Monday, March 23, 2009

Modern Monday--The Library by Sarah Stewart

The Library by Sarah Stewart
David Small, illustrator, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1995

In my quest to reign in my own overindulgence in books, I was reminded of this gem of a book by Sarah Stewart.

The Library is written in rhyming verse telling the story of Elizabeth Brown from infancy to old age. She is never without a book. In one illustration, we can see other young people hand in hand outside the window and we see Elizabeth's feet propped on the sill as she reclines in the chair wrapped up in a good book.

The problem, however, is clear. Her books are taking over and so her solution is to donate her house and her books to the city to be used as a library and she moves in with a friend. I'm not quite at that stage yet!

David Small's watercolor and ink illustrations offer touches of humor throughout the book. Note the sweet image of baby Elizabeth falling to Earth.



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