“This legendary librarian is serving story time realness” says the cover of this delightful picture book, which sums up much of this book right there. Here’s a little more for those who want to know:
A young child introduces us to his librarian, Mr. Stephen, who is very good at helping people find books and shushing loud talkers. When it comes to arts and crafts or story time, however, the best one can say about the bow-tie- and cardigan-clad Mr. Stephens is that he “tries his best.” The kids’ bored expressions say it all.
At these times, however, Mr. Stephen calls on an another librarian for help—the sublime Ms. Stacks. Ms. Stacks is colorful and stylish, bringing glitter to arts and crafts, extolling the virtues of brunch, and acting out stories of brave princesses, smart kid detectives, and more. During show-and-tell, one of the kids asks what she likes to do, and she says “Lip sync.” She then demonstrates, calling in the help of two other librarians in their drag personas (one in a beard, mustache, and skirt), who give a dynamic lip sync performance.
Author Robb Pearlman perhaps panders a little too much to adult readers (though maybe we shouldn’t complain) when he has the narrator explain that the songs were from “a long, long time ago—the 1980s” such as one “about girls just wanting to have fun” and another “about men, not rain, coming down from the sky!” This will either give adult readers a chance to share these songs with their kids or will simply puzzle kids who won’t get the references.
The performers are still librarians, however, and therefore ask the kids between each song how it made them feel and what they thought the words meant. “It was like talking about poetry, but with a dancy beat!” the narrator tells us. Yes, even pop songs can be learning experiences in the right hands. (One wonders what the kids thought the 80s songs meant, but the book leaves that for the imagination.)
Without giving away too many spoilers, I’ll just say that the end of the story gives the kids a chance to talk about all the things they learned at the library, from the Constitution, to fashion, to standing up for themselves and standing out. It’s a wonderful reminder of all the ways libraries and librarians make a positive impact on kids’ lives. And if the backpack Mr. Stephen carries home at the end of the day is spilling a little glitter, you won’t tell anyone, will you?
Dani Jones’ illustrations are bold and bright, just like Ms. Stacks. One of the kids and their parent could both be read as nonbinary or gender creative, the kid with long hair and suspenders, the parent with short hair and a vest but a slightly feminine look. Another child has two dads. Mr. Stephen/Ms. Stacks is White; the other two drag librarians are Black and biracial (Latinx/White). The kids are a variety of racial and ethnic identities. And on the shelves of the library is one book with a prominent rainbow flag on it, reinforcing the idea that LGBTQ-inclusive kids’ books belong there.
Lots of fun, and sure to be a hit at both library and home story times. (Bonus points if you can find your 80s mixtapes to play with it.)
