Dallas Public Library: Oak Lawn Branch

Small library branch that is very convenient for picking up online reservations. Place your requests on the library’s website, and they’ll send you an email when your requests are ready for pickup. There’s a section to the right of the main desk where you can pick up your items. The staff has always been wonderful. There is also a convenient drop-​off slot outside to the left of the main entrance.

I love this little library. It’s exactly what a small branch of a big library tree should look like. Located in Oak Lawn, it shares a parking lot with the Kroger, so while there is usually a lot of surrounding traffic you never really have to fight for a parking spot, and parking is always free.
When you walk in, you pass through a lobby filled with bulletin boards and flyers advertising local events. It’s a library that is in touch with and supports its community. There’s a clean public restroom and water fountain in the lobby, too.
Walk through the second set of doors and you’re in the library proper. The first thing you’ll see is are several shelves of recommended titles, carefully curated by the librarians. And speaking of librarians, they are exceptionally friendly, always greeting me with a genuine smile and hello. To your right is a great little children’s section, with child-​size tables and chairs and plenty of awesome kids’ books. Walk to your left and you’ll pass a few rows of computers, available for public use, and then finally several shelves of fiction and nonfiction. It’s all one room, so size-​wise it couldn’t be more different from the Central branch, but its offerings are diverse and well chosen.
They also recently expanded their hours to be open 7 days a week, which I truly appreciate. Give this branch a try!

I’ve always had a good experience at this library. I typically request books online and will stop by on the way home from work to pick them up once ready. There’s always ample parking thanks to the Kroger parking lot and I can usually be in and out in under 5 minutes. The staff is always helpful when I need something and the place is often packed which makes me think that this branch is providing a valuable community service.

I drove past this library for weeks and would never have known it was there if my GPS didn’t guide me to it. It’s right by the Kroger on Cedar Springs. It’s small and a bit sketchy — there are some shady folks who hang around outside. The library has a good selection of audiobooks, a couple of which I love to check out every month or so. The librarians are very helpful and friendly.

This is a small library next to the Kroger’s on Cedar Springs. I usually associate this street with S4 and the other gay clubs and was pleasantly surprised to find a library sharing the scene as well. This particular location has a fairly extensive LGBT section along with a Spanish and Vietnamese section. The people here are nice and I’ve enjoyed my time here.
The only negative would be the amount of homeless people that sometimes surrounds the library. I’ve never been harassed by anyone here though.

In my efforts to stop my brain from frying this summer I decided to open up a library card in Dallas since I just moved into the district (It’s super expensive if your not a Dallas resident). This location was closest to me so I stopped by after work one day. My first impression was not a good one: as I was walking in a policeman was walking out with a drunk homeless man who apparently had been sleeping behind the back shelves.
The library is a little smaller than some of the other Dallas libraries but has all your basics: computers, help desk, a decent size children’s section, classes (they do knitting too!), about 15 – 20 rows of books and DVDs for you to choose from and check out counter. They do specialize in books printed in Spanish and carry a much LARGER section in gay, lesbian, trans gender and bisexual related books. I would say a good fifth of the library’s shelves are for this audience (they are marked with a rainbow flag on the binder). If you can’t find what your looking for you can always put in an online request and the books will be available for you to pick up in a few days!