Mieskaja Biblioteka Publiczna w Katowicach, Filia No. 13 and No. 35

Katowice is an industrial city with around 300 000 inhabitants. It is also a cultural centre in the Silesian Voivodeship (Slesian Province). The public library network consists of a lot of units (about 30) all named by numbers, like Branch Number (No.) 23 or Branch No. 7. There is not any central public library downtown with service for all customer groups. Instead there are two small libraries within some hundred meters distance from each other. They both serve adults. One of them, Branch No. 13, includes literature in Polish.   The other one, Branch No. 35, is responsible for foreign literature. Both libraries are cramp and worn-out. There are hardly any seats for reading not to talk about working together or to be social. The book collection is acceptable as a total, but it looks quite old. There are also audiobooks. These libraries are really only for lending. The opening hours are quite long. There are not any services for children in the city centre. One star: Poor.