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Children's browsing collection

Nourish, delight and surprise curious young minds with our wonderful new Children's browsing collection, housed in the Pauline Gandel Children's Quarter!

Reading for pleasure is an important indicator of the future success of a child. The 4000 titles in the Children's browsing collection are specially selected to appeal to young people – from babies through to tweens – to foster their early love of stories and reading. 

What's in the Children's browsing collection

  • books for all ages, from baby's first board book of The very hungry caterpillar to the full set of Harry Potter
  • bi-lingual picture books and books in languages other than English
  • Australian and Victorian books
  • Indigenous writers
  • new and emerging authors 
  • books that represent rainbow families and LGBTIQ communities. 

Because our books can't leave the Library, you can always find highly sought-after titles to read here!

We recognise that books and kids can be an unpredictable combination. Please don't worry about tidying up or putting books back on the shelves – our librarians will take care of that.

Where to find it

The Children's browsing collection is arranged by age grouping on shelves on the ground floor and mezzanine level of the Pauline Gandel Children's Quarter.

Board books, picture books, non-fiction and junior readers for children aged 0 to 8 are easily reached on the ground floor.

Fiction and non-fiction for kids 8–12 years is on the mezzanine level inside the storybook castle, accessible by stairs or lift.

Search the catalogue

You can use our catalogue to search for books in the Children's browsing collection:

  • Go to the catalogue.
  • Near the search bar is a drop-down menu whose default filter shows 'Everything except articles'. (Please note: the menu is on the right-hand side of the search bar on a desktop computer, and either below or above the search bar on a mobile device, depending which page you search from.)
  • Select the small downward arrow to open a drop-down list of other filters. 
  • Scroll to the bottom of the drop-down list to select Children's browsing collection.
  • Enter a keyword, title, author, phrase or topic into the search bar to see if it's in the Children's browsing collection.

Pauline Gandel Children's Quarter

The Children's browsing collection is housed in the Pauline Gandel Children's Quarter, supported by Gandel Foundation. It's a free, purpose-built space for children aged up to 12 years (and their parents and carers) to read, learn and play, with an associated program of activities. 

The space includes many family-friendly features including pram parking, reading nooks, baby change and toilet facilities, and food and drink permitted for babies and toddlers.

The space also hosts our programs and events for children and families – many of which are free, and don't require booking.