A KIND OF PARADISE

A warm homage to libraries, the people who work in them, and their power to affect people’s lives.

Thirteen-year-old Jamie violated her middle school’s honor code and has now been assigned to community service at her local library over the summer. “And I had to write an apology letter to Trey.” As the book unfolds readers find out what caused her to spend the summer at the Foxfield Public Library—and also how her letter of apology to her crush, Trey, is posted for the whole school to see and smirk at. But more importantly, readers are introduced to the different characters that populate the library. There is Beverly, the dedicated and committed director; Sonia and Lenny, the two other staff members, who are patient and understanding of all their patrons; Wally, the older patron who comes to the library every Tuesday to borrow movies and bring a fresh flower; and Black Hat Guy, a homeless young man who shows up every day around 4:00 in the afternoon. As the summer progresses, Jamie’s connection to the library goes from enforced to enthusiastic. And, as with all books where everyone is nice, there is a happy ending. Most characters default white except for Sonia, who is Latina, and crush Trey, adopted as an infant from Korea.

A charming book that will appeal to library lovers.