“No!” yelled Lenora, and she tried to run, but the nanny had her by the hand and was already dragging her away.
“You naughty girl,” said the nanny. “You’ve cost me ten minutes searching for you! Now I’m going to be late. Your parents will be notified.”
Lenora dug in her heels and would not budge. She looked desperately for the archway—
But it was no longer there. The nanny tossed Lenora over her shoulder and stalked through the library as astonished patrons looked on.
“No!” shouted Lenora. “I have a job! I work here! I’m Queen of the Penguins!”
But the nanny would not listen, of course, and they marched down toward the exit, Lenora yelling the whole way. As they passed the front desk, Lenora looked pleadingly at the librarian sitting there.
But the librarian put her finger to her lips, shushing Lenora, and Lenora could not help but go quiet. And then—
The librarian smiled and gave Lenora a broad wink—
And then they were out the door and into the sunshine and marching down the steps to where Lenora could see the chauffeur folding up his newspaper as he saw them approach. And she looked back for one last view of the library, its front door swinging shut, and her heart broke to think of all she was leaving behind, the books upon books, all the wisdom of all times past, present, and future, and all the adventures that awaited those who were armed with the light of knowledge, but she knew, she knew, because she had seen the older girl’s badge, and on the badge were words that were simple but summed up everything:
LENORA
LIBRARIAN
And she knew, she knew …
SHE
WOULD
BE
BACK!
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Zeno Alexander would like to thank the following for The Library of Ever: the lovely and wise Miriam Angress, the crack team of wordsmiths who style themselves Adverb Fight Club (John Claude Bemis, Jennifer Harrod, and J.J. Johnson), and the relentlessly encouraging Anjali Banerjee. Furthermore, to Claudia Lanese for her artistic inspiration, and Matt Rockefeller for his glorious artwork. Melinda Wang’s advice, as always, was invaluable. Also, Paige Wheeler and the team at Creative Media Agency, who kicked down Zeno’s door and wrested this manuscript from his hands, then turned it over to John Morgan at Imprint, who, along with Erin Stein, Ellen Duda, Dawn Ryan, Raymond Ernesto Colón, and Bethany Reis, crafted it into the book you are holding now. And of course, the utmost gratitude to Lenora, who allowed Zeno to tell her story.
Zeno may be reached via electronic post at
zenoalexander@pm.me
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
After emerging from the shadows of the past, his history yet to be fully explained, Zeno Alexander spent years exploring the world’s libraries before settling down in his lavish underground bunker, where he regularly hosts exquisite dinner parties and tends to his collection of extinct plants. His friendship with the famous librarian, Lenora, has turned into a series of biographical works devoted to chronicling her adventures. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
1. Lenora Arrives
2. Lenora Enters the Library
3. Lenora Takes Over
4. Lenora Ventures Forth Bravely
5. Lenora Saves the Day
7. Lenora Sails the Seas
8. Lenora Travels the Globe
9. Lenora Ascends the Summit
10. Lenora Tackles the Unknown
11. Lenora Dodges Danger
12. Lenora Gets It
13. Lenora Leaps
14. Lenora and the Enemy
15. Lenora and the Dark
16. Lenora and the Light
17. Lenora Leaps into Action
18. Lenora Races Across the Sands
19. Lenora Falls into a Trap
20. Lenora Goes
21. Lenora Leaves
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Copyright
A part of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010
mackids.com
All rights reserved.
Good friend, for Zeno’s sake forbear,
To steal the words enclos’ed here.
Blessed be the ones who scorn the crooks
And cursed be they who thieve my books.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.
Our eBooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at (800) 221-7945 ext. 5442 or by e-mail at MacmillanSpecialMarkets@macmillan.com.
Book design by Ellen Duda
Imprint logo designed by Amanda Spielman
First hardcover edition, 2019
eBook edition, April 2019
eISBN 9781250169167