Kansas City Library: The Parking Garage Made of Giant Books!

It’s always hard to remember to be a tourist in the city you live in. Growing up in Kansas City, Missouri, I never thought there were many unique buildings around, but I also never really searched them out. That is, until I found this Kansas City library.

While browsing the internet one day, I came across a webpage that listed the top 15 (or so) weirdest buildings. As I scrolled through, it ranged from the architecturally daring to the down right oddest looking buildings to exist. Number thirteen in particular, caught my eye.

The building was part of a public library and the outside was made to look like an enormous bookshelf with the book spines of several classics forming the building wall.

I was so excited that a building like this actually existed because I love to read and I love books. But when I went to read the caption, I thought for sure it was a mistake. The location listed it as one of the things to do in Kansas City, Missouri!

MY hometown. How could a building like this exist and go undetected for the 20 years that I lived in that city? But there it was, staring up at me from the confines of my laptop. A minute later and it had been Google-confirmed. It DOES exist!

With a little further digging, I discovered that it isn’t the actual library that is made out of books, but it is the parking garage right next door.

But still, how many parking garages look like a collection of classic books?

How to Get There

When I actually sought out to find this parking-garage-bookshelf, I again started to think that it was a unicorn structure, because it wasn’t appearing large and evasive in front of my face like I supposed it would. I mean, these books are supposed to be ginormous!

In fact, I drove around through several detours and reroutes trying to get back on track, when it suddenly appeared out of nowhere—all glowing and near-mythical.

Ok, not really glowing, especially since I visited during the winter where everything is gray and dead (there are some amazing things to do for Christmas in Kansas City). But the structure IS unusual and I was shocked I had never heard anyone mention it before. It even has a name: The Community Bookshelf.

It’s located in Downtown Kansas City on 10^th street between Wyandotte Street and Baltimore Avenue. Since it’s a parking garage, you can park right there to see it. Parking is free for the first hour, but you’ll need to get your ticket validated inside the library. If you stay longer, it’s $1 per 20 minutes, up to $10.

Address: 14 W 10th St, Kansas City, MO 64105

I went in the dead of winter to try and find these and if you’ve been to Kansas City in the winter, you know it can be pretty miserable. Kansas City is one of the best places to visit in the USA in June or the fall months when the weather isn’t sweltering hot or miserably cold.

The Community Bookshelf at the Kansas City Library

These books stand about 25 ft high (9 ft wide) and run the length of the south side of the parking garage for the Central Library. There are 22 book spines with 42, 43 book titles that were chosen to represent a wide variety of interests. Amongst those titles, you will find the likes of Langston Hughes, Harper Lee, Charles Dickens, J. R. R. Tolkien and many others.

Book titles were suggested by Kansas Citians and then chosen by the Board of Trustees for the Kansas City Public Library. Though the KC website says there are 42 titles on 22 spines, I’m pretty sure there are actually 43. (Unless I’m crazy, they left out Goin’ to Kansas City.)

Community Bookshelf Book Titles

I was so busy marveling at the books and their titles that it took me a while to realize that even the stairs form stacks of concrete books. Which, in my opinion, sort of makes this one of the coolest parking garages out there!

The Central Library

The Central Kansas City Library is actually across the street and is located in an old First National Bank building. The buildings architecture has beautiful vaulted ceilings and a columned walkway. The bank vault, which dates back to 1925, is now known as the Stanley Durwood Film Vault.

On the fifth floor of the library is where you can find the Rooftop Terrace. There’s a small garden to walk through and a checker board painted on the floor with giant chess pieces.

To see a mini Community Bookshelf, go to the second floor to the children’s center. You’ll find a smaller version of the book wall by the stairs with open pages to a storybook.

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