National Library Shelfie Day is a holiday observed on the fourth Wednesday in January. It’s a day when people, schools, libraries, and bookstores are encouraged to take a photo of their bookshelves to share their reading preferences with the world. It’s a day when you’ll arrange your books on a shelf, snap a picture, and post it on the internet for everyone to see. This is a great way to promote authors and works you love or to discover what others recommend.

The History of National Library Shelfie Day

This holiday was founded in 2014 by the New York Public Library as a way to encourage people to share the books they love. Since then, it has been celebrated across the U.S. and is sometimes known as National Library Shelfie Day.

Facts About Libraries

Since we’re discussing a holiday that encourages people to take pictures of their library bookshelves, both at home and at public libraries, we’d like to share some interesting library facts.

• Benjamin Franklin started his own lending library in 1731, requiring a subscription of 40 shillings.
• Andrew Carnegie donated $55 million between 1886 and 1919 to open over 2,500 libraries worldwide.
• The world’s largest library is the Library of Congress, with over 170 million items in its collection.
• The Library of Congress reproduces popular magazines in Braille.
• In 2020, there were over 184,000 librarians working in the U.S.
• There are over 126,000 libraries in the United States.
• New York had over 12,000 libraries as of 2021.
• The Library of Ashurbanipal in Assyria (modern-day Iraq) is considered the oldest established library, built during the 7th century B.C.
• The Osmothèque in Versailles, France, is a library of smells, housing over 3,200 scents.
• Every year, over 1.3 billion people visit public libraries.

Observing National Library Shelfie Day can be as simple as arranging your books in a way that pleases you, taking a photo, and sharing it on your social media accounts with the hashtag #NationalLibraryShelfieDay. Let everyone know what you’re reading and help spread the word about the books and authors you enjoy.