The Summer the Librarians Went Outside
A fictional story based on true events
By Stephanie
It was a beautiful summer day.
The sun shone, the birds chirped, the flowers bloomed, and a light breeze rustled the leaves on the trees.
In the park, there were children playing, people and their dogs walking, Frisbees soaring, and picnics spread out on park tables.
Everyone longed to be outside.
Including the librarians.
In the library, it was cool and quiet. It was the perfect place to take a break and get a book to read before going back out into the sunshine.
But the librarians were stuck inside all day.
One librarian kept looking out the window, watching the wonderful day pass by, and sighing wistfully.
“I wish we could take the library outside!”
Then the librarian paused and asked, “Why can’t we take the library outside?”
“What if the books get dirty?” cried a librarian in shock.
“Well, we wouldn’t just put them on the ground.”
“What if it rains and the books get wet?” another librarian wailed in despair.
“We’ll check the weather before we go out.”
There were more objections, of course.
“How will we get all of our books outside?”
“Where will we take the books?”
“What if it gets too hot? Or too cold?”
“People don’t bring their library cards outside, how will they check out books?”
But the first librarian thought of solutions for everything, and soon the other librarians got excited about the idea.
“I ride my bike to work, maybe we could bike to the park?”
“Let’s bring a big umbrella for shade!”
“We could bring activities!”
“We could give out library cards!”
The librarians came up with a plan on that glorious summer day. They got bicycles, and helmets, and a special trailer, and a big umbrella for shade. They packed up a bunch of books, and a few activities, and some library cards.
They took their bicycles and books to parks, to farmer’s markets, to concerts, and to festivals. They checked out books, and gave out library cards, and did activities, just like they did at the library.
At first, people were confused when they saw the librarians outside. Libraries had always belonged inside before!
But they checked out books, and played games, and made crafts, and soon they got used to seeing the librarians outside the library.
The traveling outdoor library was a success! And for the rest of that summer, and every summer after, if the weather was nice, the librarians packed up their books and joined in the fun outside.
The End
*There’s still time to catch the BookBike this summer!
Find the BookBike and Dabble Box from 9 a.m. to noon on Mondays at Owen Park and on Wednesdays at Carson Park through the end of August.
In September, find us at Owen Park on Fridays from 9 a.m. to noon, with storytime at 10 a.m.
The BookBike will also be at the Downtown Farmer’s Market in Phoenix Park from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays through at least the end of September.
You can find the most up-to-date schedule on our website at https://www.ecpubliclibrary.info/bookbike/
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