Since it is so likely that they will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage.” —C. S. Lewis, “Three Ways of Writing for Children” (1966)

Why We Go

The library is a weekly staple in our family’s routine. From audiobooks for car rides, picture books for littles, or the next chapter book for older kids, we have learned to use our library for the needs we have.

Libraries can be a great source of community, too. Most have reading times for the younger crowd. Summer brings puppet shows, craft times, STEM projects, and more. Adults have book clubs, knitting circles, and common-interest meetups. Check your local library for what is available.

Enter with Caution

Lately, libraries feel more like a war zone. Our old library in Wichita, Kan., started promoting drag queen story time, claiming it was to show the diversity in the city. When asked kindly but persistently if my husband could do a pastoral story time to give another viewpoint, they said they’d get back to him and never did.

The “new read” shelves have been taken over by transgender ideology as well as princes who search for the knight of their dreams instead of a princess. When asked if they would invest in Jani Ortlund’s A Child’s First Book of Marriage, though, I got a hard no.

These changes caused me to ask, “How am I to be the light of Christ to my librarians as well as my young readers? Do I stop going just to protest their pushing and instead make my home collection better?” No, hiding doesn’t help anyone but myself in this matter.

A Bold Challenge

I’ll admit, I rarely read adult fiction. The majority of my time is spent home­schooling, but I truly prefer juvenile fiction. Adult fiction is getting harder to enjoy with foul language, sexual content, and even political opinions shoved into historical fiction. Sadly, I have rarely found a good read in the Christian fiction section. Most of those books at our library are modest romance novels taking place in Amish settings.

In the same way, my crew doesn’t know what’s good to read in the juvenile section. While my boys want fantasy, they want it without darkness filling the whole story. My daughter wants princesses and horses, but without feminism. They just want a compelling story.

So, beginning in April, I challenged myself. Why not read through the juvenile chapter book section? This hasn’t been easy, but it has been fruitful for maturing in Christ.

The Darkness in Children’s Literature

The challenge itself started with a hard stop. Tony Abbott’s The Summer of Owen Todd was my second read. Within a few chapters, I was met with sexual abuse of a minor, suicidal threats, and an 11-year-old boy who is trying to figure it out alone. I wish I could say it ended happily, but, honestly, I didn’t finish it. I was too appalled. My first reaction was, “Why is this in the kids section?!” After that was prayer, because I knew I had to bring it up with the librarian.

The librarian was surprised, pulled both copies from the shelf, and had me fill out a complaint form detailing the issue. A few weeks later, the library let me know the book was indeed correctly placed. The boy in the book was 11 years old, and, according to the School Library Journal, that meant it needed to be in the juvenile section. My complaints on the content were pushed aside as personal preferences. I fumed a bit internally, but then saw the bigger issue. Few public libraries care about content.

I recently pushed this point again, asking for Andrew Peterson’s The Wingfeather Saga to move to the children’s section. The protagonists are juvenile in age, yet they put the book in the young adult/teenage section. The book itself has the same amount of drama as other action-packed reads in the juvenile section, but, because the oldest boy is 12 (despite his siblings being 11 and 9), it is bumped up. So, the book, which centers on redemption, is out of sight and reach for most families. Most teenage sections are secreted in a corner or placed with the adults. That’s a topic for another day.

Have a Game Plan

How do we as Christians use the public library? I have found that having a game plan helps. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Have family devotions. Maybe this seems like an odd first step, but truly it is the most important part. When entering into the public sphere, the greatest way to arm your family is with the Word of God and prayer. It is the basis for the later steps. It is the way you as a family prepare for battle.

Know your library. When we lived in small Wichita, Kan., I needed a library with a layout where I could see all my crew, and a trusted librarian to ask about the next read. In big Kansas City, I need to know which children’s librarian pushes a liberal agenda with displays, and if there’s a small-town library nearby. You might have different needs.

Check out good books regularly. Recently on Instagram, Whitney Newby, Christian author of Brighter Day Press, had a story about navigating your library with wisdom. She found that the books that are checked out most often stay in the collection and get additional copies added to the system. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to flood the system with Helen Taylor’s Little Pilgrim’s Progress or Joel Beeke’s Building on the Rock series?

Also, she mentions the need for godly families to request good books not in the system. Does your library have R. C. Sproul’s series of children’s books? If not, request that they buy them. Start with The Prince’s Poison Cup. It’s our favorite!

Be willing to have big discussions with your kids. Unless you request all your books before going to the library, you’ll occasionally end up with a rotten egg book in your library basket. What do you do?

Please don’t just toss it back in the library bag with lots of huffing and puffing, but sit down with the child you’re reading it with and pull out the perfect book, God’s Word. None of the books you get from the library are the breathed-out Word of God. So, measure them by it.

“Boaz? Why is Pig the Pug so repugnant?” Have those conversations with them, and, as they grow, they’ll know that all things need to be brought to the Word.

Nowadays, my older kids come to me, letting me know the unfitness of a book they picked out, albeit not always. Sometimes I find things they didn’t notice. So, inviting discussion continues.

How to Pick a Book

Since April, I’ve plowed through over 30 books from the juvenile section, with and without my kids. While I would love to let you know about every read, that’s better done with comfy chairs and a cup of tea. So, here are some tips for knowing what you’re getting before you read:

Know your authors. If your child is grabbing a book from R. L. Stine, they are investing in pure terror and sleepless nights with the Goosebumps series. Instead, if you pick out a book from Gertrude Warner’s The Boxcar Children, you still get mystery, but without the terror and with respectful, family values. A few authors we love for all ages: C. S. Lewis, Cynthia Rylant, A. A. Milne, Mary Pope Osbourne, Beatrix Potter, and Beverly Cleary.

Know the audience. Authors writing in the 2020s are going to have a very different audience than an author in the 1960s or earlier. Truthfully, my favorite time frame to read from is the late 1880s–1930s. Older literature has richer language for children, with better morals. A few authors for older readers (age 8+): Arthur Ransome, Brian Jaqcues, Andrew Peterson, S. D. Smith, Trenton Lee Stewart, Louisa May Alcott, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Lucy Maud Montgomery.

Know the content. I spoil a lot of books for myself for the sake of knowing what is inside (thank you, Wikipedia). I’m okay with that. Sometimes, knowing an author isn’t enough when they have a wide range. Kate DiCamillo’s Mercy Watson is an instant family favorite. Yet The Miraculous Journey of Edward Toulane is dark and depressing. A few books we really enjoy (all are first in a great series): Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke, The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright, The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald, and The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander.

I hope this article is a blessing and helps you navigate your reading journey. Libraries are great tools to work with. I encourage you to branch out to your local branch, and see what there is to enjoy.