The Librarian from the Black Lagoon

Title: The Librarian from the Black Lagoon
Author: Mike Thaler
Illustrator: Jared Lee
Genre: Fiction

Summary
The Librarian from the Black Lagoon is about students in one class who have a fear of going to the library because of all the scary things they have heard from others about the librarian. They imagine a variety of horrible things, such as thinking the librarian will laminate you if you talk in the library or that you are only allowed to stay in the library as long as you can hold your breath. The story goes on and on about the scary things the librarian is known to do, however, at the end of the story, the class walks towards the library and they see all the welcoming signs, instead of the strict and scary ones they were expecting to see. Once they sit down in the library, Mrs. Beamster, the librarian comes over to the table and sets down a stack of books she had already personally selected for each student to read. The students realize that they library and Mrs. Beamster are the opposite of what they had imagined. The library is a very nice, welcoming, and comfortable place to visit, not the horrible, scary place they had previously heard from others.

Classroom Connection
Although this book is fairly simple to read, it portrays a good lesson about fear. This would be a good book to read aloud to the class during the first week of school. The first week of school is usually scary because most people do not know what to expect and this book would give the students and teachers a glimpse of hope for the upcoming year.