Libraries aren't what they used to be. Thank goodness for that.

Any kid who grew up near Pittsburgh in the '60s had to be content with the usual fare on the school library shelf. "The Lou Gehrig Story." "Paul Revere Rides Again." And maybe "The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.," but only post-assassination.

Readers, young and old, in small towns without a public library did better at the bookmobile whenever it made its weekly two-hour stop. In Elizabeth Borough, that was Tuesday evening, and the book truck would park one block from the railroad tracks, two blocks from the river and, once inside, patrons would browse the narrow single aisle of books stacked floor to ceiling. It was a well-stocked bookmobile, bulging with gallant tales of history, thin volumes of poetry and best-sellers on the Vietnam War. The incessant purr of its diesel engine was a reminder that the vehicle would soon hit the road again, spreading literary largesse to another town.

Pittsburghers take their libraries seriously. This year libraries will get almost a third of the $74 million that will be spent on regional assets -- the largest single share -- from Allegheny County's 1 percent sales tax. A survey last year by the University of Wisconsin declared Pittsburgh the nation's third-most literate city, based in part on heavy library use.

Whether it's the suburban-sleek Northland Library, the old-money-look Sewickley Library or the Carnegie Library in Braddock (where, in its heyday, patrons could also swim and bowl), libraries around here are as varied as people. The granddaddy of Pittsburgh libraries, then and now, has been the Carnegie in Oakland -- a museum of a library inside a museum. But even that distinction was not enough to ensure its future, and last year the branch completed a $4 million renovation, complete with the obligatory coffee bar (what is it about caffeine and books?).

Last week the Carnegie system held the grand opening for its new, relocated Downtown branch. Now on Smithfield Street near Sixth Avenue, the two-level library serves both business and the general reading public. With free Internet and computer access, not to mention the option of automated self-checkout, the Monday-through-Friday operation is likely to hold its own as one of the system's busiest locations.

There's no coffee bar at the Downtown library yet, but last Thursday a casual visitor was overwhelmed by the choices. Passing on the DVD and VHS movies, he went straight to the books and pared his selections to three: "The Steps of Pittsburgh," "Public Dollars, Private Stadiums" and "How to Eat Like a Republican." Plus an overlooked CD by Steve Winwood from 2003.

For all of its modern appointments, the essential beauty of this and other libraries remains the same. You get to borrow these books (watch these movies and listen to this music) for free.

To the Barnes & Noble across the street: Be very afraid.