The Library of Ever - Hardcover

Alexander, Zeno

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1250169178 ISBN 13: 9781250169174

Publisher: Imprint, 2019

Synopsis

Named a best book of the year by Kirkus Reviews, The Library of Ever is an instant classic for middle grade readers and booklovers everywhere—an adventure across time and space, as a young girl becomes a warrior for the forces of knowledge.

With her parents off traveling the globe, Lenora is bored, bored, bored—until she discovers a secret doorway into the ultimate library. Mazelike and reality-bending, the library contains all the universe’s wisdom. Every book ever written, and every fact ever known, can be found within its walls. And Lenora becomes its newly appointed Fourth Assistant Apprentice Librarian.

She rockets to the stars, travels to a future filled with robots, and faces down a dark nothingness that wants to destroy all knowledge. To save the library, Lenora will have to test her limits and uncover secrets hidden among its shelves.

An Imprint Book

An Amazon Best Book of the Month
One of Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books of the Year

“Unusually clever.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Zeno Alexander's The Library of Ever reads like someone mixed Neil Gaiman with Chris Grabenstein, then threw in an extra dash of charm. Reading it is like getting lost in an entire library full of books, and never wanting to leave!”
—James Riley, New York Times bestselling author of the Story Thieves series

“Full of whimsy and pluck, The Library of Ever is a total delight!”
—Wendy Mass, New York Times bestselling author

About this title

About the Author

After emerging from the shadows of the past, his history yet to be fully explained, Zeno Alexander spent years exploring the world's libraries before settling down in his lavish underground bunker, where he regularly hosts exquisite dinner parties and tends to his collection of extinct plants. His friendship with the famous librarian, Lenora, has turned into a series of biographical works devoted to chronicling her adventures.

Reviews

Gr 3–6—Eleven-year-old Lenora is desperately bored. Her wealthy parents have flippantly dismissed Lenora's aspirations to obtain a job at the planetarium, the museum, or the zoo. Worse, she is forced to accompany her inattentive nanny on errands by limousine. Luckily, the nanny needs to stop at the library, and is indeed inattentive. Within the first 10 pages, Lenora discovers a mysterious stone arch in a wall of the library through which she crosses into the realm of a much larger, fantastical library that agrees to give her a job. Dubbed a Fourth Assistant Apprentice Librarian, Lenora fearlessly embarks on a series of short, magical adventures in order to answer patrons' reference questions and provide other customer service. Lenora must also contend with the Forces of Darkness, unsavory individuals in bowler hats dedicated to the causes of censorship, control, and the ignorance of the masses. Breezily episodic and fast-paced, the action here begins right away. Deus ex machina moments abound, but seem fitting to the solemnly whimsical plot. Lenora is dedicated to her new career at any cost, and never once questions any of the fantasy elements she encounters or the responsibilities she is given. Quirkily self-referential in tone, the writing attempts to create inside jokes with the reader, e.g., the hypersensitivity of beluga whales and their unique mastery of English. VERDICT Purchase for larger libraries, for passionate library fans, or to spark early conversations about intellectual freedom.—Sara White, Seminole County Public Library, Casselberry, FL

Edition details

• Publisher: Imprint
• Publication date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1250169178
• ISBN 13: 9781250169174
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 208