This beautiful landmark needs a visit. It's hallways are beautiful as is the main area. A wonderful gift store too. If you come straight to the library from E 41st, there are numerous wonderful bronze plates on the sidewalk with great quotes leading right up to the library worth reading.

This is a beautiful library building and quite honestly too big to visit properly in the time we had. Lots to explore and enjoy, including the Original Pooh bear which I though deserved more of an exhibition with additional books and illustrations. A great stop before or after the Empire State Building as it’s literally just down the road and it’s free so nothing to lose by trying it.

The building is impressive and there is a small, free museum showing the first Gutenberg Bible as well as letters from Columbus with some drawing and painted scenes. There is also a Borges manuscript and many more items to enjoy. You won't see the main reading room with the wood panelling as it is not open to the public to maintain the quiet & calm atmosphere allowed to readers & students but the entire building is a jewel.

The architecture of the building is amazing. It is easy to go in and out. However, I didn't see many books (these are in a more modern building across the street). Also you can't go into the reading rooms. It is just for people doing research. The point of the visit is to tour the build that itself is gorgeous and see the instalation they have at the moment

I hadn't planned to visit the public library but I walked past it and thought it might be worth a quick look... I ended up spending a couple of hours there. The free audio tour on the Bloomberg Connects app really adds to the experience and points out things that are probably easily missed. I particularly recommend heading to the 3rd floor to see the works of Alen MacWeeney and his portrayal of the New York metro in 1977. There is a real emphasis that the library is a place available for all to learn from and enjoy... this message has inspired me to go get a library card of my own.

How did I not know that this place was so cool?!?! We often visit Bryant Park when in NYC (great place to grab a quick dinner before show), and frequently take photos of the lions. But this was the first time we thought, hey, let's see what the inside is like. SOOOOO glad we did; the museum is amazing. It's a small selection of the library's archives, and I was frankly amazed at some of the things I got to see. It's a very "random" selection of items, from the original "Winnie the Pooh" dolls that Christopher Robin owned to letters from George Washington. Items of historical interest along with curiosities. It was free, and just so surprising. Not sure why I was surprised...shame on me! We were there late in the day, so had no chance to take the guided tour, but just the little bit of the building we saw ensures that we'll be back to do that as well. Really cool place!

This is a beautiful building. Wonderful frescoes and wood panelling. Certainly see the Renaissance inspiration. Actually free to enter which was surprising. Be respectful of those inside the library, as this is a real working library not a museum with students studying inside. Didn’t see any ghosts.

Awesome library with plenty of cool things to see. They have the original Winnie the Pooh and friends on display. The architecture is also really cool. The Rose reading room is the coolest thing but make sure to check the website for hours and tours as you can’t go inside outside of a few specific times.

The Primary, Main New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue and 42nd street (backs up on the east side of Bryant Park) is extraordinary and special. It would take all day to view the various collections and rooms and exhibits that are there. Of course, a few rooms are blocked off for use only by scholars and those doing research but the collection of rare books and manuscripts is truly special. Further a significant wall exhibit with thirty to fifty photographs of the history of the Equal Rights Amendment is really quite something to walk through, read, and learn. Also the Gutenberg Bible from the mid-1400s with its hand-inked initials is quite mind-blowing (most likely the oldest book in their collection.) And be sure to take the free audio tour and digital guide...truly special. This is one extraordinary place to spend time in NYC.

As a long time New Yorker, I sometimes forget the treasures we have—I hadn’t been here in years, although I’m often at Bryant Park next to the library. So this fall I went a couple of times and it was SO WORTH IT! You’re visiting? Got places to go? Ok, pose just go in the lobby, marvel at the fancy gilded age architecture, curving staircases, high ceilings, (the seasonal decorations are lovely, too). Then go right in to the permanent treasures exhibit. Gutenberg bible? Check. Declaration of Independence? Check. But so much more—chunks of NY theatre history, Harry Houdini, raggedy little Winnie the Pooh (yes, the real one). Tiny books, richly illustrated Medieval bibles…just such riches. They funnel you out into the new library shop, which also has a crowded little lunch bar. The shop has lots of thoughtfully chosen New York/Booklover gifts, definitely worth checking out. That’s it, use the bathrooms and leave! Or wander through the upper halls, marvel at the main reading rooms, take a free tour, whatever (I’ve also gone for research in the genealogy room—you don;t need a library card to access it—as well as requested an obscure book from the arts collection—-lovely, quiet room w nobody in it, book arrives 40 minutes later—the book wasn’t that great but I read other books they had there and appreciated the quiet).