Orkney Library & Archive

Imagine we combined to form an absolute unit with magnificent balls.

A photo of a window painting of Meg and Mog. A witch on a broomstick, a cat, an owl and a moon and stars

Photos of a window painting of Meg and Mog. A witch on a broomstick, a cat, an owl and a moon

If you go down to Stromness Library today, you can see Stephanie's superbly spooktacular window painting of Meg and Mog, from the brilliant books by Helen Nicoll and Jan Pieńkowski. 🧙‍♀️🐈‍⬛🦉🧹🌙

#LoveLibraries #Halloween

A stack of books. Their spines read Tiger Tiger Burning Bright, In the Forest

s of the night.

#NationalPoetryDay #BookSpinePoetry

A collage of LEGO models on a school theme

Our #Lego display cases have been full once again this month with dozens of clever and colourful school-inspired models! 🏫📚

All made by library users using our #Lego collection. Thanks to everyone who made us a model! ❤️

Our next theme is SOMETHING SPOOKTACULAR! 🎃👻🦇🧙‍♀️🪄

Our last #OrkneyLibraryLego theme was 'Things You'd Find At School' and among all the fabulous models was a #Lego notebook and pen! Amazing work as always! ❤️

Large metallic balls sunken into the ground. In the background there are trees.

It may be the first of October but still the holiday balls keep on coming. Here's some stupendously shiny sunken balls all the way from Munich.

(try saying stupendously shiny sunken balls after some schnapps)

A photo of Orkney Library & Archive stuck onto a photo of the northern lights

Incredible Aurora Borealis in #Orkney last night so glad we stayed up late to see it

It's really real

A long library with an arched roof and rows of wooden bookshelves full of books

Ahh lovely. 🙌

Chocolate bars and Irish cream liqueur fudge from Ireland

Good morning to everyone but ESPECIALLY to Helen who came to visit yesterday and brought us some lovely sweet treats all the way from Ireland! Helen works at the library of Trinity College in Dublin which is one of the MOST BEAUTIFUL libraries in the world! We want to visit! 😍

The sun rising over a strip of land. There's a boat in the sea in the foreground. The sky is blue and orange.

Good morning everyone. This was the sun rising over Shapinsay this morning. Taken from the ferry as #BookyMcBookface sailed north to the #Orkney island of Eday. ❤️

Biographies of J.R.R. Tolkien and Agatha Christie

Mordor on the Orient Express

A large black water butt

We like big butts and we cannot lie.

This is our new water butt which will be installed out front so that we can collect rainwater to water the flowers of our new Interactive Flora Trail.

orkneylibrary.org.uk/interactive-...

A black and white school photograph from our Photographic Archive. Cropped in on the teacher who looks quite a lot like Richard Osman.

Hey @richardosman1.bsky.social when did you discover time travel and also were you a school teacher called Mr Shaw living in #Orkney in 1971?

#PhotographicArchives

So from one of the oldest libraries in the world to one of the oldest lending libraries in Scotland, (Orkney Library dates back to 1683) we were delighted to receive this wonderful gift. ❤️

A turquoise library bag from La Capitolare in Verona

Thanks to Pat for bringing us this lovely library bag all the way back from La Capitolare di Verona (the Chapter Library of Verona).
La Capitolare is one of the oldest libraries in the world to have been in continuous use, and is over 1500 years old with it's origins dating back to at least 517 AD.

No we're a bit smaug about them

A shelf of books by JRR Tolkien

Today is #HobbitDay because both Bilbo and Frodo Baggins were born on September 22nd. Normally we'd shire a hobbit pun or two but it might just feel like a tolkien gesture and we don't want to embarrass our elves. Anyway come and boromir #Tolkien books.

Arrrr

Orkney Mobile Library in Shapinsay on a Sunny Day - jigsaw puzzle (99 pieces) An online jigsaw puzzle with 99 pieces.

www.jigsawplanet.com?rc=play&pid=...

Robert Newton as Long John Silver in Disney's Treasure Island

So if it wasn't for the story of John Gow the REAL #Orkney Pirate, there would be no Captain Cleveland in Scott's The Pirate which means no Treasure Island which means no DISNEY Treasure Island which means nobody would talk like a pirate on #TalkLikeAPirateDay. 🏴‍☠️

ARRR! 🦜

Northern Lights by Sir Walter Scott

Scott based the character of Captain Cleveland on a real life pirate named John Gow who came from Stromness in #Orkney and Scott heard the story of Gow while on a visit to Orkney and Shetland in 1814 aboard the yacht Pharos with the Commissioners of Northern Light Houses. 🏴‍☠️

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

The Pirate by Sir Walter Scott

Treasure Island was written by Robert Louis Stevenson and was originally published in the 1880s. The book was heavily influenced by Sir Walter Scott's novel The Pirate which was published in 1822 and featured the character of Captain Cleveland. 🏴‍☠️

A poster for Walt Disney's Treasure Island

Did you know the reason we all think that pirates went ARRR! is because in 1950 Disney released a movie version of Treasure Island starring Robert Newton as Long John Silver, and Newton famously portrayed Silver with a West Country accent and went ARRR! a lot.

Robert Newton as Long John Silver in the 1950s Disney adaptation of Treasure Island

Ahoy, me hearties! It be #TalkLikeAPirateDay says we. So grab yer doubloons an read ye our favourite pirate thread about how an #Orkney pirate inspired the book that inspired the film that makes us go ARRR when we talk like pirates! Avast ye!🏴‍☠️

BookyMcBookface the Orkney Library Mobile Library parked at the Sanday school.

It's a grey and windy day in #Orkney
which isn't very handy 🍃🌊
but if you need some library books then
Booky's out in Sanday. 📚

When it comes to raising milk goats we've herd this book is the G.O.A.T we're not even Kidding.

A book titled Raising Milk Goats the Modern Way

Let them watch Hey Duggee on an iPad

Sadly no 😂

Do you have experience of driving a bus or a lorry but you'd rather carry books?

Would you like a job driving around #Orkney, going to schools and delivering books to people?

There's still time to apply for the job of driving #BookyMcBookface at:

myjobscotland.gov.uk/councils/ork...