by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass
Publisher: Text Publishing, 2023
Publisher’s blurb
The New York Times bestselling authors of Bob, Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass, introduce readers to a little free library guarded by a cat and a boy who takes on the mystery it keeps.
When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight in the small town of Martinville, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two weathered books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change.
Evan and his best friend Rafe quickly discover a link between one of the old books and a long-ago event that none of the grown-ups want to talk about. The two boys start asking questions whose answers will transform not only their own futures, but the town itself.
Told in turn by a ghost librarian named Al, an ageing (but beautiful) cat named Mortimer, and Evan himself, The Lost Library is a timeless story from award-winning authors Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass. It’s about owning your truth, choosing the life you want, and the power of a good book (and, of course, the librarian who gave it to you).
Review
by Liz Filleul
The small town of Martinville lost its library when it burned down 20 years ago, and it has never been replaced. No wonder, then, that fifth-grader Evan is delighted when a little free library appears along his walking route to school. He borrows two old books and finds his father’s name in one, and the name of a current best-selling mystery writer in the other.
Soon Evan, along with his friend Rafe, are trying to solve mysteries of their own. Why won’t Evan’s father talk about the book with his name inside? Why is the little free library full of books from the destroyed library, and why do the date stamps inside show that they were all returned on the same day? Who is the partly obscured person in the photograph found inside one of the books? Who is the pseudonymous best-selling mystery writer, and did he or she really once live in Martinville? And why won’t any of the adults talk about the fire?
The boys’ detective work forms only a part of this delightful book, which is narrated in turn by Evan, an ageing cat called Mortimer, and a ghost librarian called Al. Mortimer misses his sister Petunia, from whom he was separated when the fire broke out. Now, he guards the little library, because its shelves remind him of the games they played as kittens. Al and the other two ghost librarians she shares a house with miss their work at the library. Al reminisces about the library’s book club, and the day that the fire broke out.
The Lost Library is an enchanting read that children at the lower end of middle grade (so, eight to ten years old) will really enjoy. The characters are engaging, and the three intriguing plots all come together in a joyous denouement. Highly recommended for the young-at-heart too – who doesn’t need a bit of uplifting escapism in these turbulent times?