A Tube-Style Map Of London Libraries

M@
By M@ Last edited 6 months ago
A Tube-Style Map Of London Libraries
The Bookground map is a tube style map with local libraries marked

The London Bookground Map brings together 350 London libraries in one tube-map-style graphic.

Do you know where your nearest libraries are? This map should help. It shows the connections between 350 of the capital's book hubs — from famous collections like the British Library, the London Library and the Wiener Holocaust Library, to the wide network of local community libraries and specialist libraries. What's more, it's done in the form of a tube map.

A tube map of libraries
The full map.

The Bookground Map is the work of Helen Ilus, who previously wowed us with the Greenground Map of London parks and open spaces. It's clear that Helen has put a huge amount of research and time into this new map, which not only includes 350 libraries, but also provides information about their facilities and how to get between them.

An index of London libraries.
An index helps you find each library, and also gives information on facilities.

Libraries with common themes are connected by lines named after relevant figureheads. So the National Poetry Library is on the Shakespeare line, for example, and the Seacole line will take you to the Wellcome Library of healthcare.

In an era of austerity and council cuts, our local libraries need all the support and attention they can get. The Bookground Map is a beautiful, bookish boost to these precious spaces. It's the perfect gift for the London bibliophile in your life.

The Bookground Map is available now for £12. All images (c) Helen Ilus.

Last Updated 20 September 2023