Libraries and librarians in fiction

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

• 2014 – The Ninja Librarians: The Accidental Keyhand. The first in Jen Swann Downey's series of books about 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.
• 2007 – Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians. The first in Brandon Sanderson's series of young adult comic novels about a young teen with an unusual skill who finds himself battling against a cult of evil librarians who secretly rule the world.
• 2006 (ongoing) – Toshokan Sensō is a Japanese light novel series by Hiro Arikawa (and the title of the first book in the series). When the Japanese government enacts a sweeping censorship law, a decades-long conflict ensues with forces seeking to protect libraries.
• 1983 (first appearance) – The Librarian of the Unseen University is a recurring character in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series.
• 1980 – The Name of the Rose. Umberto Eco's first novel is a murder mystery revolving around the existence of a book in a Benedictine monastery's library.
• 1953 – Fahrenheit 451. In Ray Bradbury's science fiction novel, books are outlawed. Some rebels fight back by memorizing works, making themselves living libraries.
• 1941 – "The Library of Babel", a short story by Jorge Luis Borges, depicts a universe consisting of a library of hexagonal rooms.

Films

• 2016 - Doctor Strange features the Kamar-Taj library, which houses ancient books about powerful magical lore.
• 2009 – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, featured Hogwarts Library.
• 2008 – The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice
• 2006 – The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines
• 2006 – Shadow Man, starring Steven Seagal. This film closes with a shootout at a central library.
• 2005 – Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, featured Hogwarts Library.
• 2004 – The Librarian: Quest for the Spear. A young man is hired as a librarian; the job entails protecting the historical, and often magical, contents of a secret section of the library.
• 2004 – The Day After Tomorrow. A group of people take shelter from sudden freezing cold in the New York Public Library, burning books to keep warm.
• 2002 – The Time Machine, a film adaptation of H. G. Wells's novel, features a holographic artificial intelligence librarian at the New York City public library in the year 2030 and afterwards.
• 2002 – Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, featured Hogwarts Library.
• 2001 – Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, notably featured Hogwarts Library.
• 2001 – The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, in which Gandalf travels to Gondor to search in Lord Denethor's Library about the Ring in Bilbo's possession.
• 1986 – The Name of the Rose, an adaptation of Eco's novel (see above).
• 1985 – The Breakfast Club. Five high school students serve a Saturday detention in the school's library.
• 1966 – Fahrenheit 451, an adaptation of Ray Bradbury's book (see above).
• 1957 – Desk Set 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.

Television

• 2016-2017 - In the third episode of both seasons one and two of Stranger Things, the librarian of the Hawkins Public Library assists characters in researching information.
• 2011 – In the first three seasons of Person of Interest, the enigmatic billionaire Harold Finch operates secretly from within an abandoned library.
• 2010 – In the Doctor Who episode The Eleventh Hour, Clara Oswald ends up hiding in the library of the TARDIS. Clara was to visit the TARDIS library again, in the 2013 episode Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS.
• 2008 – In the Doctor Who episode Silence in the Library, Donna Noble and the Doctor visit a planet which is a 51st-century book repository simply called 'The Library'.
• 1997-2001 – In the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Rupert Giles, a librarian, serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure. Beneath the school library lies a secret gateway to the demon realms.
• 1993 – Inspector Morse episode "Twilight of the Gods", featured the Bodleian Library.
• 1973-2010 - A Yorkshire local library was a regular feature on the longest-running comedy programme in Britain, Last of the Summer Wine, especially in the show's early years (1973-1976), and again in the show's final years (2003–2010).
• 1969 – Star Trek: The Original Series episode "All Our Yesterdays". Captain Kirk, McCoy and Spock are transported back in time by the sole remaining inhabitant of a doomed planet: the librarian Mr. Atoz.
• 1961 – The Twilight Zone episode "The Obsolete Man". A totalitarian state, having banned books, pronounces a death sentence on a librarian for the crime of being obsolete.

See also

• List of fictional librarians

References

Further reading

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