Librarians
are portrayed in many children’s books. Fortunately
most of them are positive images. The
portrayal of librarians in this format
may help to disintegrate the stereotypical image that librarians can
hold. As Elaine Yontz stated in her
article Librarians in Children’s Literature,
1909-2000, “[l]iterature written for children offers a valuable
window into
the attitudes and values of the surrounding culture.” (18)
Therefore, it stands to
reason that if
librarians are portrayed positively and non-stereotypically in
children’s
books, then perhaps people do not truly view librarians that way. If nothing else, when children read a book at
a young age they are not learning stereotypes of librarians. They are learning that librarians are
helpful, kind, and knowledgeable. The
librarians in children’s books are also portrayed as doing a wide
variety of
tasks:
Reference, readers’ advisory, story hours for children,
circulation, selection, acquisition, cataloging, processing, public
relations,
outreach, administration, mounting of exhibits, and programming… Even the mundane activities of dusting and
arranging chairs and the unevenly-appreciated task of attending meeting
appear
in literary librarians’ lives… (19).
Children
learn from these books that librarians do not sit around and read books
all
day. They learn what librarians really do,
that they have a great many responsibilities and a multitude of
different
tasks that need to be completed.
Perhaps the
only negative aspect of children’s literature, with respect to the
image of
librarians, is that the vast majority of librarians portrayed are
Caucasian
females. Very few males are represented,
or librarians of different races. One
book, Red Light, Green Light, Mama and Me
by Cari Best, portrays an African-American children’s librarian and
several male librarians. (20)
Occasionally
librarians are portrayed as being a little bit scary or intimidating
for
children. In Harry in Trouble,
by Barbara Ann Porte, Harry
is quite afraid to go tell the librarian that he has lost his library
card
again, he is afraid he will be banned from ever taking out a book
again. (21) In
Prue
Theroux the Cool Librarian, by Gillian Rubinstein and David
Mackintosh, a substitute librarian, Mr. Boycott comes
in and is very mean, calling the kids “fools” and manages to make books
boring. (22) And
in the Library
Dragon, by Carmen Agra Deedy, Miss Lotta Scales is very scary and
does not want the
children touching the books, never mind reading them.
However, in the end Mr. Boycott is a robot
and just needs a different CD-Rom installed and the Library Dragon
changes
into Miss Lotty who is a very warm, caring librarian. (23)
The overall
positive image of librarians in children’s books can do nothing but
help
diminish the stereotypical image of librarians as old maidens with
glasses and
buns.
A synopsis of some librarians portrayed in children's books follow on the next page.
Click on the blue bullets to access
bibliographic citations for the books.
