Narva Keskraamatukogu

Narva is a city with a special history and location. At the river of Narva it is the border city between Estonia/European Union and Russia. The visible reminder of this unusual location are the two historical fortresses on both sides of the river. With the population of about 50 000 Narva is the third biggest city in Estonia. Over 90 percent of inhabitants are Russian speaking. The building of Narva Keskraamatukogu (Narva Central Library) with four floors is from 1987, the period Estonia still was a part of Soviet Union. On the first floor there is The American Space in Narva (even referred to as the American Center). This is the biggest of the four American Centers in Estonia. The center has a close cooperation with the library and offers for example a modern Media Lab and variety of programs. The library premises are spacious but worn-out and have different departments for adults, youth and children. The versatile collection is mainly in Russian and Estonian. There are meeting rooms and art gallery in the building. Outside the library there is a box where customers can collect reserved books. The speciality during the summer is that children who have read a book can collect one ice cream in the library.  FOUR stars: Very good