The Guardian ran a lovely little piece over the weekend about The Lit & Phil (a.k.a .The Literary & Philosophical Society). It flagged up this Newcastle Library as a wonderful example of a library which has retained its traditional aura as a sort of home outside your home – a place “where you are implicitly trusted”, where you can wander, think, discuss and be part of a rich environment and warm community. Read the article Beguiled by the Lit & Phil.

Besides Neil Tennant (the Lit & Phil member who has been singing – not literally I hasten to add – its praises) we can reveal that the bestselling American crime-writer Laurie R King, author of the acclaimed Mary Russell & Sherlock Holmes series, is another big fan.  She says of the place:

“This year for the US National Library Week I asked my readers to describe their fantasy libraries.  Some were fantasies indeed (an ocean liner of books; a building with a tree at its core) but most of them had certain clear requirements: a clever and friendly staff; wood walls; comfortable chairs; a cozy fireplace; and above all, the smell of books.  I haven’t seen the Lit & Phil’s fireplace yet, but in every other way it is, without a doubt, My Fantasy Library.”

Laurie R King will be speaking and signing copies of her books at the library this summer on her UK book tour, to celebrate the release of The Language of Bees and The God of the Hive, and rerelease of The Beekeeper’s Apprentice on Monday 2nd August, 7pm.

So if any of you want an excuse to explore the cherished venue that is The Lit & Phil, wait till August 2nd and you might very well bump into a Pet Shop Boy, or at the very least discover a wonderful world of Holmesian mysteries post-Conan Doyle.

Chiara Priorelli, Publicity & Online Marketing Manager