The Library collection is bilingual with resources in English and French.
Click on the image for a map
of the Library collections
Adult fiction is located on the Main floor (2nd floor), except for mysteries, science fiction and short stories in English which are on the third floor. Large print materials are also on the Main floor.
The adult collection of non-fiction books is housed mainly on the third floor except for the books about art and architecture (with call numbers 700 - 779) which are found in the North Findlay room on the Main floor. The biographies, young adult books and comic book collections are also located on the third floor.
The Library subscribes to over 300 magazines and newspapers. The current year's issues are housed in the periodicals area near the main circulation desk. Back issues are stored in the compact shelving of the Reference section.
The adult collection is grouped
as follows:
Reference
collection
The Reference collection is located on the Main floor of the Library in
the new wing. This collection offers encyclopedias, dictionaries, directories,
atlases, indexes, subject guidebooks, university calendars, annual reports.
Who's Who, buying guides and almanacs as well as statutes, bills and the
debates from the Federal and Quebec Provincial governments and various
governmental departments. Since these materials do not go out on loan,
they are always available for consultation in the Library.
The Reference collection includes:
- Government publications, federal and provincial (Quebec)
- Magazines and newspapers, back issues in paper copy or on microfilm
- Magazine and newspaper online databases
- Reference books (encyclopedias, dictionaries etc.)
Children's
collection
The children's collection is housed on the first floor next to the Audio-visual
section. Encyclopedias and subject guides are available on CD-Rom and
on the Internet workstations. The Library also has an historical collection
of children's books.
The children's collection includes:
- Picture books
- Fiction
- Non-Fiction
- Comics
- Magazines
- Reference books
- Games, puzzles and toys
Audio-visual collection
The audio-visual section is located on the first floor next to the Children's
section.
It complements our collection of books by offering alternative media of:
- Audio-books on compact disc (fiction and non-fiction)
- Audio-cassettes (fiction and non-fiction)
- Compact discs
- Language courses on tape
- DVDs and Videos (informational, documentaries, feature films, performance films)
- Playaways - portable MP3 player (fiction, nonfiction, language courses)
Special Collections
Children's
Historical Collection
A research collection of over 1,200 books dating from the late eighteenth
century to the the present. All the titles are in the Library catalogue
and are available for consultation on request.
Government
Documents
The Westmount Library is a selective depository for federal government
documents. We have reports, the debates and laws of both the federal and
provincial governments and Statistics Canada documents.
Pamphlet files
We have over 1000 files of newspaper clippings, pamphlets and brochures.
Topics include information on Montreal, travel and current events.
Postcard
Collection
The Postcard Collection was established in 1974 to commemorate the Library's
75th birthday with the purpose of preserving a pictorial history of Quebec
since the 1890's. There are 13,000 catalogued cards of Quebec, 13,000
cards on Canada, and the Sabourin collection of postcards. Photocopies
of the cards are available for consultation at the Reference Desk and
the originals may be viewed by appointment (989-5355).
Reserve
Collection
Books in the Library's
Reserve Collection are older works in fragile condition, and are not available
for borrowing. They may be viewed in the Library and may be photocopied
only with the approval of Library Management.
Westmount
Collection
The Westmount collection
has city by-laws, annual reports, telephone directories back to 1843,
the local newspaper from 1939 to the present, clipping files on events
and people, as well as books, reports and pamphlets on the community.
The Westmount Examiner has been indexed from 1981 to 2005. From 2005 onwards, articles from the Westmount Examiner can be accessed on the Eureka.cc database.This
collection is located in the Reference Department.
Criss-Cross Directories
The Westmount Public Library has an extensive collection of street and
telephone finders for the City of Greater Montreal and Surrounding Areas.
Beginning with 1843, you can search by name, street, or business. From
1964 to the present, you can also search by telephone number. Located
in the Reference Department, these directories are on the open shelves
and can be consulted freely. The current edition is kept at the Reference
Desk.