The Melbourne Athenaeum Library will be closed on Monday March 10 for the Labour Day public holiday.

The library will be open regular hours on Saturday March 8 and Tuesday March 11.

The Melbourne Athenaeum Library will be closed on Monday March 10 for the Labour Day public holiday.

The library will be open regular hours on Saturday March 8 and Tuesday March 11.

News and Events

Friday 4 April 2025
Brahms Clarinet Quintet

BOOKING INFORMATION HERE

A talented group of musicians will present Brahms’ sumptuous Clarinet Quintet and Schubert’s Quartettsatz with the timbres of period instruments on Friday 4th April. Craig Hill has performed with the...read more
Wednesday 9 April 2025
Storytime with Leigh Hobbs

EMAIL FOR BOOKINGS

Join artist, author and Athenaeum member Leigh Hobbs for a special storytime as we celebrate 30 years of one of his most popular characters, ‘Old Tom’. On 9th April we...read more
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Library

A range of cultural activities are held in the beautiful surrounds of the subscription library.
The library holds a 30,000 strong collection and hosts regular music performances, talks, book and screen clubs, and artist and writer-in-residence programs. Members enjoy the historic atmosphere and quiet haven in a bustling city.

Browse the collection

New Acquisitions

General Fiction
The glassmaker / Tracy Chevalier
General Fiction
Coin locker babies / Ryu Murakami
General Fiction
The life impossible / Matt Haig
General Fiction
The book woman of Troublesome Creek / Kim Michele Richardson
General Fiction
Happiness, as such / Natalia Ginzburg
Crime Fiction
This wild, wild country / Inga Vesper
Crime Fiction
Everyone this Christmas has a secret / Benjamin Stevenson
Crime Fiction
Leave no trace / Jo Callaghan
Crime Fiction
Unfinished business / Shankari Chandran
Crime Fiction
Ink ribbon red / Alex Pavesi
Non Fiction
Memorial days / Geraldine Brooks
Non Fiction
Angry at breakfast / Erik Jensen
Non Fiction
The notebook : a history of thinking on paper / Roland Allen
Non Fiction
The season / Helen Garner
Non Fiction
War / Bob Woodward
Other Genres
Three boys gone / Mark Smith
Other Genres
Lunar New Year love story / Gene Luen Yang
Other Genres
The city and its uncertain walls / Haruki Murakami
Other Genres
The ministry for the future / Kim Stanley Robinson
Other Genres
Hooked / Emily McIntire
Ebooks
Sanctuary / Ilona Andrews
Ebooks
The Poison Pen Letters / Fiona Walker
Ebooks
To the Lighthouse / Virginia Woolf
Ebooks
The Pantomime Murders / Fiona Veitch Smith
Ebooks
Cold Enough for Snow / Jessica Au

About us

The Melbourne Athenaeum enriches Melbourne’s cultural and educational life by fostering public engagement with the arts and culture, and supporting creativity.
A Management Committee of volunteers is responsible for the organisation’s governance. Every member joining the Melbourne Athenaeum becomes a custodian of a rich part of the city’s living history.
history image
State Library Victoria, www.slv.vic.gov.au, Alfred Martin Ebsworth, June 29, 1885.

History

The story that unfolds here is about a unique organisation that continues to contribute to the city’s culture in a building first completed in 1842.
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