Vaulted Ceilings and Well-Stocked Stacks

11 September 2023

Vaulted Ceilings and Well-Stocked Stacks

It turns out the ideal, for me at least, isn’t a room of one’s own: it’s a room of one’s own in a residential library and also a desk in said library’s nineteenth-century reading room. A blog by writer Laura Evans

…
An alcove of your own with Margarita Gokun Silver

2 June 2023

An alcove of your own with Margarita Gokun Silver

“I came to Gladstone’s Library to finish the first draft of a play (hence the obsessive play reading), and by the end of my stay, I had all ninety-eight pages of it written, typed, and sent out for an initial read to those of my writer friends who don’t mind an occasional typo. I have never in my life been this productive.”

…
Gladstone, Geology, and Genesis in the 1880s

2 March 2023

Gladstone, Geology, and Genesis in the 1880s

‘William Ewart Gladstone, not known for a conspicuous interest in geology, nonetheless starred in one of the period’s last prominent squabbles over the scientific accuracy of the Book of Genesis’.

A blog post by archives researcher Dr Richard Fallon (Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellow, University of Birmingham) 

…
A View from the Audience

13 February 2023

A View from the Audience

Welcome to Gladstone’s Library – a haven of respite in a busy life. Train to Chester, bus to Hawarden, such a warm greeting at the door. By Jill Courtnell 

…
Lighting the fire

16 January 2023

Lighting the fire

“Around me scurry other writers, presumably of every discipline, each entirely wrapped in our own private creative fury. Table lamps illuminate every desk, so each warm glow seems to hold a discrete weather system of intense concentration.”

A blog by Writer in Residence Sophie Rickard

…
Christmas Letter From the Warden

16 December 2022

Christmas Letter From the Warden

The Christmas Newsletter this year is a chance for me to say thank you to you all for your support and commitment to the Library.

…
Ancient English Christmas Carols

7 December 2022

Ancient English Christmas Carols

In this blog we’d like to highlight an item and writer from the collection, Ancient English Christmas carols, 1400-1700, collected by Edith Rickert

(by James, Reading Room Assistant)

…
Being Together Alone - by author Guy Stagg

2 December 2022

Being Together Alone - by author Guy Stagg

I knew from the start where I wanted to sit…  So, each day I made sure I was the first person to arrive, occupying the spot before anyone else could claim it.

…
Dyslexia Awareness Week 2022 Part Two - Using the Reading Rooms

6 October 2022

Dyslexia Awareness Week 2022 Part Two - Using the Reading Rooms

British Dyslexia Association Dyslexia Week 2022 is this week! It runs until Sunday 9th October, with the theme of ‘Breaking Through Barriers’. 

Using the Reading Rooms if you have Dyslexia. Part two of a two-part series by James. 

…
Dyslexia Awareness Week 2022 Part 1 - Working With Dyslexia

6 October 2022

Dyslexia Awareness Week 2022 Part 1 - Working With Dyslexia

British Dyslexia Association Dyslexia Week 2022 is this week! It runs until Sunday 9th October, with the theme of ‘Breaking Through Barriers’. 

Having dyslexia and working in a library could seem a bit of a contradiction – after all, one of the best-known symptoms of dyslexia is a difficulty with spelling, reading, and writing. However, Reading Room Assistant James has other opinions…

Part one of a two-part series by James. 

…