The library possesses a wide assortment of books, as shown in the table below, which reflects the collection as it stood at the end of 2007. Most of the books are small paperbacks and are available for borrowing, but some are designated as “reference” only. Books are given the “reference” designation if (a) they cost more than 10,000 shillings (i.e. about $6.00), (b) they are school textbooks, or (c) they are assigned as literature texts in the national syllabi for Luganda and English literature.

The most important and most popular of the categories listed below are “Traditional” and “Modern” stories. The former are mainly African stories in English translation; the latter are stories about present-day, generally African, protagonists. “Health” and “Morals” books are also popular. They are mostly small paperbacks produced by non-governmental and religious organizations, and in response to the AIDS pandemic, many of them focus on sex education.

The “total books” column on the left of the table lists all the books that the library has acquired up to the end of 2007. Some have been lost, especially in the most popular categories, and others have been worn out with much reading. These books have been replaced whenever possible, while new ones have been steadily added. We make particular efforts to respond to readers’ requests on the one hand and to their borrowing patterns on the other.


For an overview of the library's collection, please click on the box below.