Details of the activities of this service
The City Libraries Service coordinates the resources and activities of all the 13 public libraries of the city through a network system. It also helps to integrate local libraries into the network of libraries in the whole Campania Region, thanks to the opportunities offered by the national library system.
Cultural advertising activities are also carried out by organizing events and exhibitions within the libraries, thus widening the range of services offered to users and meeting the demands of local citizens who start to consider libraries as "friendly places".
Books are ordered and classified on open shelves and selected by topic. The adult area is divided into: general works - Philosophy and Pedagogy - Religion - Social Sciences - Economics and Politics - Law - Traditions and Customs - Education - Communication - Linguistics - Science - Applied Sciences - Music - Sport - Literature - History and Geography - Biography - Fiction - Local Section - Art - Magazines.
To know the location of texts users can consult catalogues where books are listed by author, topic and title. The children's section has a separate catalogue, where texts are divided into Projects and Fiction. The children's section is for children under ten years old.
Loan: All books can be borrowed from the library, with the exception of dictionaries, encyclopedias, manuals that are consulted very frequently, important books and issues of newspapers of the present year. To apply for a loan users exhibit their identity card or a similar document.
Users can borrow no more than two books for a maximum of 15 days. The return date, however, can be extended by 15 days.
Activities:
- Management, updating, cataloguing, enlarging through new acquisitions and exploitation of the book heritage of the City of Naples.
- Cultural projects aiming to foster books, creative writing, reading and the habit of using local libraries.
- Fostering local literary talents, also thanks to literary prizes awarded to authors and small publishers.
- Coordination of the internal network of city libraries, supporting the increase of collaborative activities and resources exchange between libraries
Reading Project:
Libraries organize reading groups under the surveillance of the personnel. Groups have weekly meetings, during which they read aloud and comment on significant texts of contemporary literature.
This activity is free. This encourages the further development of interest in books, promotes literatures from foreign countries and above all turns libraries into places where people can have pleasurable personal and cultural encounters.
Speaking book:
Sections dedicated to the shortsighted and the blind.
Thanks to funds provided by the Campania Region, local libraries have been equipped with BRAILLE texts and non paper resources such as audiocassettes, CDs and MP3s for the shortsighted and the blind, thus making it easier for them to access culture and information.
City libraries help to get acquainted with "Speaking Books" by setting up listening booths with recordings of interesting new publlications.
Cultural program:
Libraries organize events during the period in which the city is engaged in the cultural program of "Maggio dei Monumenti" (May, when all the monuments and museums of Naples are open to the public and many special events are organized), "Summer in Naples" and "Christmas time".
Every library in the network and the library service set up info-points to provide information about the events. To meet the needs of city areas, local institutions and associations, libraries organize exhibitions, presentations and conferences, guided tours for students of any age, throughout the school year.
City libraries and the national library service
Aiming to continuously improve services offered to users, city libraries have started to take action to allow users to access the National Library system via "shared" cataloguing, the creation of online lists of the document heritage and the city interlibrary OPAC.
By entering the SBN Area, users will be allowed to access catalogues and the loan service of every library the whole national system.