Libraries and librarians in fiction

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Libraries and librarians are recurring elements in fiction.^[1] Below is a list of notable fictional literary works, films and television episodes that are either set, either wholly or partially, in a library or in which a librarian features prominently. The year refers to the original release date of the work.

Books and comics[]

(Alphabetized by author's surname)

• In Hiro Arikawa's Japanese light novel series Toshokan Sensō (2006-ongoing) (also the title of the series' first book), the Japanese government enacts a sweeping censorship law, which spawns a decades-long conflict with forces seeking to protect libraries.
• Jorge Luis Borges' short story, "The Library of Babel" (1941), depicts a universe consisting of a library of hexagonal rooms.
• In Ray Bradbury's science fiction novel, Fahrenheit 451 (1953), books are outlawed and some rebels fight back by memorizing works, making themselves living libraries.
• Jen Swann Downey's The Ninja Librarian book series, which begins with The Ninja Librarians: The Accidental Keyhand (2014), follows a sword-wielding girl who apprentices herself to a secret society of warrior librarians whose job it is to protect writers from getting in trouble for the viewpoints and ideas they publish.
• Umberto Eco's first novel, The Name of the Rose (1980), is a murder mystery revolving around the existence of a book in the library of a Benedictine monastery.
• Stephen King's novella, The Library Policeman (September 1990^[2]), is synopsized at King's official website as follows: "When a man forgets to return some books he borrowed from the library while writing a speech, and later accidentally destroys them, the phantom librarian who lent him the books sends the library policemen to terrorize him".^[3]
• In Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, The Librarian of the Unseen University is a recurring character that first appears in 1983.
• Brandon Sanderson's young adult comic novel Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (2007) is the first in a series about a young teen with an unusual skill, who finds himself battling against a cult of evil librarians who secretly rule the world.

Films[]

(Alphabetical by series or title)

• Desk Set (1957) stars Katharine Hepburn as the head of a reference library; she and her staff are seemingly threatened with replacement by an early computer invented by Spencer Tracy's character
• Doctor Strange (2016) features the Kamar-Taj library, which houses ancient books about powerful magical lore.
• Fahrenheit 451 (1966), an adaptation of Ray Bradbury's book (see above)
• Harry Potter films (listed chronologically):
  • Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001), notably featured Hogwarts Library
  • Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), features Hogwarts Library
  • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), features Hogwarts Library
  • Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), featured Hogwarts Library
• The Breakfast Club (1985), five high school students serve a Saturday detention in the school's library
• The Day After Tomorrow (2004), a group of people takes shelter from sudden freezing cold in the New York Public Library, burning books to keep warm
• Shadow Man (2006), starring Steven Seagal, closes with a shootout at a central library
• The Librarian films (listed chronologically):
  • The Librarian: Quest for the Spear (2004), a young man is hired as a librarian, which job entails protecting the historical, and often magical, contents of a secret section of the library
  • The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines (2006)
  • The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice (2008)
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), Gandalf travels to Gondor to research in Lord Denethor's Library the Ring in Bilbo's possession
• The Name of the Rose (1986), an adaptation of Umberto Eco's novel (see above)
• Oblivion (2013) takes place in an imagined future amidst the ruins of New York, including those of the New York Public Library.
• The Time Machine (2002), a film adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel, features a holographic artificial intelligence librarian at the New York Public Library in the year 2030 and afterwards

Games[]

(Alphabetized by series or title)

• Touhou Project (2003–present), also known as Project Shrine Maiden, is a series of Japanese bullet hell shooter video games developed by the single-person Team Shanghai Alice that features at least two libraries: a private library inside the Scarlet Devil Mansion, owned by Pautcholi Knowledge, and a book store set inside the Human village of Gensokyou, Suzunaan, which sells books with an option of borrowing them for a small fee.

Television[]

(Alphabetical by series, then chronological by episode)

• The Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2001) character, librarian Rupert Giles, serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure; beneath the school library lies a secret gateway to the demon realms
• In the Doctor Who episode "Silence in the Library" (2008), Donna Noble and Tenth Doctor visit a planet which is a 51st-century book repository simply called "The Library"
• In the Doctor Who episode "The Eleventh Hour" (2010), the TARDIS swimming pool is said to be in the library
• In the Doctor Who episode "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" (2013), Clara visits the TARDIS library
• In Game of Thrones, several libraries figure prominently: in Oldtown at The Citadel, maintained by maesters; in King's Landing at the Red Keep, maintained by septons; at Winterfell (where in the season 8 "Battle of Winterfell", Arya Stark is stalked by wights), maintained by House Stark's maestre; and at the Wall at Castle Black, maintained by Maester Aemon Targaryen of the Night's Watch; additionally, Shireen Baratheon uses books from her collection at Dragonstone to teach the imprisoned Davos Seaworth to read
• The Inspector Morse episode "Twilight of the Gods" (1993), featured the Bodleian Library
• In Last of the Summer Wine (1973–2010), a Yorkshire local library was a regular feature on this longest-running comedy programme in Britain, especially in the show's early years (1973–1976), and again in the show's final years (2003–2010)
• In Person of Interest seasons 1 through 3 (2011), the enigmatic billionaire Harold Finch operates secretly from within an abandoned library.
• In the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "All Our Yesterdays" (1969), Captain Kirk, McCoy, and Spock are transported back in time by the sole remaining inhabitant of a doomed planet: the librarian Mr. Atoz
• In the Stranger Things (2016-2017), in the third episode of both seasons 1 and 2, the librarian of the Hawkins Public Library helps characters research information
• The Librarians (2014-2018) is a continuation of The Librarian film series
• In The Twilight Zone episode "The Obsolete Man" (1961), a totalitarian state, having banned books, sentences a librarian to death for the crime of being obsolete

See also[]

• Librarians in popular culture
• List of fictional librarians

References[]

Further reading[]

• Burns, Grant (1998). Librarians in Fiction. McFarland. ISBN 0786483164. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
• Flood, Alison (31 July 2014). "Libraries in fiction quiz – test your shelf knowledge". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
• Gunn, James. "Libraries in Science Fiction". Gunn Center For the Study of Science Fiction. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
• New Library World. 26. Library Supply Company. 1924.
• Stevens, Norman D. (1986). A Guide to Collecting Librariana. Scarecrow Press. pp. 57–60. ISBN 0810818744.
• The Library Association Record. 20. Library Association. 1920. pp. 186, 210–.