Libraries

Culture comes under the authority of the communities. That means there are libraries run by both the French and the Flemish communities in Brussels. There are at least two libraries in every Brussels borough, one mainly French, the other mainly Dutch.

But Brussels’ libraries have a lot more than this to offer! They have adapted to the city’s diversity and have a wide collection of literature in other languages: not only in English, but also in Spanish, Italian, German, Portuguese, Romanian, Polish, Czech, and so on. It’s not all classics either, but also includes the most recent works by contemporary writers.

French Community libraries

The largest collection of literature in other languages is in the Bibliothèque Centrale pour la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale (Bibliothèque des Riches-Claires): it has more than 25,000 works in numerous European languages, not only for adults, but for children and adolescents too. This broad collection is administered by the Bibliothèque Centrale, but can also be ordered through other French-language libraries, which always have a small selection of literature in other languages in stock. Readers can order works at their local library or consult the digital catalogue at www.brunette.brucity.be or www.bibcentrale-bxl.be

There are a great many French-language libraries in Brussels, so you are bound to find one nearby: click here for a list of addresses.

Flemish Community libraries

The largest collection of books in other languages is to be found in the HOB (Hoofdstedelijke Openbare Bibliotheek, on Place de la Monnaie in the city centre), but almost all Dutch-language libraries have a range of ‘European’ books. The HOB has novels in English, Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Greek, Romanian and Polish and also has a wide range of international newspapers and magazines. When you’re there you can consult Library Press: a digital database of 600 newspapers from all over the world.

We have made a detailed summary of the range of works in other languages per library (novels, newspapers, picture books, DVDs).

Click here for a list of addresses.