And then they were out the door and into the sunshine and marching down the steps to where Lenora could see the chauffeur folding up his newspaper as he saw them approach. And she looked back for one last view of the library, its front door swinging shut, and her heart broke to think of all she was leaving behind, the books upon books, all the wisdom of all times past, present, and future, and all the adventures that awaited those who were armed with the light of knowledge, but she knew, she knew, because she had seen the older girl’s badge, and on the badge were words that were simple but summed up everything:

LENORA

LIBRARIAN

And she knew, she knew …

SHE

WOULD

BE

BACK!

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Zeno Alexander would like to thank the following for The Library of Ever: the lovely and wise Miriam Angress, the crack team of wordsmiths who style themselves Adverb Fight Club (John Claude Bemis, Jennifer Harrod, and J.J. Johnson), and the relentlessly encouraging Anjali Banerjee. Furthermore, to Claudia Lanese for her artistic inspiration, and Matt Rockefeller for his glorious artwork. Melinda Wang’s advice, as always, was invaluable. Also, Paige Wheeler and the team at Creative Media Agency, who kicked down Zeno’s door and wrested this manuscript from his hands, then turned it over to John Morgan at Imprint, who, along with Erin Stein, Ellen Duda, Dawn Ryan, Raymond Ernesto Colón, and Bethany Reis, crafted it into the book you are holding now. And of course, the utmost gratitude to Lenora, who allowed Zeno to tell her story.

Zeno may be reached via electronic post at

[email protected]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

After emerging from the shadows of the past, his history yet to be fully explained, Zeno Alexander spent years exploring the world’s libraries before settling down in his lavish underground bunker, where he regularly hosts exquisite dinner parties and tends to his collection of extinct plants. His friendship with the famous librarian, Lenora, has turned into a series of biographical works devoted to chronicling her adventures. You can sign up for email updates here.

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