The Night Library

February 1, 2019
A nighttime adventure and memories of reading with a grandfather remind a child of the pleasures to be found in books.On the night before turning 8, a child is given a book by their parents--a great disappointment. Surely they know their offspring prefers "toys, games, and movies." Then, in the middle of the night, an enormous lion out on the lawn beckons. Introductions are made as the child climbs on the lion's back. The lion's name is Fortitude, and they are on their way to meet Patience. Yes! The iconic lions that stand guard in front of the New York Public Library. At the library the books arrange themselves into all sorts of shapes that remind the child of books that Grandpa read aloud before he passed away. The child also finds books that are not familiar. With a reawakened interest in reading, that spurned birthday gift is now welcome. More than the story, the charm here is in Colón's always-beautiful artwork. The olive-skinned family is so real and the little child's face so full of expression. The amusing rearrangement of the books at the library is whimsical and captivating.After reading the book, follow up with a visit to the New York Public Library if possible--your local if not. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8)

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February 11, 2019
Zeltser (Stinker) and Colón (Imagine!) contribute to the shelf of stories about the New York Public Library’s famous lions, Patience and Fortitude. A boy wakes in the middle of the night before his eighth birthday, disappointed at his parents’ birthday present, a book: “My parents knew that I liked toys, games, and movies—not books.” He hears a “deep purring” outside, and a majestic marble lion appears outside his window and invites him to come and “meet Patience.” At the great library, the boy is greeted by flying books that take the shapes of picture book characters the boy recalls from readaloud sessions with his grandfather, whose death he still mourns. Handsome, clearly drafted drawings by Colón succeed in making the book formations recognizable as Peter Rabbit, the Cat in the Hat, and the Polar Express. Predictably, the dream rekindles the boy’s interest in reading. The first-person narration can sound more like an adult writer’s than a boy’s (“Fortitude turned and regarded me, eyes twinkling”), and extolling the value of books is a well-trod message, though Zeltser’s tale, and Colón’s renderings of the library’s magnificent rooms, may well prompt its neighbors to plan a visit. Ages 3–7.

April 1, 2019

PreS-Gr 2-What better way to cure a lost love of books than with a magic ride through the library in the middle of the night? A young Latino boy goes to bed disappointed when he receives a book for his eighth birthday and soon falls into a restless sleep. Later that night, he is awakened by a giant lion who whisks him out of the Bronx and through Manhattan straight to the doors of the New York Public Library. The boy soon remembers where he's seen this lion before; it is Fortitude, who guards the doors of the library with his fellow lion, Patience. During his tour of the deserted library, our narrator watches books as they move, dance, and twirl through the stacks. He even recognizes some of his favorite storybook characters as they and the stories come to life. As he witnesses the wonder of books and the library, the boy tells Fortitude that he has stopped reading because of the loss of his grandfather; reading was their favorite thing to do together. He soon learns that books, and his special memories of his grandfather, have been there all along-and they always will be. Colón's gorgeous art paired with Zeltser's text creates a dreamy, magical world in this book about books. VERDICT Sure to inspire people of all ages to pick up a book and experience the magic that unfolds.-Elizabeth Blake, Brooklyn Public Library

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2019
Grades K-2 On the eve of his eighth birthday, a reluctant reader's parents gift him with a book. Disappointed, he falls asleep until awakened by a lion purring outside his window. It's New York Public Library's Fortitude, and he whisks the boy off to the 41st Street branch, where his partner, Patience, awaits. In the stacks, books and characters come alive, reminding the boy of stories he enjoyed with his grandfather as a smaller child. The author of Ninja Baby (2015) opts here for a pensive tone, well suited to this dream fantasy. Col�n's mixed-media scratchboard-style art complements the wistful text as the characters roam from the Bronx to Manhattan and into the library's grand hall and children's room. Using a palette of earth tones highlighted in yellow and blue, Col�n's art pays homage to this grand edifice as well as several children's classics (including The Polar Express) mentioned in the text. With marbled endpapers recalling Van Gogh's The Starry Night and an author's note filling in NYPL details, this should please bibliophiles of all ages.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)