What are some excellent novels that feature librarians?

Question

My fiancee is a librarian. What are some novels that you've read and would recommend featuring one or more librarians? Please only books that you have read and enjoyed, no random stuff from Amazon searches. Thanks :-)

Answer 1

Ah....a question after a librarian's own heart. How sweet that you're looking for books for her about librarians. Now that is a considerate and thoughtful partner.

Fiction wise:

Stones from the River by Ursula Hegi

It takes place during WWII centered around a dwarf woman named Trudi. Her father is a librarian, and Hegi does a marvelous job of capturing the comfort and sanctity of a library. Not to mention the rest of the story is engaging and fascinating. It's an emotional roller coaster, but it's an amazing book, well-written and worthy of the awards it has won.

Murder at the Library of Congress by Margaret Truman

A rather pithy murder mystery from Harry's daughter that takes place in the Mecca of libraries. It's a fun rainy day read for a librarian, especially if they've been there and can place the areas that are discussed in the books.

The Dewey Decimal System of Love by Josephine Carr

Super cheesy romance involving librarian Ally Sheffield is in love with the maestro of the Philadelphia Philharmonic orchestra after being celibate for 15 years. It's silly, but it's a fun Saturday afternoon romp that will make any Library Scientist chuckle. Not phenomenally well-written, but a cute and fluffy read.

Overdue Notice: Poems from the Library by David Drake

For a change of pace, choose this book of poetry that consists entirely of poems dealing with various aspects of librarianship. Buildings, patrons, books, and friends are themes included in this eclectic collection by an accomplished poet.

Anything from David Drake's the Lord of the Isles series is great too. The main character of these books, Tenocritus (sp) is a weak sorceress, so she relies on the knowledge found in her vast collection of books. A fun read for any fantasy lover.

The Librarian - Larry Beinhart

This is a snarky commentary on the ways of the world by the author of American Hero (which became the movie Wag the Dog). It's very "conspiracy-theory" but is poignant in some places and hilarious in others. He has a biting commentary on how the U.S. is being run, but is a great read for anyone, including a librarian. The main character is David Goldberg, a private collection librarian that gets mixed up in a plan to rule the world.

Two nonfiction titles I would suggest are:

Booklust by Nancy Pearl

A funny little guide to finding the perfect book for the perfect mood. It's well-written and quite amusing in parts, and it's great for that librarian who has so many choices she just doesn't know what to read.

Book on the Bookshelf by Henry Petroski

A history of the book from illuminated manuscripts to children's books. A perfect book for anyone who loves the feel, weight, smell, and mystery of a book. He does concentrate heavily on more the evolution of the bookshelf in the end (he is an engineer after all), but I think it's a great read for anyone, especially one in a book-related profession.

Last but not least:

An extremely cute and amusing children's books dealing entirely with books and genres of books is Please Bury me in the Library by J. Patrick Lewis. The illustrations are too cute, and the poems are funny and fitting for book lovers of any age.

With those suggestions, I'll leave you with J. Patrick Lewis' poem "Please Bury Me in the Library" the title poem of his book. Yes, I have it memorized...I am after all, a librarian too. Best of luck to you.

Please Bury Me in the Library

“Please bury me in the library,
in the clean, well-lighted stacks,
of Novels, History, Poetry,
Right next to the Paperbacks,

Where the Kids’ books dance
With True Romance
And the Dictionary dozes.
Please bury me in the library
With a dozen long-stemmed proses.

Way back by a rack of Magazines,
I won’t be sad too often,
If they bury me in the library,
With Bookworms in my coffin.”

Answer 2

I know you said novels featuring librarians....but there are a few great nonfiction books out there featuring librarians...that are so good.

DEAR MISS BREED is a book about how one librarian made a world of difference to some of her youngest patrons during the Japanese internment during World War II. It is a really touching biography of how one librarian went above and beyond her "duties" to truly touch others' lives. It's a great book. Published in 2006, by JoAnne Oppenheim. (And yes, I've read it and loved it...I'm a librarian too)

There is a children's book called MY LIBRARIAN IS A CAMEL: HOW BOOKS ARE BROUGHT TO CHILDREN AROUND THE WORLD. Again, it's nonfiction about how librarians are working to connect books with young people. It is by Margriet Ruurs.

Answer 3

The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger is a fantastic book.
The time traveller was a librarian, although honestly I must say the librarian aspect of his character was rather out-of-place (plus he's a guy). But then he was an anomaly all-around. Anyway great book--I think Niffenegger might be a librarian or something, so she was just "writing what she knew". Maybe.

Answer 4

The Da Vinci Code (a librarian features prominently near the end)

The Historian (much academia and research; appealed to library types like myself)

There are some "chick flick" novels featuring librarians, but I don't recommend any of them.

Also, depending on what kind of librarian she is (academic? public? law?) she might enjoy novels featuring those subfields. I used to work in a high school, and Brendan Halpin's "Losing My Faculties" totally changed my outlook. :)

Answer 5

Although his works don't necessarily feature lots of librarians, per se, I would still consider Jorge Luis Borges to be the patron saint of librarians. He was director of the national library in Argentina for many years, and his writings (all very short pieces) reflect his love of books and libraries. Check him out. You'll see what I mean.

Answer 6

By far, the best, most comprehensive and deepest book featuring the life of librarians and life in a library is the Name of the Rose, by Umberto Ecco. It's also a first class mystery crime novel and one of the best "whodunnit" ever written. Hope this helps.

Answer 7

The best book I've read about librarians is Eco's The Name of the Rose.

Answer 8

The great "The Cat Who..." mystery series by Lilian Jackson Braun has a librarian as one of the main characters, Polly is the girlfriend of the star of the stories, Qwilleran.

Answer 9

He's a minor character, but I love the Librarian of the Unseen University that shows up in Terry Pratchett novels.

Oook.

Answer 10

All of the "Cat Who" mysteries by Lilian Jackson Braun have a character who is a librarian. She is the lady friend of the main character. I kept seeing everyone else reading these books and thought they seemed sort of dumb. Then I read one and got hooked. I think she would enjoy them. You too!