The Teen Room in the Central Library in Copley Square is just about the best room in the library. Why? With its location on the Mezzanine floor (between floors one and two) of the Johnson Building, it has the best view of the Boston Marathon Finish Line and gets sunlight from sunup to sundown with its wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling windows on two sides. Plus, its multicolored furniture and carpeting make it a fun hangout.

Age Limits

The Teen Room is for teens. Everyone is welcome to browse the collection or look for a specific book, but seating in the Teen Room is limited to teens only. Anyone over the age of 18, not with a teen, may be asked to leave. Anyone under the age of 12 may be sent to the Children’s Room on the first floor.

Seating for about 30 teens includes 10 comfy floor rockers and a hidden alcove for quiet study time alone or with a group of friends. Most of the tables can be moved around as needed.

Programs

The Teen Room hosts videogaming, SAT workshops, creative writing workshops, knitting groups, Anime and Manga Society, manga drawing workshops, and crafts of all kinds. Check our calendar for what’s happening.

Join the Teen Council and help plan activities every month!

Central Library Teen Room Facebook Page

Find out information regarding programs and other important information. If you have any program suggestions, this page is a great place to suggest them to the Central Library, Teen Librarians.

Books, CDs, DVDs and More

The teen room has a large & diverse collection, including:

• Books, including fiction, nonfiction and graphic novels – use the choices on the left to find books that interest you
• Books on CD
• Music CDs
• DVDs including feature films, TV shows, and anime
• Magazines

Computers

Computers Available:

• 10 computers with internet access and programs such as Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and Publisher (valid library card required)
• 1 catalog computer to look up items (card only required to place holds)

Saving and Printing:

• Files may only be saved to a computers for a single session. Email files to yourself, upload them to a file storage website or save to a USB drive before you log off. Once you log off, the computer is wiped clean of any files that have been saved to it.
• You need a green print card to pay for printing. Print cards are $1.00 and are available from machines on the first and second floors of the library. (Read more about computers at the BPL)
• Black and white printing and photocopying costs 15 cents per page.
• Color printing costs 75 cents per page.

Filtering software is installed on the computers to limit customers’ exposure to some websites that could be offensive to some users. Filtering software may not block all material users might find offensive. The Boston Public Library has no control over information accessed through the Internet and cannot be responsible for its content. Parents may wish to supervise their teen’s Internet sessions.

Class Visits

Class visits should be scheduled at least two weeks in advance.

We can take no more than 30 students per visit and can only give a tour of the Teen Room itself. We are happy to tailor visits with book talks and orientations to databases beneficial to students’ needs.

For more information about class visits, or to schedule an appointment, please call the Teen Room directly at 617-859-2334.