Cleveland Park Library

One of the problems is the limited selection in the DC library. I’ve been very surprised how often major books are not available within the entire DC library. And trying to get inter-​library loan is virtually impossible — which is bad policy.
As for this location, it’s old and poorly designed. They are rebuilding it, but I hope they don’t listen to the few NIMBYs who want to keep Cleveland Park as a place that tries to exclude those who aren’t wealthy. Meaning, I hope they build a large structure on this valuable piece of property that is mixed-​use.
As for customer service here, it’s hit or miss.

Eh.
Came here for story time with my son. I’ve passed this place a million times but never set foot inside until this past Tuesday.
The building is old. There were computers and books. Yes, there were books. Overall nothing special. It’s a library and an average one at that.
The lady that led story time has a really pleasant singing voice. There seems to be a steady group of moms that come to this. They seemingly knew all the words to the silly songs, each other, and that on Tuesdays we wear taupe.
The stories were kind of … eh. At the end of the story time a bunch of toys are dumped in the center of the circle so that the kids can crawl over each other and get their drool on everything and share … Germs.
My son is pretty young, 7 weeks old to be exact, so I’m sure he could not have cared less about the stories and songs but he was intrigued by the other babies so that in itself was worthwhile.
I probably won’t be coming back for story time (we have books at home) but it is something to do at least once.

The staff here couldn’t be nicer and the library selection is extensive. it’s right near the metro and has several computers.

It’s an old building. It’s pretty poor on temperature control, and the side of the building that contains its meeting areas and restrooms is an odd multilevel design that is poor on accessibility and limited on space.
Beyond the need for serious renovation, it does have the virtue of being Metro-​accessible and having a cool panda bear out front to account for its proximity to the zoo. And of course, computers and free wi-​fi. I’m old enough that I remember when people went to libraries for the books, but I can’t say I’ve done that here and I imagine that others like me will be here for computing or to use the meeting spaces.

I love this library! It’s so cute. A lovely small neighborhood library. I understand they are planning upgrades. Hopefully, the coziness will be maintained! The staff is incredibly nice and helpful.

I do like the children’s programs at this library and the open playtime they have for babies and toddlers – that’s a huge plus. However, they do not have stroller accessible restrooms, so you’re stuck holding it, leaving your baby with a stranger or walking to the gas station down the street.

Even though the Cleveland Park Library isn’t much to look at and appears to be pretty dated, it’s a great place. There is ample seating and plenty of computers.
Every time I come to the library to pick up books, the staff are friendly, personable, and quite helpful. The location is also very close to the metro.

This is a great place to do trainings and book tours. It’s clean, quiet, and the staff is super friendly. It’s only one block from the metro so it’s easy to get there.
The library’s meeting rooms are available to anyone for free, so long as you’re not charging attendees. Simply go to the DCPL website and reserve your space. However, be sure to do is well in advance because the slots do fill up fast.
Additionally, it’s good to note that the library is located in a great neighborhood. There are many restaurants around so meeting up with your group before or after for a meal or drinks is an excellent way to spice up your event. I’d recommend that you contact establishments before hand to inquire about group rates or specials.

New moms or nannies: Come here Thursday afternoons for story time with your 0 – 12 mo old baby!
It wasn’t too crowded, they offer it at both 1:30 & 2:30, there was a big parachute, we sang songs, etc. Think of it as Gymboree for free! The room it was held in was large enough to accommodate strollers, should you chose to take Metro. Street parking is a bit of a walk in an old neighborhood with uneven sidewalks (best to leave the stroller in the car).
This was a totally awesome, free thing to do with my baby. I’ll be back!

I love libraries. No, I *really* love libraries. And this is an ok library. They have some book, not too many, but plenty. The librarians are nice in their awkward-​librarian fashion. The building is dated, but the DC library system is pretty cool; they even did a summer reading program for adults! And, hey, free books with very forgiving late fees. I’ll be back next week.

The service is speedy. I order my books in advance online to avoid having to find them myself.

So, not so secret confession: I love books, and anywhere you can get books. I think I might love libraries most of all, because of the sense of community and the fact that they are, blissfully, free.
This library is cute, quaint, and cozy. There’s no denying that it is a bit run-​down, but it’s clean and has bright lighting (some of it natural during the day) though it can get a bit fluorescent for me as night comes on.
The staff is always friendly and helpful and I’ve never had a problem placing a book on hold to pick up here. The selection in the library itself is a bit scanty at times but big enough to satisfy most literary appetites, I would think. If not, it’s easy enough to order what you want right to the door.
Don’t miss the small bookstore off to the left when you enter. You can find some real gems for cheap if you have some time to sort through it.

Renovated in the last year or two to make it much brighter inside. Access to all of the materials in the DCPL catalog. Sturdy wooden tables for studying. Cozy.

This library looks like it’s out of the 1960’s but I love that. Has everything you may need and great staff.

Like most libraries, this place is an interesting cross-​section of the well to do and the wretchedly poor. There aren’t many places where you can find elderly retirees arguing over late fees with librarians while the homeless surreptitiously try to sleep at the tables. The staff are generally competent while a little strange. Some can get a bit testy with patrons, but generally their testiness is well-​deserved. Most of the time the staff displays astounding patience while dealing with the public (one wonders when librarian will replace saint in the well-​worn phrase regarding patience at times).

Nerd alert! I love libraries! This particular one isn’t very fancy… or remotely fancy — the bathrooms are straight-​up raunch — but I like it anyway. I enjoy the section right when you walk in with new books and travel guides.
My insider tips for the library:
1. ALWAYS put the book you want on hold. Why in the world would you go hunting for a book at a library? Log in. Hold it. They email you when it is ready. All you do is walk in and pick it up at the front desk. Simple as a pimple.
2. Use the Freegal music downloading program. When you log in online, you can download 3 songs for free per week and it goes straight to your iTunes. There is a decent selection of artists which means in a month you too can own Lil’ Flip’s 2002 breakout cd, Undaground Legend.

(3.5 stars) The first time I walked into this library, I was kind of shocked at how small and old it looked. Since then, I’ve been back numerous times to study/​write and now I find the Cleveland Park Library to be quaint and charming. CPL is essentially one large room with a half-​wall concrete divider between the children’s section and the rest of the library. The children’s section is pretty large in proportion to the rest of the library, which is good for the kiddies but sometimes frustrating for me when I’m trying to get stuff done.
I can’t speak to the library selection since I’ve yet to borrow anything from here, but if you can’t find something, the staff will definitely help you find it somewhere else. On that note, the staff is super friendly here — nothing but a boatload of helpfulness and cheer. Trust me — I’ve sat for hours near the checkout area, and most of the staff seem to have unending patience, unlike the librarians in my high school (I shudder even thinking about them).
Two major drawbacks to this library are 1. the only tables with a power strip to plug your computer in are on the left side of the library. My power cord is pretty short so if someone beats me to the closest table, I have to do some finagling to get my computer cord to reach. 2. the bathrooms are disgusting. Worse than some bars at 2 AM on Saturday night. Yuck.

I went here a bunch of times in the past couple months to study for the October 2010 LSAT, so I’m going to analyze CP Library from a study venue perspective.
First thing you should know: there are some characters that frequent this place — people who talk to themselves and fart out loud and jabber on to librarians about nonsense.
Second thing you should know: Don’t ever go near the bathrooms unless you are a deadly pathogen seeking a moist space to spawn and create an epidemic. The floors are always wet. The soap dispensers don’t work. The toilets don’t flush. It’s a mess so just stay away and hold your pee pee in ’til you get home.
Other than those minor disturbances, I actually really like CP Library. The librarians, while seemingly pretty unhappy with their life choices, are for the most part, very attentive. There is ample seating and the chairs are nice and rigid, so you don’t get too comfortable and fall asleep next to a guy whose been rubbing his feet against your leg for the past hour. They also have a lot of resources and a user-​friendly computer system with nice computers and a state-​of-​the-​art printer that’s relatively cheap to print from. For the most part, it’s quiet with the occasional crazy or baby whaling away from time to time but never for long.
Overall, great place to study and a nice little library in my hood of Cleveland Park.

Walking into this library makes me feel like a little kid again. Not because I’m excited about the library or anything (even though I am), but because of the décor. Seriously, it looks straight out of the late-​eighties or early-​nineties. Even the lighting reminds me of my youth. If I were going to direct an artsy movie about the early nineties, I would ask the Cleveland Park Library for their lights so I could get the right mood lighting for my movie.
Looks aside, I love the library. They let you take books for free! And you can request any book from the DC library system, and it will be sent to any DC library for your convenience. There is a great cookbook selection in addition to the standard fiction and non-​fiction collection. And DC has a good selection of foreign language books and «Learn to Play Guitar» books. The kids section is really great. There are all sorts of chairs and tables for kids to read at, plus a computer just for child learning games. Every week there are multiple events for children, including a story hour, a film hour, and sometimes foreign language hours. I don’t have kids of my own, but I love taking my niece here for something free to do.
There is also a decent DVD selection, which is how my boyfriend caught up on the first 2 seasons of Mad Men, and an audiobook selection for long car rides. The library also has a website where you can download e-​books for your e-​reader. I’ve never used that feature because I love the feeling of holding actual books, and smelling real paper, but apparently e-​readers are quite popular.

As the child of a librarian, I’ve got to say that I still think this library is so weird. That said, I live less than a block from it, so I stop in a lot.
Stepping into the CP Library is basically like stepping into a time machine. It feels like 1992 in there, like they haven’t quite gotten the hang of technology. They still stamps books out, the librarians have no idea how to use the wifi, they have about a thousand VHS titles & approximately seven DVS, they often lose materials that are supposed to be on hold for you…
But this library has a certain charm, too. It’s teeny tiny, but it’s very friendly with a middle-​of-​the-​neighborhood feel. You know, it feels like a hometown hub. It’s a nice change of pace form the rest of D.C. They have books for sale for 50 cents in one corner; a goldmine of free magazines in another. The librarians sometimes waive your fees if they’re feeling friendly, and there are, of course, always a bunch of super-​cute kids around.
If you really need to get something in a hurry, go straight to MLK, but if you’ve got time to meander and let your D.C. life feel a little bit more small-​town, the Cleveland Park Library is a welcome change.