Priory, prison, film and video shoot, shelter for people in difficulty, our beautiful public library has known many lives. It was in 2003 that the former Maison d'arrêt-lecture found its definitive vocation by being converted into a library. Once a place of confinement and exclusion, it is transformed into a place of openness, travel and escape. Combining functionality and modernism, its imposing rectangular plan is characteristic of 19th century prisons. On the main facade, two side apses recall religious architecture and a 4.5m high perimeter wall surrounds this masterful construction.