Leveraging Specialized Resources to Develop Innovative Library Services

Theme libraries have emerged as a new service model to meet the demand from the public for a diverse service with resources that are both inclusive and specialized. The "a library within a library" is currently the main practice model of theme libraries. Influenced by that concept, the recently constructed and opened Suzhou Second Library includes a number of theme libraries, such as “Suzhou Literature Library," "Music Library," and "Design Library." The establishment of these theme libraries within the Suzhou Second Library allows the library to build special community-focused collections that are culturally rich, to collaborate with local cultural organizations to create quality public programs that highlight the collections, and to actively engage the public with special events and exhibits surrounded by multimedia, digital special effects. These programmatic efforts have greatly improved public’s awareness of the valuable resources held at the library and thus increased the effectiveness of this new service model.