Like all of the library branches in the Toronto Public Library system, the Bloor Gladstone Library is so much more than a place to find books. People come to the library for many different programs and services, including: “Resources for newcomers and expecting mothers.  Adult literacy. Homework programs. Job searching. Computers.  Air conditioning.  The Teen Zone.”  “It’s a really important place to bring our two and a half year old son.  Yesterday there was a story time – we spent an hour. He looks forward to going.”

The library itself is also “calm, light, neighbourhoody … a second home.”  “I remember coming to this library for the first time.  At least fifteen years ago.  I was so struck by the light from the high windows and the space.  I looked in the poetry section and sat and read for a while.” People seem to feel at home at this neighbourhood branch: “I remember conversations with strangers.  There are not a lot of spaces where you can feel safe talking to strangers.”   Another library user described this friendly public space by saying: “It’s the sound of silence that feels full.  Full of people being quiet together.”

 

Bloor Gladstone   Memory Archive