James Joyce Library

This library is great if you need to study over the summer. The Wi-​Fi is really fast and it’s a lot quieter than the rest of the year. The summer opening hours are pretty decent too — 8:30 — 18:00 on Mondays and Fridays and 8:30 — 21:00 on Tuesdays — Thursdays.

Lose a star because I’m sitting here in the freezing with my coat on. I know it’s January, but does it really have to be this cold?

I just shared my disappointment with the UCD campus bookshop, which never stocked the books needed for my Development Studies classes. Thank god for the Development Studies Library on the third floor of UCD’s James Joyce library building!!! Established by the Department of Foreign Affairs, the section dedicated to Development Studies is the largest of its kind in Ireland, open to all students as well as users outside UCD.
The shelves are filled with UN, WB, WTO (etc…) reports from today and decades back and endless sources of reading material on human rights, history and politics, development aid, economics, environmental issues and health hazards. The Development library and the friendly librarian saved my life when I was a student, and I still use its service even though I’ve finished my degree.
One important tip: Watch out for the library police, a scary-​looking man who has clearly watched too many cop-​shows for his own good, creeping around the library and hoping to catch a sleepy little student with a cup of coffee inside. If he spots you with the black liquid while holding your phone, run, run as fast as you can before all hell breaks loose!
Apart from the aforementioned cop; the rest of the library is just fine. It’s very basic and far from pretty on the inside, but it has what you need. Books, films, journals and magazines and usually lots of free tables, even during exams.