Library Loving

         February is National Library Lovers’ Month, and I certainly count myself in that category.  Books, of course, are magic: stories shared across space and time straight from one human spirit to another, even when their bodies could never meet in real life, and couldn’t understand one another if they did.  Books are magical threads of connection, and libraries are a multiplication of books: the promise of all those stories, all those characters, all those adventures, all those ideas, all that beauty, excitement, creativity, love, discovery, knowledge, connection…  So it’s not a coincidence that over the years I’ve done lots of art and writing involving libraries.  Here are some of the highlights.

        This first piece is entitled “A Glimpse of Paradise,” because paradise is what a library can be.  The only things missing in this particular view are a comfy chair and a spiral staircase.  You can read all about the making of this piece in my blog post about it.

        The next two pieces make the magic of libraries a little more literal.  In “Bookby-upon-Shelf” the books become dwellings for lucky little people who go in and out walking dogs, watering pot plants, hanging out laundry, and greeting the local book dragon.  Of course the books also house a library of their own in two volumes right in the center of the piece.  If you’re curious about all the other books in this town, you can check out my blog post about it, and learn some of the technical challenges of carving and printing a piece this large, as well as an explanation of all the titles.

        “When the Reader’s Away” the books will play, of course.  In this piece I’ve moved from the idea of living in books to the idea that books have a life and spirit of their own.  These books look to be in a personal rather than a public library, but it’s still the case that when books are gathered their power multiplies as they converse with each other, offering their various different perspectives.

Although portraying the idea in a literal way is whimsical and light, it’s absolutely true that we often use language that unconsciously reflects this idea: What this book is trying to say is…  This book really spoke to me…  It showed me how to do this…  It took me on a journey…

        And finally, here’s a piece in which the library is the setting for a very special creature called “The Grand Marhoot.”  If you want to know more about the Grand Marhoot and why she’s shown in a library, you can read my blog post about it.

        As for stories that involve libraries, you could read

     Vision Revealed (Book 4 of the Otherworld Series), which features Nulif, a librarian/archaeologist, and a description of the Great Collection of K’Ten where he works

     The Extraordinary Book of Doors, which has one scene of hiding and chasing in an unnamed library discovered through one of the book's magical doors

     “In Which the Librarian Delves for Living Words in a Time of Drought” (short story in Bittersweetness & Light), in which a librarian spelunks into a book in order to retrieve treasure for people who are starving because of shuttered libraries

        (You can find more information about all these books here.)

        What’s your favorite library - real or fictional?  Who’s your favorite librarian?  What’s your favorite book featuring a library?

[Pictures: A Glimpse of Paradise, rubber block print by AEGNydam, 2011 (originals sold out);

Bookby-upon-Shelf, rubber block print by AEGNydam, 2016 (originals sold out);

When the Reader's Away, rubber block print by AEGNydam, 2023 (originals sold out);

The Grand Marhoot, rubber block print by AEGNydam, 2017 (Image from NydamPrints).]