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    Bats at the Library
    Bats at the Library
    Bats at the Library
    Ebook35 pages12 minutes

    Bats at the Library

    By Brian Lies

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    The Caldecott Honor winner and New York Times bestselling author of Bats at the Beach “pays homage to the pleasures to be found within libraries and books” (School Library Journal).
     
    Another inky evening’s here—the air is cool and calm and clear. Can it be true? Oh, can it be? Yes!—Bat Night at the library!
     
    Join the free-for-all fun at the public library with these book-loving bats! Shape shadows on walls, frolic in the water fountain, and roam the book-filled halls until it’s time for everyone, young and old, to settle down into the enchantment of story time. Brian Lies’s joyful critters and their nocturnal celebration cast library visits in a new light. Even the youngest of readers will want to join the batty book-fest!
     
    “As with its predecessor, this book’s richly detailed chiaroscuro paintings find considerable humor at the intersection where bat and human behavior meet. But the author/artist outdoes himself: the library-after-dark setting works a magic all its own, taking Lies and his audience to a an intensely personal place.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
     
    “The rhymed narrative serves primarily as the vehicle for the appealing acrylic illustrations that teem with bats so charming they will even win over chiroptophobes.”—Booklist
     
    “There is enough merriness here to keep the story bubbling . . . Pictures light-handedly capture the Cheshire Bat, Winnie the Bat and Little Red Riding Bat.”—Kirkus Reviews
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOpen Road Integrated Media
    Release dateSep 8, 2008
    ISBN9780547740751
    Author

    Brian Lies

    Brian Lies is the Caldecott honor-winning author-illustrator of New York Times bestsellers Bats at the Beach, Bats at the Library, Bats at the Ballgame, and Bats in the Band. He has written and illustrated more than twenty books for children. Born in Princeton, New Jersey, Brian lives on the South Shore of Massachusetts with his family. www.BrianLies.com 

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    Reviews for Bats at the Library

    4.5/5

    224 ratings24 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I loved this book, and I only wish it had been around when I was a child. The paintings are magnificent, I don't know how to describe them, but the bats seem so lifelike. The story is about a large group of bats who are excited to hear that the library window has been left open one night. The bats then swoop in and have the run of the place. They read, play games, chat about books, and get lost in storytime. They are sad when the sun starts to rise and they must leave, but they look forward to the next trip to this fantastic world of fun filled fantasies. This book is perfect to get children excited about going to the library and about reading in general.
    • 4/5
      Favorite library read, narrative, rhyme, delight to read and illustrations are heart warming and adventurous.
    • 5/5
      This charmingly-illustrated book tells the story of what happens one night when a bunch of bored bats find a window ajar at the library. The bats – cutely drawn by author and illustrator Brian Lies – are thrilled by the discovery and spend the night exploring the library and having fun. They make photocopies of themselves on the copy machine, play in the pop-up books, conduct a family storytime, and use the drinking fountain as a swimming pool. The illustrations are richly detailed and funny. On one page, some bats are described as studying a guide to "fancy foods" and they are shown examining a guide to insects. This is a delightful picture book that will entertain readers of any age and is perfect Halloween reading. This is also a wonderful follow-up to Lies' first bat book, "Bats at the Beach," also highly recommended.
    • 5/5
      The bats come into a library through a window that is left open by the librarian. Although the older bats know how to behave in a library, the young ones have no idea. They make photocopies of themselves, play with water fountain and create a mess.This missbehaving stops when the young ones are consumed in story time.
    • 5/5
      I read this awesome story to the 2nd graders that I had to read to. This story is very catching. It rhymes with each ending word, it is basically a poem book. A awesome catchy poem book to read to any children from k-3.
    • 5/5
      I absolutely loved this book! The first thing I noticed while reading this book was the illustrations. I enjoyed looking at the pictures on each page and spotting what each bat was doing. The way the author gave the bats humanistic qualities made the book cute, entertaining, and appealing to all ages. It also contained rhymes that were fun to read.
    • 4/5
      This is one of my favorite books. I love to use it to show how reading takes you places through your imagination. At night bats take over the library. they enter through a open window, begin exploring the different books, and have a wonderful time reading books. Grades through K - 2
    • 4/5

      Wonderful, yes, fans of libraries will not be disappointed.  But also frustrating - I did not recognize all the references.  Goodnight Sun is easy, of course.  And the bat version of Pippi Longstocking is cute.  Peter Rabbit, Alice, etc... but who is riding a horse & escaping from a mob?  And who says from bed No more melted cheese for me," perhaps because of nightmares?  A bibliography or answer key would be perfect.

      "
    • 4/5
      Okay, this one's even cuter than Bats at the Beach! Would give it 4.5 stars if I could! Love the detail of the illustrations, eventhough they're very dark, and author Brian Lies does a nice job of telling the story in rhymes. Fun one here!
    • 3/5
      "Another inky evening's here - / the air is cool and calm and clear. / We've feasted, fluttered, swooped and, soared, / and yet... we're still a little bored" begins this engaging picture-book about a colony of bats that visit the local library one night. Whether reading selections that seem tailored to their interests - an insect guide is described as a guide to "fancy food" - playing with the photocopier, or settling in for story-hour, these bats know how to get the most out of their library visit, and how to really sink into a story!With its rhyming narrative and appealing acrylic illustrations, Bats at the Library would make a good story-hour selection, although I'd be careful of the lighting conditions, when reading - the artwork is rather dark, and doesn't show up well in bright light. That said, there were many little details here that I found charming, from the upside-down vista in the first scene (a rooftop hangs from the top of the page), to the copy of "Goodnight Sun" that a few of the bats are seen reading. And, of course, the idea of getting lost in a good book is always one that will appeal to me! All in all, this was a charming little tale. I think I'd like to read about the bats' first adventure, in Bats at the Beach.
    • 4/5
      naughty bats. libraries are for people. and cats.
    • 5/5
      This is a wonderful book! A group of bats wait for their chance to visit the library when a window is left opened. They enjoy the contents of the library, and not just books!
    • 3/5
      Well it's no Library Mouse but it's a decent book, maybe fun for Halloween if you're actually trying to steer clear of something too "Halloweeny." Classroom teachers know, it's a fine line.
    • 4/5
      A great motivational book for reading. Some neighborhood bats find their way through a small window of the library and every night they sneak in to read some books. A fun book for kids to get jump started on their motivation for literature and reading.
    • 4/5
      I liked this one, but not as well as Bats on the Beach. It was still cute, though. Those bats are just darling! My only complaint is the darkness of the illustrations makes it a hard title to share at storytime. But otherwise it's lovely!
    • 5/5
      This book is very captivating. It's about bat's that go to the library through an open window. They have so much fun reading books and hanging out. The book has great pictures and it makes me want to go to the library and read books. This book would be great for a reluctant reader. I loved this book.
    • 4/5
      It's library night for bats when the librarian leaves one of the windows open. This somewhat strange, unknown, omniscient narrator explains, in rhyme, what the bats do at night in the library: play games, read books, copy themselves in the photocopy machine, swim in the drinking fountain, etc. The book is fun and playful, if a little bit creepy at times. The bats have such a good time in the library that they lose track of time and must hurry to leave when they realize the sun is coming up.The story is done in rhyme, which is cute without being cutesy. The illustrations are dark without being eery and are light enough to capture the playfulness of the text. Illustrations span the full spread across both pages and there is no white space.Highly recommended for elementary school libraries.
    • 5/5
      I read this book with a group of 3rd graders and they absolutely loved it! It was great for a Halloween story. A librarian accidentally leaves a window open and the bats take over the library and do all kinds of crazy things. The kids really got into the story and the illustrations were wonderful. They really made the book. They show all kinds of funny things the bats are doing and they show a ton of detail. This was a great read aloud book.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book because it has great illustrations and language. The illustrations throughout the book show the exact activity that the bats are performing at the library. For example, when the bats are duplicating themselves in the copy machine, the illustration portrays the bats inside the copy machine, and a photo of them printing. This is great for children because as they are reading the book, they can visualize what the machines are, or how they function. Some children may not know what a copy machine is, but the illustration describes it to the reader. Additionally, I enjoyed the language of the book because it was descriptive, clear, and catchy. The entire book is written in a rhyme. One line that I loved was, "...and leave a window open wide, to let us share the world inside!" This quote is near the end of the book and it clearly shows the language being used throughout. The bats are saying that they hope the librarian leaves the window open for others to see how amazing the library really is. The overall message of the story is to welcome all people inside a place that you enjoy, and to share the experiences.
    • 4/5
      Cute and very creative, the bats rest in the day and during the evening, they find a window opened in the library. Having a great time reading they stay until the break of dawn. Again, I'm laughing out loud at the funny details incorporated in the illustrations. The bats are dressed like fairytale characters, and one bat reads a book Called Good Night Sun, instead of the popular Margaret Wise Brown Good Night Moon.
    • 5/5
      While out on their nightly adventures, a group of bats notice that the library window has been left ajar. Bats, young and old, head for the world inside the library where they read books, have discussions, play in the water fountain, make Xerox copies of themselves, make shadows with the overhead projector and discover where books can take you--where ever your imagination goes. As the light of dawn approaches, the bats scramble to vacate the library and hope that the librarian will once again leave a window open for them to enjoy the wonderful world of the library once again!Great book! Brian Lies writes and illustrates this story which is a part of a series of books about bats. I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Lies a few years ago when he visited our school's media center. He was super in person and really wowed the students with his talents!
    • 5/5
      I think just the subject matter alone of Brian Lies' picture book, “Bats at the library” would entice many young readers of the ages of about 4 to 8. Thus the story is about a group of bats who sneak into a library at night time, when no one else is around to read the books. “Bats at the library” has been written as a rhyme and it contains quite a bit of alliteration, so children would enjoy reading it aloud. Lies' magnificent, detailed and comical paintings fill up every page and depict the text perfectly. Mostly darker colors are used, which suits the bat and night time content. “Bats at the library” is great for developing reading skills and imagination.
    • 4/5
      “Bats at the Library” is an appealing story of bats who love to visit the library and reading good stories. Brian Lies invites the readers along through the bats’ journey to the library, as one of library’s windows has been left opened over night.Although they only have a few chances to see inside the library, many members of the bats colony are excited to look around. The older ones explore the book shelves while the little ones play with a projector to make shadow puppets. Brian Lies does a wonderful job in showing children the magical journey for the bats in the library. They can be anything they can imagine; playing in water fountains, copying themselves in a copy machine, and many more. The great story time is set up for the little ones, until all the bats imagine themselves in adventures of different worlds in the books.It is a very powerful story which shows children how even bats love reading stories and can see worlds they have never known through the books.The artwork and entertaining rhymes definitely make this book a valuable reading for children. This book celebrates the library as the place to enjoy the world through words. I recommend teachers to have this book in their bookshelves, in their class or school library.
    • 5/5
      6 year old's review: The book is so funny! The pictures of bats being inside the stories like - little red riding bat and peter bat are amusing.

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    Bats at the Library - Brian Lies

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