The Lost Library

Al comes to the basement, picks up Mortimer, and stares at a library cart. Mortimer recalls when he and his sister, Petunia, used to play in the library as kittens. Suddenly, Al goes upstairs to wake Ms. Scoggin and give her some apple muffins she has just baked. She tells Ms. Scoggin she has a plan.

Mortimer follows Al, who lugs a book cart outside. He worries about these remnants of his library, knowing he was meant to look after it. Al has taken the doors and hinges from the house’s cheese cupboard and is fashioning a new cupboard from them. When it is time to go inside, Mortimer worries about leaving the books behind outside.

It is the final Monday of fifth grade. Evan climbs the hill between his house and school.

Al tells the reader that the story will make sense soon. She explains that she, Mortimer, and Evan all live in a town called Martinville.

When Evan is three-quarters of the way to school, he stops at a tree. He has gained five extra minutes by running, so he opens his journal to write, but nothing comes to him. Instead, he thinks about a man named Mr. Vanderbilt, who arrived at his home that morning asking Evan’s father for a refund for failing to exterminate some mice. Evan’s father never kills the mice he is hired to trap, instead releasing them into the mountains. Evan writes about the clouds above him, which remind him of a camping trip he took with his father, and then continues on to school.

He stops again when he sees a little free library. Beside the library is an orange cat, who seems to be guarding it. The sign invites Evan to leave or take a book, so Evan takes the two smallest ones.

Mortimer recognizes the boy, Evan, who comes to the little free library. He is glad when Evan takes two books. Then he sees Al coming toward him with a dish of food.

Al has waited all night for Mortimer to come indoors, but he remained outside, guarding the little library. In the morning, Al brings him breakfast.

At school, Evan discusses the little free library with his best friend, Rafe. After school, Evan does his homework and eats a snack. His father arrives, and they exchange news about their respective days. When his father asks to see the books Evan selected from the little free library, Evan is surprised to realize that they are actually library books. His father looks at one of them and then suddenly knocks over a kitchen chair before rushing away.

Once his father is gone, Evan discovers that his father’s name is written on the borrower’s card inside of the book. Both books are marked as belonging to the Martinville Library, which Evan knows was destroyed by fire.

Evan and Rafe talk on the rotary telephones each of them has in his bedroom. Rafe has visited the little free library too, taking a book on growing tomatoes. Evan tells him of his father’s reaction to the book, and Rafe wants to investigate.

Together, they head to the little free library, where they count the books. Nearly all of the 44 books are from the Martinville Library, and a quarter of them were checked out by Evan’s father. All were due on the same day: November 5, 1999.

After dinner, Evan checks the other book for his father’s name, but it is not there. The due date, however, is the same as the others. That night, he begins reading the book, which is titled How to Write a Mystery Novel. He then phones Rafe to ask his opinion on why the library was not rebuilt after the fire. Rafe reveals that the fire resulted in deaths, which Evan didn’t know. He tells Rafe that the famous mystery writer H. G. Higgins checked out the book he is reading. Rafe suggests that this is probably a joke—that a patron used the name of a famous mystery writer because the book is a guide on Higgins’s area of expertise.

Al introduces herself as the former assistant librarian of the Martinville Library. She now lives in Martinville’s History House, located near the site of the former library. One hundred and fifty years ago, the town founders—the Martins—lived in the History House. Ms. Scoggin, the library supervisor, and Mr. Brock, a library patron, now live there alongside Al, though all of them are ghosts, having perished in the library fire. Al is sometimes able to make herself invisible so that she can observe the living townspeople. She also takes care of the chores and the cooking, though Ms. Scoggin is gruff and often criticizes Al.

Mortimer enjoys spending the night outside. He thinks about his sister, Petunia, from whom he was separated after the library fire. A family of mice passes by, but because they are not heading toward History House, Mortimer leaves them alone.

Evan shows his mother a Polaroid photograph he found inside one of the library books. It appears to depict a person attempting to take a selfie. Behind him is a town that seems to be Martinville.

Evan races off to school. At the tree, instead of taking out his journal, he reads How to Write a Mystery Novel. During school, he writes a letter to H. G. Higgins, the mystery writer whose name appears on the checkout slip: Evan asks him about the book, whether he has ever been to Martinville, and whether he knows Evan’s father.

Later, Evan’s teacher sees him reading the book and asks whether Evan plans to write a mystery that summer. Evan realizes that he is involved in a mystery—trying to explain how the books from the former library have appeared. In his journal, Evan outlines the elements of a mystery story. He notes the clues he has already gathered, including the little free library, the due date, and his father’s reaction.

That same day, Al recalls her favorite day at the library: the Wednesday Book Club. She recalls one particular young boy—a patron whom she always tried to coax to join the group. He repeatedly refused.

One day, the boy returned a damaged book that he had repaired with tape. Al expected Ms. Scoggin to reprimand the boy, but Ms. Scoggin did not. Instead, she told Al that she was certain a bully damaged the book.

Another day, Al accepted a pile of returned books from the boy. She was pleased to discover that among them was one of the books the book club discussed, the boy having overheard their conversation.

The man who runs the grocery store brings a crate of books to add to the library. Mortimer sits atop the crate after the man leaves, pleased with the addition. He hears some mice talking and asks one of them about its short tail. A hawk snatched the tail off; the mouse explains that this is a defense feature and that the tail will grow back. The mice head off in search of food.

On Wednesday the fifth graders take a trip to Grantville Middle School. The eighth graders tell the fifth graders about the school, but everyone groans when they learn there is no recess in middle school.

On the bus ride back, Rafe points out the location of the former library. It is now a patch of overgrown bushes and weeds. Their teacher, Mr. O’Neal, comments on what a great library it was. He explains that the fire began in the basement, though no one knows how it started.

Evan is surprised to find his father waiting at school with the other parents. Mr. O’Neal asks to speak with Evan’s father in private; Evan sees him hand his father something. When Evan asks about it, his father tells him it is paperwork.