out! image gallery.Further ResourcesThe following online resources can be accessed free of charge at your local library (access links via our NetVibes portal). Ask library staff for information and assistance.Libraries and Archives Digital Repository: Digital records relating to Dublin, including photographs, postcards, letters, maps and ephemeral material. Highlights of the collection include the Fáilte Ireland Photographic Collection, Wide Street Commission Map Collection (1757-1851), the Irish Theatre Archive and the Birth of the Republic Collection, which comprises material from the period of the foundation of the Irish state.Irish Times Digital Archive: This online archive service gives access to contemporary editions of the Irish Times from the mid-nineteenth century until the present.Irish Newspaper Archive: This online archive service gives access to contemporary editions of the Irish Independent and a range of other newspapers.The Ireland-JSTOR Collection: This online archive of academic articles can also be accessed free of charge at your local library.For further reading, consult the Library Catalogue.
Dublin City Libraries plans to digitise some of its early books and manuscripts, in order to bring the history of the city before a wider public. Many of the proposed works are hard to find and are very expensive to buy. The Picture of Dublin 1811 is the first in the series and it is being used as a pilot project to assess the value of the project.
Rathmines Branch Library re-opened after extensive refurbishment on Tuesday August 2nd, 2011. Improvements include the provision of a lift, a user friendly self-service system, accessible public toilets, upgraded lighting and heating, improved signage, new shelving and a new accessible public counter. Plus, the library has been fully repainted and many of the original features have been restored to their former glory.
The use of books for therapeutic purposes is known as 'bibliotherapy’. Self-help books have been used in this way for many years and are now being recommended as a means of providing psychological therapy for people experiencing emotional and psychological difficulties.
The Commissioners for making Wide and Convenient Ways, Streets and Passages in the City of Dublin was established by an Act of Parliament in 1757. The Commission had extensive powers with the authority to acquire property by compulsory purchase, demolish it, lay down new streets and set lots along the new streets to builders for development.
'Aisy, aisy, mind the chisler’. Brendan Behan, The Confirmation Suit (1953). This gallery consists of images of children going about their business in Dublin from the second half of the twentieth century up to the present day.
'The Jacks Are Back' image gallery celebrates the greatest sports team this city has produced. Up da Dubs! These images were taken from the Dublin City Council Photographic Collection and The Reading Room's extensive collection of GAA match programmes. The images taken from contemporary programmes featured in this gallery are copyright of Cumann Lúthchleas Gael/Gaelic Athletic Association.
Dublin Revealed: author readings in the Central Library
Dublin City Public Libraries and Ireland Literature Exchange presented a series of talks and readings, 'Dublin Revealed' in the Central Library in May 2011. Three of these talks and readings are available to listen to here.Right: Paul Murray, Carlo Gébler, Kevin BarryCarlo GéblerBorn in Dublin in 1954, Carlo Gébler was brought up in London and studied at the University of York and the National Film and Television School, Beaconsfield. His novels include The Eleventh Summer (1985), Work & Play (1987), Malachy and his Family (1990), Life of a Drum (1991), The Cure (1994), How to Murder a Man (1998) and A Good Day for a Dog (2008). He collaborated with Patrick Maguire to write the 2008 memoir, My Father's Watch: The Story of a Child Prisoner in 70s Britain, imbuing it with a "quiet emotionalism" (The Guardian). His books for children are well-known: Caught on a Train (2001) was short-listed for a Bisto prize. In addition, he has written articles and short stories for many national publications and a libretto for opera. He is a film-maker, producer and director of television documentaries. Carlo’s work has been supported by ILE in Italian and Hebrew. Carlo Gébler is a member of Aosdána and lives in Enniskillen, where he currently is writer-in-residence in HMP Maghaberry. Browse Carlo Gébler books in the library catalogue.Listen Carlo Gébler reading from his new novel The Dead Eight, followed by questions and answers. Introduction by Sinéad Mac Aodha (13th May 2011).Carlo Gébler talk transcript.Kevin BarryKevin Barry was born in Limerick in 1969 and now lives in Sligo. His first collection of short stories, There Are Little Kingdoms, won the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature in 2007. Fellow Irish short story writer Philip Ó Ceallaigh praised them as 'vibrant, original, and intelligent short stories that deserve to be read and reread and to outlast the strange years that made them'. He has written about travel and literature for The Guardian, The Irish Times, The Sydney Morning Herald and many other publications. His debut novel City of Bohane (published last month) is set in 2054 in the fictional city of Bohane in the West of Ireland, which is on its knees, infested by vice and split along tribal lines. Irvine Welsh has described Barry as ‘the most arresting and original writer to emerge from these islands in years’. Check the availability of City of Bohane and There are Little Kingdoms in the catalogue.Listen to Kevin Barry reading from City of Bohane, followed by questions and answers. With an introduction by Aoife Walsh (20th May 2011).Kevin Barry talk transcriptPaul MurrayBorn in Dublin in 1975, Paul Murray studied English Literature in Trinity College. He later completed a postgraduate degree in Creative Writing at East Anglia University. His riotously funny début novel, An Evening of Long Goodbyes (2003), was shortlisted for the Whitbread Award and for the Kerry Irish Fiction Award. Skippy Dies (2010) was long-listed for the 2010 Man Booker Prize for Fiction. Neil Jordan is set to direct the film adaptation. Skippy Dies has been supported by ILE in Italian, German and Norwegian. "Skippy Dies is so appealing and surprising that the pages pass with ease", The Guardian. Check the availability of Skippy Dies and An Evening of Long Goodbyes in the catalogue.Listen to Paul Murray reading from Skippy Dies, followed by questions and answers. With an introduction by Paul Murray (27th May 2011).Paul Murray talk transcript. Jennifer JohnstonJennifer Johnston also read and took questions at the Central Library as part of Dublin Revealed on 6th May.Jennifer Johnston (1930) was born in Dublin. She is a novelist and a dramatist, her most recent novel being Truth or Fiction, published in 2009 by Headline Review. Foolish Mortals (2007) was voted Irish Book of the Decade in 2010. She has received many awards: the 1979 Whitbread Award for The Old Jest; the Giles Cooper Award for Best Radio play (1989) and Shadows on our Skin (1977) was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. She was short-listed for the Daily Express Best Book of the Year 1992 for The Invisible Worm. The Irish Independent has called her "one of Ireland's finest writers". With support from ILE, her work has been translated into French, Slovene, Croatian, Czech, Romanian and Bulgarian. Jennifer Johnston lives in Derry and is a member of Aosdána. Browse Jennifer Johnston books in the library catalogue. Subscribe to literary readings and talks in a reader