Dear Librarian

by Lydia M. Sigwarth, Romina Galotta (Illustrator)

Overview

When Lydia was five years old, she and her family had to leave their home. They hopped from Grandma's house to Aunt Linda's house to Cousin Alice's house, but no place was permanent. Then one day, everything changed. Lydia's mom took her to a new place — not a house, but a big building with stone columns, and tall, tall steps. The library.

In the library, Lydia found her special spot across from the sunny window, at a round desk. For behind that desk was her new friend, the librarian. Together, Lydia and the librarian discovered a world beyond their walls, one that sparkled with spectacular joy.

Paired with warm art by newcomer Romina Galotta and a foreword by Ira Glass, Dear Librarian is a "thank you" to anyone who has offered a child love and support during a difficult time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374313906
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	06/01/2021
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	283,914
Product dimensions:	8.70(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD530L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Lydia M. Sigwarth is an author and children's librarian in Wisconsin. Being a librarian has been her dream job since she was a small child. She currently lives in Platteville, Wisconsin with her family. Dear Librarian is her debut picture book.

Romina Galotta is an illustrator, ardent animal lover, passionate foodie, and world traveler. She is also the artist for The Biggest Thing of All. She currently lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Editorial Reviews

05/10/2021

Sigwarth addresses her personal epistle to a specific librarian from her childhood in this debut with an introduction by radio host Ira Glass. When Lydia’s large family leaves Colorado to live in Iowa, they inhabit “a lot of different places,” staying with Lydia’s grandmother, aunt, and cousin until her father finds a job. While unhoused, the family pays daily visits to the library, where “there was so much to do and so much space to do it in.” There, Lydia finds “a special spot just for me”; establishes a regular routine that, “even though it wasn’t a house,” stands in for the normalcy she craves; and befriends an auburn-haired librarian who makes her “feel safe and happy”—and even inspires her own career choice. Galotta portrays the family as doll-like, with white skin and pink cheeks, and the library as a portal into another world: flora blooms around the reference desk, and a teal dragon and a light blue whale populate the pages. A gentle ode to the effect one person can have on another, and what a library can offer a community. An author’s note concludes. Ages 4–8. (June)

Publishers Weekly

"Galotta uses an array of media, including watercolors and colored pencils, to lovingly reflect the heroine’s inner emotions and thoughts in the details and background on each page . . . This touching story celebrates the joys of friendship, finding a home, and the power of libraries. Pair with similar picture books such as Sam ­McBratney’s Will You Be My Friend? and James Dean’s Pete the Cat Checks Out the Library." —School Library Journal, starred review

"A gentle ode to the effect one person can have on another, and what a library can offer a community." —Publishers Weekly

"Galotta enriches the nostalgic undertones with glimpses of lush flowers, tiny robots, a dragon, and other imaginary elements . . . A cogent, warming reminder that public libraries have always been more than just repositories for books." —Kirkus Reviews

""A heartfelt tribute to the power of libraries, and the power of kindness." —Mara Wilson, actress and author

From the Publisher

★ 07/01/2021

PreS-Gr 3—In a love letter to all librarians, but one in particular, the author tells the story of a difficult period in her family's life. For her, a young white female narrator, finding a place she feels safe has been elusive. Her large family moves to a new state and stays with relatives while her father searches for a new job and a new home. One day, she and her family visit the public library, and she recognizes her special place. She also finds a new friend, the librarian, who is attentive to the homesick child. This experience motivates the child, when she's grown, to make a deliberate career choice. In a picture book based loosely on the author's own life, and first told on the radio show, This American Life host Ira Glass provides the foreword. Galotta uses an array of media, including watercolors and colored pencils, to lovingly reflect the heroine's inner emotions and thoughts in the details and background on each page. Nearly all the characters are white, although in school scenes or more contemporary scenes of the library, some diversity is introduced. VERDICT This touching story celebrates the joys of friendship, finding a home, and the power of libraries. Pair with similar picture books such as Sam McBratney's Will You Be My Friend? and James Dean's Pete the Cat Checks Out the Library by James Dean.—Monica Fleche, Rochester P. L., Rochester, NY

School Library Journal

2021-05-19
A love letter to a children’s librarian.

Title notwithstanding, this fond semi-memoir focuses not so much on how a librarian fostered a love of books and reading (though there is some of that) as on how a library changed one child’s life. Looking back on a time when her large, White family had no house or home aside from overcrowded temporary lodgings with relatives, the correspondent recalls discovering her local library. Within, there was space enough for all, toys and a puppet stage amid the shelves, a large window for people-watching, and a welcoming children’s librarian (also White, clad in a skirt and a fuzzy cardigan). The librarian was always good for a warm hug, listened to what she said, and made her feel “safe and happy.” Inspired to give others the same sort of “Library Home,” the child (like the author) grows up to be a librarian, and in closing scenes she appears as a cardigan-clad adult, tending attentively to a racially diverse group of smiling young visitors. Along with portraying both librarians as calm, self-confident sorts, Galotta enriches the nostalgic undertones with glimpses of lush flowers, tiny robots, a dragon, and other imaginary elements. In an afterword with photos Sigwarth describes the reunion recorded on the NPR program This American Life that sparked her tribute. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A cogent, warming reminder that public libraries have always been more than just repositories for books. (Picture book. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews