Collinsville Memorial Public Library — Attraction in Collinsville

The book sale hosted by the Friends of the Library brought me and some friends into the building for the first time. The sale was hosted in the basement, but I had to check out the rest of the space since I'm not native to Collinsville. I was thoroughly impressed by the size, accommodations, inventory, and the many ways to plug into the community at the library. I walked away wishing my local library was as engaging.

The space is clean, colorful, well-organized, and engaging. Each space I walked through made me eager to check out the next room. Staff were friendly and helpful. Displays throughout the library provided information on various topics- book clubs to join, activities going on, and a community board promoting local businesses and services.

I believe all libraries (at least once they have the funding) should provide technology available to borrow. I first saw this available in a library in the suburbs of Chicago and was thrilled to see Collinsville is doing the same thing. They have a projector, a digital camera, a video camera, a GoPro, a tablet, and even fun devices like an NES and an updated (retro) Atari! I'm sure other items are available to borrow, but these were just the ones on display. How cool!!

On my way out, a display spotlighting books about camping caught my eye and I was able to check out two books from their library. Just another perk- if you have a library card for a library within the same district/region, you can borrow books from that library and return them to another library within that district/region.

The children's section was really impressive too. Not only do they have their own section, but their own floor. The second floor is completely dedicated to children's books and activities. It made me wish I grew up going to this library. The stairway leading to the children's floor is a 360° mural, making it feel like you're being transported to...

*Not a safe place for the homeless or needy. Please read.

I am homeless and have needed a cooling center to get out of the heat waves during the summer of 2024. This place has been an absolute nightmare and totally unaccommodating. But unfortunately it's the closest place to take shelter and get cleaned up a little. They have four bathrooms in this small place, yet for some reason, every time I go into one somebody starts pounding on the door. I need the amenities here to look for a job and read the periodicals. Whenever I go into the computer lab a crowd of people come in and start conversing loudly. I thought this was a library! I can only describe it as harassment and I don't understand why when it is clearly set up to be a sort of haven. I will be very glad when I no longer have to...

I'm amazed at all the amenities this library has for a town the size of Collinsville. I'll start off with something I've never seen before, which is the binge box. You can check out a small Tupperware with several movies in a genre and snacks! The digital media, movies, video games, and console check out is really diverse. They are in the process of cataloging board games too, so stay tuned. Then there all the traditional aspects of a library too, the books, the study rooms, magazines, etc. If you're local and you've never been, you are really...