The Library

I special ordered The Library by Sarah Stewart and David Small from my local children's bookshop. I've been checking (read as scouring) bookstores for years to find a copy and hadn't had any success. I had some extra money and was ready to give up the search. I'm so incredibly excited to own this book but I'm sad that I had to order it. A book this good shouldn't be this hard to find.

The Library tells the story of Elizabeth Brown who started reading at a very early age and never stopped. We see her arrive "skinny, nearsighted, and shy" and watch as she grow up reading book after book after book. She buys them at a terrific rate and reads them while doing her errands or vacuuming. She reads them instead of going on dates. She reads them constantly. And she slowly fills up her house with books. When Elizabeth can no longer find the door, she realizes that she'll have to take drastic action. So she does the only thing she can. She turns her house into a library, moves in with a friend, and spends the rest of her life visiting and reading her books.

This book is an incredible mix of illustration and words, like most of Sarah Stewart's collaborations with her husband David Small. These two work together so seamlessly that it's hard to pull apart which part is more important, the words or the images. Sarah Stewart tells this story in bits of verse, rather then the epistolary style that she used in other books. Most pages have four or five lines that provide snippets into Elizabeth's life, from early age to old age.
"Books were piled on top of chairs
And spread across the floor.
Her shelves began to fall apart,
As she read more and more."
The images that accompany this verse is of stacked of books fitting into every nook and cranny of her living room. The books are stacked on the floor, on the shelves, as end tables. But the readers don't see this as odd. Instead Small's illustrations make the image seem cozy, the kind of house that any reader wouldn't mind spending time in. And that is really the power of this book.

I loved Elizabeth from the beginning mostly because I saw myself in her. She is surrounded by books, teacups, cats, and solitude; and I found myself wanting to step into her world and read with her. She's a character who doesn't worry about her odd lifestyle (a lifestyle I don't find odd, only admirable). She is happy with her books. The verses and the images present a picture of cozy happiness. Any reader will love the images of books filling the house. We see her start with only a few books that she lends out and watch as she gains more and more. She's an eccentric character that doesn't mind being eccentric. With Stewart's verses and Small's cheerful images, we see a character at peace in the world. I was enchanted. I've fallen in love with most of the collaborations between these two (The Journey, The Gardner...) but this story struck a chord with me. A must have for any librarian or regular reader. It's hard not to fall in love with Elizabeth Brown and this book.

Too Much Children's Book Goodness in One Place

I posted this on Ancora Imparo as well. But just in case you were curious about the power and weight of children's books. ;-)

I've finally managed to do it. I broke a bookcase. I knew it was just a matter of time. I'm nice to my books, hard on my cases.

I have five bookcases in my library: one for books I still have to read, one and a half for fiction, one and a half for nonfiction, and one for children's books. My children's book bookcase decided that it had had enough this past week. The second shelf, which holds picture books, broke and dropped its contents to the floor. Jeff was watching TV on Friday when he heard a loud crash and the cat come running down the stairs. He went upstairs to find my books all over the floor.

Here you can see where the shelf had been

He piled my books up on the bed we have in the library and called me. So now I have to go out and find a new bookcase. My idea is that this next one will be a quality case. Something that will move with me from house to house. Something I can show off. Not the cheap plyboard ones I bought from Target years ago. They've held up, but my bookcases have to be strong. I finally pushed one to the breaking point. Who knows how long the others will last. Particularly with this load.

Library Lion

As a librarian, I love books about libraries or even books about books. The same way I'm drawn to art about reading or books, I'm drawn to books that talk about libraries. So the moment I saw Library Lion, written by Michelle Knudsen and illustrated by Kevin Henkes, I knew I was going to own it eventually. Then I read the story and saw the illustrations, and I bought it immediately.

Library Lion tells the story of a lion who wanders into the public library and decides to stick around. The librarian, Miss Merriweather is okay with the lion staying as long as follows the rules: no running and especially no loud noises. The lion can visit as long as he stays quiet. The lion loves story hour and in the morning he helps Miss Merriweather around the library. Everyone loves the lion expect Mr. McBee. One day, Miss Merriweather falls and hurts herself. The lion runs for help but the only way to get attention is to roar. He roars loudly causing Mr. McBee to go searching for Miss Merriweather to tell on the lion. But the lion knows he's broken the rules. He leaves the library. When Miss Merriweather returns to work and notices that the lion is missing, she becomes depressed. So Mr. McBee goes out to find him and return him to the library.

I tear up every time I read this story. It's at the end when Mr. McBee invites the lion back to the library. And then when Miss Merriweather runs down the hall to greet him. I am so in love with this story. It's not just sweet pages like this: "Soon the lion began doing things without being asked. He dusted the encyclopedias. He licked the envelopes. He let small children stand on his back to reach books on the highest shelves. Then he curled up in the story corner to wait for story hour to begin." The image at the bottom of the page is of the back of the lion when he's sleeping. A young boy is gently resting against the lion's back while reading. It's just a perfect pairing of words and picture. Knudsen's story makes me cry and laugh and smile and cheer. That's an awful lot for a 32 page book to do.

As if this story couldn't get cuter, Henkes' illustrations will make fall in love all over again. His acrylic and pencil images use subdued colors to create the kind of library you would want to visit, and a lion you would want to curl up with. I'll even forgive him for making Miss Merriweather wear a bun. The lion is imbued with so much emotion. You quickly fall in love with him. The image of him sprawled across a pillow in the children's section with a slight smile on his face, is so wonderfully sweet. The humans are all well created but it's the lion that will make this book a favorite for children. He's realistic but not scary. Beautiful images and a sweet story. A must have.

New Blog

If you are coming over from Ancora Imparo, Welcome! Apparently I'm not content with just sharing my odd random thoughts. And so much of my posting lately has been about children's books that I thought I would just collect everything here. I've been heading to the library each week and picking up stacks of children's books. It's been amazing to see the variety and number of stories and pictures that are out there. So here is a place to write about all these beautiful books. I'll try to post somewhat regularly but this might be a three days a week in the beginning.