The 10 Coolest College Libraries

Sure, studying isn't always fun. But, some of the spaces designed for cramming both brains and books on college campuses are pretty damn cool. Added bonus, they are also often filled with eligible ladies.

We've scoured the great USA from coast to coast to find the best of the best.

Crack your books, and check out 10 coolest college libraries in America.

University of Kentucky

Completed in 1998, William T. Young Library at the University of Kentucky features one of the most amazing staircases you're likely to find. The whole thing is based on a "building within a building" concept and sits on an octagonal footprint. Designed by Kallmann McKinnel & Wood Architects, Inc.

Notable Users: John Wall (we hear he was scholarly during his single year as a Wildcat).

Boston College

Often cited as the nation's most beautiful library, Bapst Library at Boston College opened its doors in 1924. It has also been called the "finest example of collegiate Gothic architecture in America." All of this is nice, but what makes it really cool? Bapst is one of the only libraries in America where you could genuinely get away with pretending to be Harry Potter.

Notable Users: The Amazing Ed McMahon… and politician John Kerry.

Middlebury College

Cool things can happen in Vermont. For example, the invention of snowboarding. Additionally, Middlebury College gets high marks for its $40 million dollar library. The interior includes a mural by California-born artist Matt Mullican (called "The Art of Writing") based on Denis Diderot's influential 18th-century Encyclopedia.

Notable Users: We'd like to imagine running up on sexy Orbit gum girl Vanessa Branch (even though she graduate in 1994) in the stacks.

Colby-Sawyer College, New London, New Hampshire

What other college library is built from two pre-Civil Ware barns? Quick answer, none. The structure has received awards for excellence and might be the most unique of any space on this list.

Notable Users: Given that we've never heard of this school before, you'll forgive us for not knowing of anyone that attended.

University of California Los Angeles

Completed in 1929, this Romanesque Revival building was modeled after Milan's Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio. It is one of the icons of the UCLA campus, being on of the four original buildings on site and designed by architect George W. Kelham.

Notable Users: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and members of Maroon 5.

Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter, New Hampshire

Ok, so this is sort of cheating. However, The Class of 1945 is certainly one of the coolest scholastic libraries in the world. Designed by renowned architect Louis I. Kahn, the library was initially opened in 1971 (and then called Academy Library). The interior is simply awesome.

Notable Users: Rapper/producer/pardoned criminal John Forte.

Loyola University, Chicago

Located on the shore of Lake Michigan, Loyala University's Richard J. Klarchek Information Commons is unmatched by any college library in terms of physical location. The stance on the water provides amazing views. And, it is also Silver LEED certified, meaning it may be one of the most environmentally study centers around. The Commons opened in 2008.

Notable Users: While the school has many notable alumni, included Leslie David Baker of The Office, we can't single out any recent graduates that would co-sign library coolness.

Yale University

Designed by architect Gordon Bunshaft, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library is a windowless gem of Modernist architecture. Housed within is a glass-walled tower of book shelves, one of the coolest library stacks ever.

Notable Users: Actor Edward Norton and comedian Demetri Martin.

University of Chicago

WTF!? A glass dome library? Brand new for 2011, the Joe and Rika Mansueto Library is craze. Architect Murphy Jahn has created a calm space for study… and a solution for houses 3.5 million books.

Notable Users: This library is too new to peg any notable student visitors.

University of California San Diego

Reasons this library is cool: 1. It looks like a spaceship and 2. It is named after Dr. Seuss (well, more accurately, Audrey and Theodor Seuss Geisel). The building opened to students in 1970 and rises 110 feet above the ground.

Notable Users: Milo Aukerman, lead singer of the Decendents and Ph. D in biochemistry.