Stories from the Library – what's new and what's happening
Do you have a favourite spot in the Library? For me, the corner I like the most is the New Arrivals wall on G/F. Here, you come face-to-face with the latest books in our Library. The display is always so colourful and visually attractive, and I often encounter books that pique my curiosity. For example,…
In a remarkable team effort, the University Archives recently completed installation of a memorial corner dedicated to our late founding president, Prof. Chia-Wei Woo. Did you know that it was Prof. Woo’s vision back in 1990 to establish a university archive for preserving historically significant materials relating to our university? This memorial corner could not…
We’ve got drinking and water fountains all over the Library. And every one has both hot and cold water. But the hot water is not hot enough for my tea – I want really, really hot water! No problem – the “secret” hot water supply is on 1/F 🙂 Basically, all the water fountains except…
One of our Library staff colleagues has some skill in repairing books. Others asked them to host a workshop so more staff could learn these skills. They used a variety of tools and techniques to show how to fix different problems with worn or damaged books. Despite the Library’s collections moving more and more towards…
Today, December 16, 2025, marks the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth (1775–1817). Despite her short life, Austen produced six novels that have become cornerstones of English literature: Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), Emma (1815), Northanger Abbey (1817), and Persuasion (1817). With sharp irony and keen psychological insight, her…
The Library is starting to receive samples of furniture under consideration for the Learning Commons. The furniture samples area is near the front of the Library, around the corner from the Reference Desk. If you have time, please take a look and let us know which furniture you prefer – or which you hate…
Did you know this is one of the most glamorous items in our Special Collections? Known as 坤輿萬國全圖, in elegant classical Chinese, literally meaning Map of the Ten Thousand Countries of the Earth, it also has a nickname in English – Ricci Map. Why Ricci in English? Why does this map, titled in Chinese, carry…
You probably use a Hong Kong map often. When you check a bus route, explore a hiking trail, find your way to a restaurant …, you use a map, most likely a digital one on your mobile device. For a change of perspective, I invite you to look “up” rather than “down” on your phone…
One of the new outdoor tables recently added to the LG3 rear terrace has been custom designed for wheelchair access. Of course, users with wheelchairs are welcome to use any of the outdoor tables, but this one has 16″ of extra clearance to make it more comfortable. If you think of other things the Library…
Being a recent recipient of our university’s Doctor of Humanities honoris causa, Tony Leung Chiu Wai (梁朝偉)’s artistry has reached global cinema for decades. Do you know that our library also holds several of his notable films? From his early works in the 1980s to his martial arts tour de force in “The Grandmaster” (2013),…
