Nocturnal Adventures

Bats at the Library
by Brian Lies

Summary
After their nightly activities of foraging and flying, a group of bats is hanging around (literally!) feeling a bit bored and wondering what to do with the rest of their evening. When word comes that a window at the library has been left open, they quickly make their way over. Brian Lies Bats at the Library is true to its title, as the group spends a joyous evening exploring the shelves, discussing books, playing with the photocopier, and eventually sitting down to a story time reading that draws each bat in until daybreak.

Worth staying up past bedtime?
Yes! I throughly enjoyed this book. From hanging upside down with the bats as they debate the evening's activities, to splashing in the water fountain, to settling down for story time, I felt like I too, had visited the library with these excited creatures. As a lifetime library patron, I appreciated the sense of fun that author and illustrator Lies brought to the bats visit to the library, portraying it as a place for fun, learning, and exploration. The illustrations frequently incorporate the bats point of view, giving readers a new perspective, and the illustrations that accompany the story time reading are a wonderful montage of famous figures in children’s literature - all imagined with bats in the lead roles, of course.

Reviews
Lies’s (Bats at the Beach) much-lauded bats are back and the library’s got them—thanks to a window left open by an unsuspecting (or perhaps sympathetic) librarian. Although the young ones initially misbehave (they make photocopies of their bodies and turn the water fountain into a splash pool), Lies cuts them a little slack: “It’s hard to settle down and read/ when life flits by at dizzy speed.” Story time settles everyone (upside-)down, and soon the furry creatures are “completely swallowed up” in books, giving Lies comic license to bat-tify the signature visuals from classics like Make Way For Ducklings; Pippi Longstocking; Goodnight, Moon and Peter Rabbit. As with its predecessor, this book’s richly detailed chiaroscuro paintings find considerable humor at the intersection where bat and human behavior meet. But the author/artist outdoes himself: the library-after-dark setting works a magic all its own, taking Lies and his audience to an intensely personal place. - Publisher's Weekly

In the Library
Ask children what their favorite library activities are and what they would do if they found themselves there after dark.

Just as the bats imagined themselves in the roles of famous characters throughout literature, ask children who their favorite characters are and which ones they would be and why.

Module 1 / SLIS 5420
Aug. 31-Sept. 6