News

Read On! Fictional Friends

December 20, 2021

I have a t-shirt that says “Some of my best friends are fictional,” which always makes me think of the fictional friends I carry in my heart.

Sophie Hatter from “Howl’s Moving Castle” by Diana Wynne Jones is a super smart, but sometimes clueless, woman who talks life into things. She sees the potential in the things and people around her and brings that potential to life. She’s great in the anime, but amazing in the book.

Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza in “The Girl of Fire and Thorns” by Rae Carson wants to eat good food (sometimes to numb strong emotions) and read. Instead, Elisa has to use her cleverness to thwart invasions and save the world all while not having much confidence that she can. The imposter syndrome is very relatable.

A new fictional friend is Agnieszka from “Uprooted” by Naomi Novick. She’s a nice mix of Sophie and Elisa. She’s impulsive, empathetic, brilliant, and unsure of herself or her standing in the world. She feels a deep sense of responsibility to her home and her people that drives most of her action.

We’d love to hear about your friends from fiction. We’d also love to introduce you to some ones!

A quick note on Library construction: Beginning December 27, the construction crews will need to block access to our main parking lot entrance, outside book drop, and more of the parking lot.

This will change three things about your Library experience. 1) Everyone will enter and leave the building through our west doors in Youth Services. 2) Parking will be in even shorter supply, so you may have to park in the First Baptist Church’s lot (we are so thankful for their kind generosity). 3) Our outside drop box will not be accessible during this time.

They’re aiming to have that area back open in about three weeks, but construction timelines are tricky.