Give one million books this Christmas
Membership of The London Library is the perfect Christmas present to give to the book-lover in your life! Members can browse and borrow from our unique collection of over one million books on 17 miles of open shelves; including history, literature, art, and much more, plus access thousands of periodals, newspapers and magazines. They also have access to extensive online resources which can be used from anywhere in the world.
With an unforgettable building in beautiful St. James's Square, with beautiful rooms and spaces to read, write and think, The London Library is a magical place that has been at the heart of literature for over 175 years.
London Library members have access to:
- An incredible collection of 1 million books, with 6,000 more being added every year, almost all of which are available to browse on open shelves and borrow;
- Subscriptions to thousands of journals and periodicals and a wide range of digital resources;
- Beautiful and practical spaces in which to read and write, open six days a week with late night openings;
- Invitations to special events and discounts on our popular public speaker events;
- Expert staff, always on hand to assist with enquiries;
- A postal loans service anywhere within Europe.
View all of the benefits of membership.
All membership types may all be given as gifts and during the Christmas period they will include a London Library bag and postcard for your gift message and will be wrapped with a Christmas ribbon.
Make Christmas special with gift membership to The London Library.
Our Collection - Making Space for the Future
As previously reported, The London Library’s shelf capacity is effectively full, with occupancy in many areas running at 92%- 95%. Space is so tight in places that it is becoming difficult to house and manage the existing bookstock, and we are rapidly running out of room to develop the collection with the new acquisitions that are so fundamental to keeping the Library up-to date. Each year we are adding around 6,000 new books and require 180m of shelf space each year to house these.
A detailed Collections Review was carried out in 2017 helping identify how we might prioritise management of stock and relieve shelf space. With the building at capacity we are now considering removing some material that no longer meets members’ needs, is available online, and is not core to our collection strengths. This includes some bibliographic materials which are now freely available online and for which print subscriptions ceased some time ago; Hansard which is available online, and some foreign, incomplete government publications; and duplicate monographs where we hold two or more copies which we can reduce without content being lost. It is anticipated that we will remove some material during December.
The Collections team in the Library are investigating the route through which some of these materials can best be removed. In some cases, there may be opportunities for sale or donation to other libraries/collections/book dealers; in others, where none of these options are viable or the condition of the books is too poor to warrant sale, disposal by recycling may be required.
Staff in the Issue Hall will be able to assist anyone in using electronic alternatives.
None of the decisions about reorganising our collection are being taken lightly but by freeing up shelf space we can continue to develop the Library’s outstanding collection and ensure it is housed and managed appropriately.
London Library Remote Access Membership
Apply now and get 15% off our great online offer!*
Remote Access membership is perfect for anyone that would like full access to the London Library's online resources and postal loan service. And with so many of us working from home at the moment it’s an ideal way of exploring a world class collection of reading and research material.
Our extensive online resources bring together millions of pages from thousands of journals, periodicals, newspapers and databases. They comprise over 25,000 fully searchable information sources.
Just use code 15Remote at checkout on our website before midnight on 15 May. With this offer, Remote Access membership costs around £20 a month, or £220 when paying by annual Direct Debit.
Our Online Resources
Academic resources
Through JSTOR you can access a huge digital library of academic journals, books, primary sources and periodicals. London Library membership provides free access to most of JSTOR's content, which subscribed to separately normally costs around £200 per annum.
Members also have access to a vast collection of historic research material through hundreds of publications including The Bibliography of British and Irish History, British History Online, the Proceedings of the Old Bailey 1674-1913, the Survey of London and The British Newspaper Archive, plus much more.
Newspaper archives and historic publications
As a London Library member you’ll be able to use the full digital archives of The Times, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, and The Observer, plus the extensive British Newspaper Archive, the 17th-18th Century Burney Newspapers Collection and more!
This enormous range of archival material is perfect for researching from home - whether you’re working on an academic research project, writing a novel or working on your family history.
Our subscriptions to historic publications - such as the Illustrated London News and the Country Life archive - provide a wealth of information, much of it beautifully illustrated, that is ideal for both work and pleasure.
Literary resources
An extensive collection of literary journals and collections is available if you’re looking to stay in touch with the literary world. London Library membership gives access to titles such as the complete archive of The London Review of Books, New York Review of Books, English Poetry, The Complete Prose of T S Eliot archive, Early English Books Online and many more.
Art
Our online art resources offer a wealth of material for art researchers and art historians. As well as access to all of the art journals available through JSTOR we also provide use of the International Bibliography of Art, Oxford Art Online and more.
Languages
The London Library’s language collection is extensive. Membership gives access to European language newspapers and publications such as Die Zeit/Literatur book reviews and Gallica: The digital library of the national library of France. We also offer Russian literature, language, history and art publications.
Online Research support
While our building is closed our Member Services team is on hand to help you get the most out of using our online services and to provide enquiry and research services by email (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). Such help may include:
- Helping you identify sources and journal articles in the e-Library relevant to your research or interest
- Guidance on how to use the online resources if you have not used them greatly before and would like assistance on how best to approach your research.
Our Book Collection and Postal Loans
Our online resources are complemented by a book collection of extraordinary range and depth. The London Library has over one million books dating from 1700 to the present day, almost all of which can be borrowed when the Library building re-opens.
We have now resumed our postal loans service - you can continue borrowing books by ordering them online and we will then post them to you free of charge. We would normally charge for packing and postage but we have, for now, decided to waive those charges. We have also decided to extend every member’s existing borrowing limit by five books for the duration of the current Library closure, again, free of charge.
Until further notice members are asked to avoid posting books back to us or putting them through the letterbox in the front door.
Special Offer
Join before midnight on 30 April and get 15% off Remote Access membership!* Just use code 15Remote at checkout on our website.
With this offer, Remote Access membership costs around £20 a month, or £220 when paying by annual Direct Debit.
Join online today and become a member of one of the world’s great literary institutions
Newsletter
Not ready to join yet but want to hear more about special offers, news and events at the Library? Sign up to our newsletter below.
The London Library promises to respect and protect any personal data you share with us. Your information is used to administer your membership, personalise your experience of the Library and communications, and provide you with the goods or services you have requested. If you are over 18 we may, in some instances, analyse your data and obtain further publicly available data to help us make our communications more appropriate and relevant to your interests, and anticipate whether you might want to support us in the future.
You can opt-out of most communications or the ways in which we process your data by contacting This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For full details of how we collect, store, use and protect your data, see our Privacy Policy at www.londonlibrary.co.uk/privacypolicy.
*Valid for new members in their first year of membership. See all terms and conditions here.
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