A lot of people pay lip service to the wonders of books and libraries, then spend most of their free time playing video games. Tomás Rivera was one person who truly owed his amazing life to the power of books.
The child of Mexican migrant farm workers who didn’t speak English, Tomás walked past his local library in Iowa every day, not knowing what it was. The librarian noticed him and finally came outside one day to invite him in. This began an unlikely friendship between a young boy and a stern librarian who shared a mutual passion for stories. The play was written by José Cruz González, playwright in residence at Childsplay in Arizona, and is based on the book of the same name by Pat Mora. Saar is the founder and artistic director of Childsplay. Here’s an audio report about the play including snippets of dialogue.
A 16-week national tour began in Hampton, the Iowa town where Rivera learned to read, and in the audience were people who knew the Library Lady. Rivera’s widow saw the show in Los Angeles, and Saar says she gave it her blessing. (Rivera died in 1984; UC-Riverside renamed its general library after him.)
A lot of people pay lip service to the wonders of books and libraries, then spend most of their free time playing video games. Tomás Rivera was one person who truly owed his amazing life to the power of books.
The child of Mexican migrant farm workers who didn’t speak English, Tomás walked past his local library in Iowa every day, not knowing what it was. The librarian noticed him and finally came outside one day to invite him in. This began an unlikely friendship between a young boy and a stern librarian who shared a mutual passion for stories. The play was written by José Cruz González, playwright in residence at Childsplay in Arizona, and is based on the book of the same name by Pat Mora. Saar is the founder and artistic director of Childsplay. Here’s an audio report about the play including snippets of dialogue.
A 16-week national tour began in Hampton, the Iowa town where Rivera learned to read, and in the audience were people who knew the Library Lady. Rivera’s widow saw the show in Los Angeles, and Saar says she gave it her blessing. (Rivera died in 1984; UC-Riverside renamed its general library after him.)
“It’s about finding your place in the world, and the forces that can act against that, and the forces that can help you,” said David Saar, who directs the Seattle Children’s Theatre production of “Tomás and the Library Lady” that opens Friday. “The Library Lady was the latter for Tomás. It’s a celebration of reading and of stories and their importance to us.”
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