Literature
Oodi is one of 38 branches of Helsinki City Library and part of the Helmet library network. Oodi’s lending collection is mostly located on the third floor in Book Heaven. Our staff is happy to help with the use of the library, give tips for new reading and guide you in information search.
Book Heaven
Book Heaven on the third floor is a reader’s paradise where most of Oodi’s lending collection is located. You can relax on the sofas under the trees, browse through magazines, read books or even play board games with friends. In the summer, you can admire amazing views over Töölönlahti Park and the city centre from the Citizens’ Balcony. Oodi utilises robotics, which you can familiarise yourself in the form of the AGVs (automated guided vehicles) that bustle around here and there.
Collection
Oodi’s collection includes about 100,000 items available to borrow. There is material for children, young people and adults in almost 20 languages. Most of the material is located on the third floor in Book Heaven. From Oodi’s first floor, you can grab best sellers and paperbacks with a short loan period.
Oodi hosts a large collection of sheet music, an extensive collection of comics and many different console and board games. In Book Heaven, you will also find the Rainbow Shelf, which offers literature and films related to sexual and gender minorities. The material for young people is placed in a central location next to the Rainbow Shelf.
All Oodi’s newspapers and periodicals are to be found in Book Heaven. In addition to traditional newspapers and magazines, we also have plenty of newspaper tablets, which you can use to access digital provincial papers and thousands of foreign ones.
If you don’t find the item that you want in Oodi’s Book Heaven, you can reserve it from other Helmet libraries in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area: at your disposal are 3.4 million works and a comprehensive e-library.
Oodi’s languages
As in all the libraries in Helsinki, the basic languages of the Oodi collection are Finnish, Swedish and English. There is a wide range of literature, both fiction and non-fiction, in these three languages. Oodi also has a small collection of books for adults and children in all the three Sámi languages spoken in Finland: Northern Sámi, Inari Sámi and Skolt Sámi. The largest language in the collection is Northern Sámi.
In addition to the national languages and English, Oodi has a foreign language collection at the south end of Book Heaven. This collection consists of 19 different languages, including all the main European languages and the most widely spoken foreign languages in Helsinki. The Nordic languages Norwegian and Danish, as well as Ukrainian, have been added to the collection as well.
More foreign-language books are available at the Multilingual Library located in Helsinki’s main library in Pasila. The multilingual collection includes books for children, young people and adults in more than 80 languages. You can use the Multilingual Library with a Helmet library card. You can also reserve books from the Multilingual Library to be picked up at any Helmet library.
Reserving, borrowing, returning
Oodi’s reservation shelves are located on the third floor in Book Heaven. You can pick up your reserved material from the shelf yourself. Reservations are located conveniently right next to the escalator.
Self-service points are available on the first and third floor of Oodi.
Oodi’s self-service returning point is located on the first floor, opposite the entrance to Kansalaistori Square.
If you need help in reserving, picking up, borrowing or returning works, our staff will be happy to help!
Advice and information service
Our staff will help you in using the library services. There is an information point on each of the three floors of Oodi, where you can find staff. We assist clients in looking for the material or information they need. We provide guidance for independent search for information and advice on using the databases. If the material in question cannot be found in the libraries of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, you can make a request for an interlibrary loan. We provide guidance on using the library services and searching for information for groups.
Literary events and book clubs
Oodi is a house of literature and it is also reflected in the event offering. Different literary events and book clubs are organised at Oodi throughout the year, which are open to all. Adult literary events are held at the southern end of Book Heaven, on the Saarikoski rug. You can find up-to-date information on events in Oodi’s event calendar.
Would you like to organise an open reading circle in Oodi? Write to us at oodi.aikuiset@hel.fi