Tomás and the Library Lady by Pat Mora
Mora, P. (1997). Tomás and the Library Lady. New York, NY. Alfred A. Knopf.
Summary: Tomás is the son of Hispanic parents, and his family are migrant farm workers who travel to Iowa to work in the spring and summer and work in Texas in the fall and winter. During the day he and the other children play while their parents work, but sometimes they ask Papá Grande to tell them a story. One day Papá Grande tells Tomás he should go to the library downtown instead. There, Tomás becomes friends with the librarian and discovers whole new stories and worlds that he never could have imagined before. Before his family leaves for Texas, Tomás bids his librarian friend goodbye and leaves with one last story.
Thoughts: While this style of illustration is not exactly my favorite, the story is incredibly touching. Weirdly enough, after working in the children’s department for five years, I had still never read this book. So this was an exciting new read this week that pertains directly to my profession. Tomás’s story is beautiful and I loved his interactions with his family every time he gets a new book from the library. They were just as eager to read it as he was. Even more heartwarming is the fact that it is based off of Tomás Rivera’s real life experiences, and his name now graces the campus library at the University of California at Riverside.
From Kirkus: A charming, true story about the encounter between the boy who would become chancellor at the University of California at Riverside and a librarian in Iowa. Tomás Rivera, child of migrant laborers, picks crops in Iowa in the summer and Texas in the winter, traveling from place to place in a worn old car. When he is not helping in the fields, Tomás likes to hear Papa Grande’s stories, which he knows by heart. Papa Grande sends him to the library downtown for new stories, but Tomás finds the building intimidating. The librarian welcomes him, inviting him in for a cool drink of water and a book. Tomás reads until the library closes, and leaves with books checked out on the librarian’s own card. For the rest of the summer, he shares books and stories with his family, and teaches the librarian some Spanish. At the end of the season, there are big hugs and a gift exchange: sweet bread from Tomás’s mother and a shiny new book from the librarian to keep. Colon’s dreamy illustrations capture the brief friendship and its life-altering effects in soft earth tones, using round sculptured shapes that often depict the boy right in the middle of whatever story realm he’s entered.
Kirkus. (2010). Kirkus Review: Tomás and the Library Lady. Kirkus. Kirkus Media. Retrieved July 13, 2017 from: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/pat-mora/tomas-and-the-library-lady/
Potential Library Uses: Tomás and the Library Lady has a lot of potential for use during a special Hispanic Heritage Month storytime. Hispanic Heritage Month is in October, and I think this book would make an excellent addition to a storytime for older children, perhaps ages 4-6. It touches on not only the history of Hispanic migrant farm workers in North America, but on the importance of local libraries to the children of these families. And reminds us of the importance of libraries to today’s children.
Advertisements Share this:
