Prepare yourself: I’m about to share something shocking with you.

Most librarians don’t like Book Fair.
(I’m using very tame language here.)

And I get it. The hours are long, the companies aren’t always gracious, and the workload is intense. Emotions are high, you count a thousand pennies a day, and it’s busy every single minute. Canyouhelpmecountmychange? Howmuchdoesthiscost? WhatdoyoumeanIdon’thavenenough? It’s not for the faint of heart.

But these librarians are missing the point. When you get caught up in the dollar signs and the overtime and the sore feet, you forget about the part that really matters. The reason you make all of those phone calls and count all of those pennies in the first place.

The Book Fair Magic.

Book Fair Magic is when a third grade boy promises to mow the lawn and clean the toilet so that his mom will buy him just one more graphic novel. It’s when a first grader puts one of her beloved books back so that she has enough money left to buy one for her baby brother. It’s when a second grade student writes such a long and detailed Scholarship essay that he needs three pages to hold it all.

Families bring Book Fair Magic, too. Book Fair Magic is when a pre-school parent buys a copy of his child’s favorite book for every student in her class. It’s when grandma says “Sorry, you can’t get that one,” and then sneaks back in after the child leaves to buy the whole series. It’s when a mom spends 25 minutes looking through every single graphic novel to find the one that will make her fifth grader want to stay up at night, sneaking more pages under the covers.

And of course, Johnson staff brings Book Fair Magic. Book Fair Magic is when a kindergarten teacher sponsors scholarships for students that she taught four years ago. It’s when a reading specialist spends her hard-earned paycheck to buy engaging and exciting new materials for her classroom to keep her students interested in reading – materials she could probably save a few bucks on if she just ordered them from Amazon. It’s when administrators vote for every single Book Fair Scholarship essay because they can’t possibly choose a favorite.

Yes, Book Fair is time consuming. And it’s not easy. But it’s worth it.

Our Fall Book Fair will be open through Monday, October 12th. Buy new books, enter our Book Fair Raffle, donate to our Book Fair Scholarship Fund. Or just stop by to experience a little bit of magic.