About the Library

Contact Details

Christchurch City Libraries
work PO Box 1466,
Christchurch 8140,
New Zealand.
workp: +64-3-941-7923
urlw: christchurchcitylibraries.com

Add to your contacts

Our Events

Collections

This page lists all the major collections and types of resources held in our libraries. It is in alphabetical order.

Unavailability of collections

While some of our collections, or parts of our collections are unavailable due to library closures, we have online options and temporary arrangements in place. We are updating information on the individual collection page. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Adult literacy

See English Language Skills

Aotearoa New Zealand Centre

The Aotearoa New Zealand Centre collects both contemporary and historical material, in a variety of formats, about New Zealand, and in particular about the Canterbury region. It is both a research and a heritage resource and includes several specialised collections. Material held in this collection is not available for loan.

Archives

A collection of archives of local organisations, ephemera, manuscripts, oral history and photographs.

Art collection

Christchurch City Libraries has a policy of enhancing its library buildings with artworks.

Audiobooks & talking books

We have a substantial range of books you can listen to on CD and a small number of MP3 CDs, tapes and Playaway audiobooks. Audiobooks can also be downloaded through OverDrive.

  • You can restrict your searches of our catalogue to only show results for a talking books by using the material type drop-down box on the catalogue search page.
  • To find Playaway audiobooks, keyword search using 'Playaway'; subject search by 'Audiobooks'; title or author search.
  • To find MP3 CD audiobooks, keyword search using 'MP3 CD'. A subject search by 'Talking books' will display everything we have in CD, cassette and MP3 CD format. Some MP3 CD talking books offer a M4b disc which can be used to download on to iPods and iPhones. These talking books can be found by using 'M4b CD' as a keyword search.

See also our services that bring the library to you.

Bestseller Collection

This collection aims to provide a selection of the biggest selling fiction, non-fiction, CD and DVD titles of the moment.

Biographies

All libraries have a wide range of biographies.

Butler Collection

A collection of books by and about Samuel Butler (1835-1902).

CDs

The Central Library has an extensive collection of CDs covering classical, rock jazz, film, musicals, ethnic, country, and more. Community Libraries also have a good range of music CDs.

CD Roms

As well as books and magazines our libraries have CD Roms that you can borrow for free.

Children’s collections

All our libraries have a wide range of children’s books, music and story cassettes, CDs, CD Roms, magazines, DVDs and videos. Some libraries have posters for borrowing. Books for special situations, such as birth, growing up, first experiences, feelings and being differently-abled are available in the Special Collection at each library.

Computers in the library

We offer access to personal computers in our libraries for accessing the Source and internet resources as well as word processing, spreadsheets and other common tasks. We also offer wireless access to the internet at many libraries.

DVDs

Latest DVDs are held in the bestseller collections and include classic and contemporary films, comedy, musicals, etc.

Older movies, documentaries and specialist material, art house movies, classic movies, television shows may be in our general DVD collection. Children’s DVDs are also available at all of our libraries.

E-books — electronic books

E-books are available to library members through the Source. Please note not all e-books are downloadable. OverDrive offers downloadable e-books. Other vendors include Safari, Credo Reference, Tumblebooks, Gale Virtual Reference Library and Oxford Reference.

Read more about e-books.

English language skills

Adult Literacy and ESOL resources. This is a special collection of books to help people develop their reading and writing skills. It is also used by new settlers learning English.

Family History Collection

A collection of genealogical material such as transcripts of baptism, burial, headstone and marriage records, directories, electoral rolls, and microform resources containing information about New Zealanders and people coming to New Zealand.

Fiction

All our libraries hold extensive fiction collections for adults, children and young adults. Fiction is also held in other formats such as talking books and large print and in languages other than English.

  • Fiction books are shelved in alphabetical order by author’s surname
  • In some libraries the fiction is shelved alphabetically in categories e.g. mystery, adventure

Games

PlayStations and PC games available at New Brighton Library, PlayStations and X-Boxes at South Christchurch and Parklands Libraries.

Godley Gifts

The Godley Gifts is a collection of essays, watercolours and the children’s story Seadrift, by early Canterbury settler James FitzGerald. In 2007 a limited edition, finely-bound, facsimile set was produced in Christchurch. On 16 December 2009, one of these sets, appropriately number 59, was gifted to Christchurch City Libraries by the J. R. Godley Trust in honour of the 150th anniversary of the libraries’ founding in 1859.

Government publications

A comprehensive range of Central and Local Government publications including Parliamentary papers, legislation, statistics, official reports, annual plans and annual reports, district schemes and other planning documents.

Information files

Some libraries have supplementary and topical material is kept in files which may be photocopied, or in some cases borrowed over night.

Internet

We offer free internet at all our libraries except the Mobile Library and wireless access to the internet at many libraries.

Jigsaws

Jigsaws are available for exchange at the following libraries: Akaroa, Fendalton, Halswell, Little River, Linwood, New Brighton, Redwood, and Shirley. Hornby Library jigsaws are held at the Community Care shop in the same building. The Community Care shop is open Monday to Friday, 9:30am – 3:30pm.

Large print

A range of fiction and non-fiction titles is available in large print. You can restrict your searches of our catalogue to only show results for a Large Print by using the material type drop-down box on the catalogue search page.

Magazines

Our magazine collection covers the spectrum, from Aero Modeller to Vogue. All libraries have borrowing collections, whilst most of the reference magazines are held at Central Library. A wide range of magazine content can also be accessed online through the Source.

Māori

Material on Māori subjects or which present a Māori perspective on a subject, or by authors who identify as Māori and Māori language publications.

Maps

MapContemporary and historical maps of Christchurch and Canterbury, current New Zealand topographical maps, street maps, National Park and track maps, soil & geological maps and nautical charts for local areas are held in the Aotearoa New Zealand Centre.

Margaret Mahy Collection

A collection of New Zealand children’s and young adult books from the nineteenth century to the present day named in honour of the New Zealand author and former Christchurch City Libraries’ Children’s Librarian, Margaret Mahy.

Marsh Collection

A collection of books by and about Ngaio Marsh (1895-1982). It includes translations of most of her works into other languages.

Merton Collection

A collection of books, pamphlets and papers by and about Thomas Merton (1915-1968), a Trappist monk. Merton’s father was a New Zealander and two of his aunts lived in Christchurch. Donations in 1969 by the aunts, Agnes and Beatrice Merton, formed the basis of the collection to which the Library has added significant new publications since.

Mother tongue

See World Languages

Motor Manuals

A comprehensive collection of motor manuals is available online from the Chilton Library. Manuals for cars, commercial vehicles, motor cycles, outboard motors, small engines, etc are available for borrowing and reference. Central Library (currently closed) has a wide range of motor manuals. New Brighton, Shirley, Fendalton and Papanui also have collections.

Music

NZ MusicThe Central Library has an extensive collection of classical music scores and sheet music. See CDs for recorded music.

Nautical Collection

The Nautical Collection is a small donated collection held at Lyttelton Library, comprising of items dedicated to seafaring life, ships and shipping. It is mainly non fiction with a few fiction titles.

New Brighton Local History Collection

Newspaper and other clippings and photographs that have been collected over the past 10 years.

Newspapers

A selection of major New Zealand newspapers is held across the network. In addition Central Library holds most New Zealand regional newspapers and a selection of overseas newspapers. A complete run of the Christchurch Press is kept on microfilm in the Aotearoa New Zealand Centre and other major Christchurch newspapers dating from 1851 are also held.

Newton Collection

A small collection of mountaineering books, pamphlets and serials donated by Henry Newton.

Ngāi Tahu Collection / Ngā Rākau Teitei e Iwa

Material relating to the Ngāi Tahu claim and general books about Ngāi Tahu or written by Ngāi Tahu authors.

Non-fiction

All our libraries hold non-fiction collections for adults, children and young adults. Non-fiction is also held in other formats such as talking books and large print.

The Peace Library

Christchurch City Libraries has a large collection of material about the Peace Movement in New Zealand. The collection of books and magazines is held in trust by Christchurch City Libraries for the Peace Foundation and the Women’s International League for Peace. Archival material is held by the Macmillan Brown Library, University of Canterbury, and other material is held by the Canterbury Museum.

  • Held in the Library Store
  • Material held in this collection is available for loan with the exception of some magazines which must be viewed in the Aotearoa New Zealand Centre
  • Search our catalogue for items in the Peace Library

Photographs

PhotoOur photographs collection has been sourced from newspapers, archives, books, reports and donations from private collections. Photographs can be searched for through our catalogue. A substantial number have been digitised and are available on this web site.

Playaway

See Audiobooks and talking books.

The Source

We subscribe to a wide range of online resources which provide access to articles from thousands of magazines and professional journals, newspapers and encyclopedias and other reference works. Most of these are available online to library members with PINs but some can only be used in our libraries.

Sky TV

Selected channels available at Fendalton, South Christchurch and New Brighton Libraries.

  • More information about Sky TV

Standards

New Zealand Standards (NZS), and joint Australian/New Zealand Standards (AS/NZS) are available online at any of our libraries. We also have a large collection of Australian Standards (AS), British Standards (BS) and other international standards in the Central Library which is closed at present.

Statistics

  • All statistical publications originating from Statistics New Zealand including census information
  • Other statistical reports produced by government departments including statistics from the National Health Information Service
  • Held in the Aotearoa New Zealand Centre

Talking books

See Audiobooks and talking books.

Telephone directories

New Zealand telephone directories are held at all libraries, except the mobile library. The Central Library holds a range of overseas telephone books and trade and business directories. Many directories are also available online.

Theses

Theses which complement and add depth to the collection such as theses in geography, history or politics with local content, artistic, literary and cultural topics which have few other printed resources, and theses which include research conducted in Christchurch or Canterbury.

Videos

The small video collection includes music, sport, educational and literary videos and is free to borrow.

Waitangi Tribunal Reports / Ngā Rīpoata o Waitangi

A collection of Tribunal reports and information on the claims settlement process.

World languages

To reflect the diversity of new settlers to Christchurch we now have growing collections of fiction and some non-fiction in Afrikaans, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Thai, Vietnamese and Russian and smaller collections in some European languages.

Young adults

Collections of fiction, non-fiction, graphic novels and magazines for young adults, are held at all libraries.