Top Ten Libraries and Bookstores on Screen
Pantera Press
- The Citadel, Oldtown from Game of Thrones (2011-present): After surviving (largely thanks to his love of stories and history) six seasons of the world’s most brutal television show, Samwell Tarly finally makes it to the largest library known to man, the Citadel.
- BOOKLEAVES, NYC from Definitely Maybe (2008): April spends years looking through copies of Jane Eyre at second-hand bookstores hoping to find the lost copy her late father once gave her. Never finding it, she decides to buy every copy she can find with a handwritten inscription inside. After a falling out, her on-again, off-again love interest, Will Hayes, stumbles upon the book at used-book store, BOOKLEAVES. Giving it to April is the ultimate romantic gesture and ultimately brings the two together.
- The Restricted Section, Hogwarts Library from the Harry Potter film series (2001-2011): Proving once again that literature should never be censored, the forbidden section of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry’s library is full of wonder, terror, temptation and secrets. Who wouldn’t take a sneaky stroll down its aisles after lights out? It’s perfect for those looking for a bit of dark light reading.
- The School Library, Shermer High School, Illinois from The Breakfast Club (1985): Serving as the setting for most of the film, the school library holds five fated troublemakers for detention. And while they don’t make the most of reading the books around them, they do tell each other stories of their own. It’s the library that helps the teens come to terms with their differences and similarities, resolve their conflicts, let loose (dancing and makeovers included) and make surprising friendships. Libraries have truly been bringing people together since 1985!
- The Feminist Bookstore, San Francisco from 10 Things I Hate About You (1999): Have you lost your copy of The Feminine Mystique? Then you may want to book a flight to San Fran and visit the go-to destination for poetry readings and feminist literature. And who knows, you might even find love of Shakespearean proportion!
- The Library, Stokesay Court, South Shropshire from Atonement (2007): Possibly the sexiest library ever to grace the big screen, Atonement redefines the library as the prime location ill-fated lovers should meet in secret (sorry, Romeo and Juliet, balconies are so 1597). The library of Stokesay Court is also a place you’d never want to be underdressed. Whenever I’m asked, ‘Where do babies come from?’ I answer, ‘The library in Atonement.’
- The Beast’s Library, France from Beauty and the Beast (1991): Elizabeth Bennet’s visit to Mr. Darcy’s estate is rivalled only by Belle’s visit to the Beast’s private library. Need I say more? Libraries are the new engagement rings.
- Miss Honey’s personal book collection from Matilda (1996): A library doesn’t have to be a place, it can also be a person! And Miss Honey doesn’t disappoint, giving Matilda not just books, but also a sense of hope and timeless understanding in a world of just the opposite. #LoveYaMissHoney!
- The Mayor’s Library, Germany from The Book Thief (2013): Upset by the book burnings in Nazi Germany, Liesel Meminger is seen by the mayor’s wife, Ilsa, rescuing an unburned book from the wreckage. Under the guise of doing the mayor’s laundry, Liesel is brought to the mayor’s house, where Isla secretly gives her access to her husband’s library. At a frightening time of civil unrest, the two bond over their mutual love of knowledge and defiance of Hitler.
10. Sunnydale High Library from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003): Your go-to resource for vampires, demons and monsters straight from the Hellmouth, the Sunnydale High library is an office favourite. Whenever there’s an impending Apocalypse, you can bet Buffy and the Scooby Gang will be buried in its books, under the watchful eye of Giles of course!
Which screen libraries or bookshops are your favourites?