"That someone carried Book
through one door
and then another.
All the way to a closet
in the back of the library.
Book was slid into a different spot,
on a different shelf.
The lights were turned off.
The door was closed.
Book was alone.
At least that's what she thought."
Book is very happy with life in the library. She spends her days with friends on the library shelf, and is excited to be loved and borrowed by many children. She has a place of importance once returned, where she waits for the next child to take her home. That all changes one day; she is not replaced on the library shelf from the return box. Instead, someone picks her up and puts her at the back of the library in darkness.
Thinking she is alone, Book is surprised to hear the voices of other books. They explain that Book is now part of the Banned Book Closet, and suggest the reasons for why they are all there.
""Someone didn't like me."
"They thought I was too scary."
"They said kids wouldn't understand me."
"They worried I might make people think.""
It is a dreary and sad place to be. The days pass slowly as Book wonders about her best reader friend who loves her so much. Young readers learn, on the following spread, that a lot is happening. The children are making posters in protest, and talking about how they feel about books being banned. It isn't long until she and her friend are reunited. Others enter the Banned Book Closet to find their own favorites and return them to the library shelves.
A happy ending that is not always the case in these trying times. Book banning is not new, and will not go away. Children will appreciate knowing that they can have a say when it comes to what they read.
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