The Magic of Libraries

Like so many writers, libraries hold a special place in my heart. From the time I was a little girl, a trip to the library meant entering a magical world filled with countless delights—all those inviting books that could take you to different places and lives, some similar to your own and some so different and yet connected to your own life. As a child, I devoured books— the Babar series, classic fairy tales, the Boxcar Children, and Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys Mystery series were special favorites.

My love of libraries has continued into adulthood, and I never get tired of reading the Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen to my grandchildren.

This past weekend, I travelled to northeastern Kentucky to the Flemingsburg County Library to participate in a book fair. I was not only selling and promoting my own books, but those of Derby Rotten Scoundrels, my local chapter of Sisters in Crime, for which I currently serve as president. The library was charming, complete with a children’s section decorated with an enormous dragon and a large comfy reading chair just right for a parent and child to snuggle while reading a picture book.

Stephanie Morgan, the Youth Services librarian and coordinator of the fair, had told me she’d ordered my latest book, Leisha’s Song. And when I checked out the library’s YA section, there it was! Truthfully, it never occurred to me that I would one day see something I’d written on the shelves of a public library.

This isn’t the first time I’ve seen one of my books on a library shelf, but honestly, it never fails to give me goosebumps! Libraries remain magical places for me. To be even a small part of them is such an honor and a blessing.

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