Name: Boise Library!
Address: 5598 N Eagle Road, Boise, ID, 83713, US
Telephone: (208) 514-1634

Our typical library, with double the enthusiasm

HISTORY OF THE BOISE LIBRARY!

The Boise Public Library is modern, friendly, full of fun activities for kids and adults. But the best part? The Boise Library has an exclamation point, literally, in its sign! On the side of its building, it says, “Library!” It has created a fun, hip trend among the Boise community, because learning is cool!

Howard Olivier, a businessman and former owner of the popular Boise pizza joint, Flying Pie Pizzeria, felt in 1994 that the library was a really exciting place! He had a vision the make the Boise library something fun, trendy and cool to the public. For him, “Library” didn’t represent an accurate perception to the people living in Boise.

Olivier held a meeting with the library’s marketing director about adding an exclamatory punctuation to the sign. The management of the Boise Public Library loved the idea, received permission form the City of Boise, and told Olivier that the exclamation point is a welcome addition to the existing sign.

The new Boise Library sign was installed in January 1995, and has been copyrighted.

Immediately after the addition went live, the community loved the exclamation point and children chanted library as if it were a rallying cry whenever they drive by. When contributing donations, donors wrote their checks out to Library! with exuberance.

Other members of the Boise public were not as thrilled, pointing out that the exclamation point was unprofessional, vulgar and self-congratulatory. These complaints usually hit Olivier to his core, as they came in on the comments cards at his Boise pizzeria. Appreciation and acceptance for the excitement in the message has definitely prevailed, since the Boise’s Public Library remains a library to get excited about!