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Today, a woman came into the children's library, returned a book, and proceeded to complain about it. It was a book of fairy tales and nursery rhymes and she wanted to let us know that she would not have checked it out if she had known that the stories were so violent. She specifically cited Red Riding Hood which, in that book, is the Red-and-granny-eaten-whole, woodsman-kills-wolf, Red-and-granny-emerge-unscathed variety*. She was all, "This is terribly violent!", as though she'd never heard the story before.

And certainly, patrons have a right to dislike whatever they want and there's now law that says you have to read fairytales as a child. But, man, it was something of a surprise nonetheless. How do you grow up in this culture and not know at least one version of Red Riding Hood?** It's kinda boggling.

Also, yes, fairytales are violent. Fortunately, this collection didn't contain Bluebeard or The Juniper Tree.



*I don't like that version either, but then I don't care at all for the version with the woodsman. I either like Red to get eaten or to trick the wolf herself.

**I will admit that I am assuming, from her race and accent, that she grew up in this country. That may, of course, be a wholly inaccurate assumption on my part.

(no subject)

The thing about working in a children's library is that I read a lot of picture books. Picture books are great. But then, one wants to tell other people about those picture books, and I find that people who do not have tiny people of their own do not often venture into the children's section of libraries or bookstores. Thus, they don't read picture books and miss out on a lot of great things.

So I have decided to have a Weekly Picture Book You Should Read. I'll try to do them on Wednesday evenings, I think. They'll each contain a brief description of the book, an image if I can swing that, and reasons why I think you should read it. Should be fun.

This week's Picture Book You Should Read is T is for Terrible by Peter McCarty.


I am Tyrannosaurus Rex. I am a dinosaur, otherwise known as a terrible lizard. I do not know why I am so terrible.

So...there's a T-Rex. He is terrible. Why is he so terrible? He does not know. That's pretty much all there is to it.

Why should you read this book? Because it is adorable. It has the cutest little T-Rex the world has ever seen. Mr McCarty's art is lovely - all muted tones and pudgy adorably expressive dinosaurs that you will want to cuddle while cooing, "Oh, his little fangs!" (At one point, there is a tiny dimetrodon. It is my favorite thing ever.) The text is simply but utterly charming.

So, next time you're in a library or a bookstore, check it out. It won't take you more than 3 minutes to read but you will be completely charmed by those three minutes.