Richard Peck

Here Lies the Librarian

Sarah Sammis

Last summer when I was newly laid off I needed some easy to read books to lose myself in. Richard Peck fit the bill perfectly. I chose Here Lies the Librarian because I loved both the cover and the title.

Peewee and Jake are siblings who run an auto repair shop. It's 1914 so auto repair is still a relatively rare skill to have. The town has been without a library since the old librarian was found dead amongst her beloved books. Now that's all going to change after Peewee is befriended by a carload of library students.

Here Lies the Librarian is one of those rare books that hit me with a confluence of elements seemingly at odds with each other but completely coherent with my own life. That connection took me from liking the book to loving the book.

Now I'm no mechanic but I grew up amongst classic cars including some the same vintage as in this book. I can remember my father fixing them, talking about them with other aficionados and attending car shows with him. So I could feel, smell, taste and hear Peewee's obsession with cars.

Secondly just before losing my job I had decided to apply to the MLIS program at San Jose State. I've loved books most of my life and back in 1997 I half considered going for the MLIS then but I was feeling burned out and needed a break from higher education. While I had been working on my masters in Critical Studies (that's UCLA speak for film theory) I had been working at one of UCLA's libraries and loved my job. After ten years of being a web designer I'm feeling the need for a career change. Library science has changed and a lot of my skills will carry over but I need to the MLIS to follow this new calling.

Anyway, the point is, Here Lies the Librarian has a strange mixture of old cars and library science. It's just so me, I couldn't help but fall in love with the book.

Here Lies the Librarian

Reviews

Highlights