Peck, Richard. Here Lies the Librarian.

[Tess]

O.K., is Peck pandering? I mean, he really doesn't have to do that, does he? I haven't read it, but I saw that it had recently arrived at the library and I felt compelled to make a comment here about it. Anyone read it yet?

[Mary]

I just finished this book today, and I think the title is apt. This is a fun book written in Peck's folksy style. The characters were believable and very clearly drawn. There were more than a few times that I laughed out loud! (I'd loved to know the actual tune to sing the Librarian's Hymn.) I loved seeing strong girl and women characters. I also enjoyed the way the book ended, with a newspaper clipping from decades later so the reader had an overview of what happened to Peewee.


Here's my problem with the book... I never knew when Peck was drawing on actual historical detail and when he was creating a realistic fantasy out of whole cloth. For example, the book opens with a tornado. This tornado does some pretty incredible things. I googled and googled trying to find data about this tornado with no luck. I searched trying to find information about cemeteries and tornadoes to document that an event like this could happen -- it seems very unlikely to me -- with no luck. Later in the book a cat is fitted with a wooden paw after losing his in an unfortunate accident. It sounded like his prosthesis was strapped on fairly permanently allowing the cat to effectively hunt mice. I found it hard to wrap my head around the idea that a cat would allow a device like this to remain attached to his leg with a thong.

All in all, I think this book should be added to our Mock Reading List. I'll be curious what you all think of it.

[kmg365]

... mountains move."

I adored this book. (Which pretty much guarantees that the next post will talk about how incredibly average and non-engaging it was... )

This book SANG to me. Nobody turns a phrase like Peck. (And if I had the book at hand, I'd give some examples.)

Since I'm a librarian who grew up in rural Indiana (as did my parents and grandparents) it's no surprise that I liked it. If Peck is pandering, he has my blessing to continue doing so.

I also found the damage in the graveyard from the tornado unlikely, but I can forgive a lot when an author makes me laugh, which Peck does frequently.

What I love about all Peck's books set in the rural Midwest is introducing senior citizens to them. Once they get past the initial reluctance to read a children's book, they LOVE them.

[BookWyrm]

Nope, the next post will agree with you. At least in so far as adoring the book.

Maybe because I'm mainly a fantasy fan, I had no problem with the tornado or the wooden cat paw. When it's brought up, no I don't think a tornado could dig up graves and I know most cats wouldn't leave a wooden paw tied to their leg, but that didn't give me pause when I was reading the book. The story was so strong and the characters and their lives so interesting that I didn't question the unrealistic bits. Suspending disbelief.

I also loved the strong female characters and the fact that there was that last 'news clipping' that let readers know what happened to Peewee, her brother, and at least one of the librarians. I loved that it presented librarians not as prissy or stuck up, but as adventurous and resourceful.

Unlike the previous posters, I'm not a Peck fan. I started this book expecting to tolerate it at best and hate it at worst. I was surprised when I ended up laughing out loud at sections.

It's definitely in my top ten list for the year.

[heather]

I have to way in with a: loved it!

What a fun read this was. And so full of quotable quotes, I wish that I had the book with me to share.

Was I charmed because I grew up the daughter of a mechanic and now am a librarian? Maybe, but I think it would have been fun in spite of the familiarity I felt with the subject matter. I did enjoy reading about grease cans and brand new books!

Spoiler: was I the only one who was completely surprised that PeeWee was a girl?

[kmg365]

>Spoiler: was I the only one who was completely surprised that >PeeWee was a girl?

No, you weren't the only one. I was kicking myself that I didn't catch it, because I normally spot the tricks of language used when an author is trying to hide something from the reader.

Another librarian who was literally reading the book across the room from me at the same time I was didn't catch it, either, so I'm chalking it up to Peck's mastery of his craft.

I've since read a review (can't remember where) that gave Pee Wee's gender away. Spoilsport!

[Tess]

I enjoyed the book a great deal. I didn't expect the role Grace would play in the story and thought that was fun. I was disappointed that what happened to Irene wasn't worked into the story; she seemed to care so much for Peewee that I'm sure she would have written to her, and Peewee was so greatly influenced by her, I expected more mention of her at the end rather than the car she drove to school and how boys in high school hung around her. The last newspaper article was very fitting though.

[martha]

This is another delightful book. Peck is a master at creating those old-fashioned hick town characters and situations. Pee-Wee being a girl was a pleasant, not too unexpected, surprise for me. Depending on what the competition is, this may not be a Newbery book, but I hope he keeps writing more books of this type.

[Erica]

Well, I liked this book enough, but it bothered me that a group of practically grown women breezed into town and took care of everything. Peewee seemed to have enough moxie to wing it on her own, or to assist consciously and with some acknowledgement from the city women. I got offended on her behalf when she saved the library opening party from disaster and no one even blinked in her direction to notice how she had helped. Didn't that bother anyone else?

[Tess]

Do you mean the punch incident? I thought Peewee took care of that before anyone could notice. Or do you mean something else that I'm forgetting?

[Erica]

Yes, that's the incident. I couldn't remember the exact events, just the feeling. But I reread it: Peewee advised them to provide a box of sawdust for spitting, then she poured punch, and then, when a 6-year-old flushed the toilet, she figured out why he was so spooked, found the toad in the punchbowl and fished it out, flattened it in her fancy shoes and smiled at the next guest, put out a fire in the wastepaper basket with a ladle of punch, helped sweep up, and then, still in her party dress, figured out why Grace's car wouldn't start -- by tasting her gasoline! -- uncovering her competitor's dastardly method of gaining new business, and then tied the bumpers together to tow the car to her family's shop. All of this happened in less than 10 pages, and more adventure followed, so I can see how there wasn't a chance for her to be acknowledged in the moment. But it seemed to me that no one at any time acknowledged her. Meanwhile, the women renovate the library, meddle in town affairs, arrange marriages and relocations, and directly affect Peewee's life. The fact that they inspire her to be in a racer in 1914, but in 1978 she's still reminiscing about her one race, apparently hasn't been in any others, and has nothing to add to her interview about her life in between annoyed me. What did Peewee do for 60 years? Apparently it had nothing to do with cars, or it would have been mentioned in the article. And the library doesn't seem to have inspired her much at all. She only hangs out there because of the pretty woman who she likes to chat with, and who incidentally disappears for the last 60 years of the book as well.

[Cathy]

I read it and was disappointed. After loving "The Teacher's Funeral" and seeing Peck speak at Butler's Children's Literature Conference, I was anxiously awaiting the title. Unfortunately, the story felt forced. The four librarians felt interchangable, and PeeWee leapt into wearing dresses far too quickly to be a convincing tomboy.