Open Book

The autumn air was crisp and refreshing on Mrs. Madgett's face, giving her rosy cheeks and bright eyes. She loved the colder seasons, though it always made her homesick. Maybe one day, she would be able to go back to where she grew up, before it was too late.

“Good morning, Mrs. Madgett!”

The old woman smiled and waved cheerfully at the postman walking by with his bag of envelopes. She hobbled up the brick steps and unlocked the large double doors into the familiar building she had entered faithfully for so many years. Flicking the lights on, the rows of shelves and cozy chairs were flooded with light.

“Hello, my friends! It’s a new day! Maybe something wonderful will happen.”

Her wrinkled face held a look of hope as she shuffled slowly into the historic building, sprawling with bookcases holding an endless array of books. The smell of old leather and dust filled her nose, reminding her of the many years spent inside these walls, combing every shelf for the one book she lost.

After hanging her things on the coat rack, she made her way to the bin under the return books slot and gently placed each one on a rolling cart. Her eyes scanned each one until the bin was sadly empty.

She sighed. “Not here.”

The front door burst open, with a young woman running frantically to place her coat on the rack. Her hair was in a disheveled heap on the top of her head, while her brown eyes looked around behind large glasses.

“Sorry I’m late, Mrs. Madgett! My alarm never went off! If the dragon hadn’t woken me up, I never would have gotten out of bed.”

Mrs. Madgett chuckled at the girl, knowing the dragon was an orange tabby cat rescued from the back alley.

“No need to apologize, Tizzy. I only just arrived myself.”

“Oh, good!” After her eyes landed on the returned books, she asked, “Any luck finding that book?”

“Not in these, I’m afraid. But the day is young, maybe it will come later.”

Tizzy smiled and nodded, eyes watching the dear old lady walking away quietly. Rolling up her sleeves, she tackled the job of returning each book to its proper place among the rows of shelves.

Each nook and cranny of the Ogunquit Memorial Library was a source of comfort to Mrs. Madgett, who felt the warm reminder of home among the pages of magical stories. The beautiful stone building with medieval doors was a place she looked forward to seeing almost every day. Over the years, she had come to view the building as a friend, one who had grown old as she had, yet held many happy memories of story times and the hushed silence of readers lost in a book.

“Mrs. Madgett, it’s almost time to put out the Christmas decorations!”

Looking up behind her drooping reading glasses, the old woman smiled. “I was thinking maybe you could decorate the tree this year.”

Tizzy’s head popped up from behind a shelf in surprise. “Me? Really?”

“I think you would do a lovely job.”

“But you’ve always done the decorations. It’s tradition!”

“I think it’s time for a new tradition. Time to pass the reigns.”

Tizzy’s face lit up with excitement, while she fluttered from one end of the library to the other, mumbling a slew of ideas for Christmas themes.

“Mrs. Madgett?”

The reading glasses slipped to the end of her nose when Mrs. Madgett looked up at a worried Tizzy.

“Yes, dear?”

“Is everything alright?”

Pushing her glasses back up, the old woman chuckled. “Everything’s fine. I just don’t move up the ladder like I used to. And I really do think you would do a wonderful job.”

Tizzy sighed with relief. “Ok. Just making sure. It sounded like you might be leaving for a minute there.”

The old librarian turned her gaze to the windows, absently listening to Tizzy’s voice trail on behind her. There were days when she loved nothing more than spending her time inside these walls, losing herself in a story of a faraway place. Then again, that’s when all her world had turned upside down, and she didn’t want to do that again. No, she must be more careful.

The sound of the doors opening signaled the first visitors of the morning, an exciting start to the day for Mrs. Madgett. Her eyes always twinkled at the arrival of new visitors walking through their doors, wondering what stories they may find themselves in at the library.

“Excuse me, I was wondering if you could help me find a good book for my daughter.”

Mrs. Madgett glanced up from the card catalog to see a mother with a preteen in tow, looking uninterested at the dusty world of books.

“Oh, yes. Well, what kind of books do you like, dear?” the old woman asked.

The young girl shrugged her shoulders and mumbled, “I don’t know.”

“Hmm...you seem like someone of an inquisitive nature. How about a good mystery?”

The interest of the girl was immediately piqued as they followed Mrs. Madgett to look at the full collection of Nancy Drew mysteries. The young girl seemed irritated and uninterested when she passed her the first book, but Mrs. Madgett felt pleased as punch when she walked by the comfy reading chairs later to see the girl pouring through the book while her mother searched the shelves in the romance section.

Tizzy whispered, “I think you may have gotten her hooked.”

“The mysteries are always the most fun to start.”

If only she could solve her own mystery of the missing book. She had scoured the checked-out book list every day, as well as the returned bins, there was no sign of it anywhere.

Tizzy pointed to a corner of the library where a young woman was curled up to a book. “I wonder which one she’s reading, must be a sad one.”

Mrs. Madgett reached down behind the counter to grab a box of tissues and passed them to Tizzy. “Not all tears are sad ones. I’d wager she’s reading one of the best parts of Anne of Green Gables.”

“Do you think so?”

“You can see when you pass these to her.”

Mrs. Madgett smiled when Tizzy returned with a look of surprise on her face.

“How do you always know, Mrs. Madgett? It’s like you have a sixth sense!”

“Oh, no. I would never say that.” With a sparkle in her eyes, she added. “Maybe a bit of magic.”

The day went on, with happy readers making their selections and immersing themselves in fantastic stories, while Tizzy and Mrs. Madgett quietly buzzed around. One reader caught the eye of Mrs. Madgett, causing concern to cross her face.

“Be careful with that one, dear.”

A young boy pulled down the worn copy of The Hobbit and looked up at the old woman’s face in curiosity. His hair stuck in many different directions, while his wrinkled shirt hung loosely on his thin frame.

“What?”

“You have to be careful with that one.”

“Careful? Why?”

“If you lose yourself in it too much, you may just find a dragon in front of you one day. And I can tell you, they are not at all agreeable.”

The boy laughed awkwardly. “Thanks for the warning.”

“Mmhmm.”

When she walked away, Mrs. Madgett could only sigh. The young people never listen these days, especially when it concerns leaving books unattended.

“Mrs. Madgett, I’ve always been curious about something.”

The elderly woman continued to place books on their proper shelves, before absently answering, “Oh?”

“Umm, well...why do you run to grab books left on the tables?”

Stopping to look back at Tizzy with a serious expression, Mrs. Madgett replied, “Because they’re open. If they were closed, there would be no reason to, now would there?”

Tizzy stared blankly back while Mrs. Madgett continued her work. The young woman nodded in thought and walked slowly away, more confused than when she had asked her question.

A smile crossed Mrs. Madgett’s lips when she glanced at the familiar cover held by an older man, who was slowly making his way to the door.

“Excellent choice. Moby Dick is one of my favorites.”

The gentleman smiled and waved at the dear old librarian as he walked out the heavy doors and disappeared down the street.

The evening came quickly, with people trickling out the doors to find their way home or down the street to the shops. As Tizzy was collecting the books in the drop-off bin, the metal plate clanked open for another surrendered book to come sliding down the chute. Picking it up, she looked at the cover quizzically.

“Mrs. Madgett?”

The old woman had just locked the doors after the last customer when she hobbled back to the counter.

“What is it, Tizzy?”

“There’s a book here that I’ve never seen before. There’s a note attached to it giving apologies for keeping it past the due date, but they said there are no words inside. And look, it’s completely empty!”

“Let me see.”

A look of utter happiness filled Mrs. Madgett’s face when she held the dusty, old book. Tizzy watched curiously while the old woman’s hand ran over the cover.

“Do you know it?”

“I do. It’s my missing book. All these years I looked for it, and it’s finally here.”

“How wonderful!” Tizzy clapped her hands together in excitement before she added, “I had no idea your book was empty! What a strange thing!”

Tizzy bustled about the library to finish straightening up, while Mrs. Madgett shook her head in wonder.

“You just can’t see them yet...”

The young Tizzy waved a cheerful goodbye, while Mrs. Madgett locked the door behind her.

The next morning was another beautiful day, with sunlight spilling through the red, yellow, and orange leaves. Tizzy held a steaming cup of coffee in her hand while she walked cheerfully through the library door.

“Mrs. Madgett, it’s a beautiful morning! It’s the perfect day to get out the Christmas decorations!” Setting her things down in a heap on the counter, she unbuttoned her coat and looked around at the silent room. “Mrs. Madgett?”

Her brow furrowed in thought while she walked around to find any sign of the dear librarian.

“How strange. She’s never been late before...” she muttered to herself.

Her gaze stopped at an open book left on a long wooden table, along with a pen and paper, placed beside it. Picking up the paper, she saw a note addressed to her, which read:

Dearest Tizzy,

I apologize for my absence this morning, and for my sudden departure. I do hope you can forgive me. I simply could wait no longer to go back home to see my loved ones. I trust you completely to watch over our wonderful library and the many readers who may need help in finding the perfect story. Be careful not to lose yourself in fiction and forget to live in the present, you don’t want to miss the magic outside the library doors.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Wormwood-Madgett

P.S. Don’t forget to close the books!

Tizzy’s face was filled with wonder at the letter until she picked up the book and closed it, causing her to gasp. The book, once empty the day before, now had a beautiful title emblazoned across it, as well as words on every page.

“Matilda, by Roald Dahl...” she mumbled aloud. Her eyes looked up in shock as she exclaimed, “Wormwood!”

Taking the book to a special shelf of classic children’s stories, she placed it carefully and smiled, thinking of her dear old friend.

“I always knew books were magic.”

Photo by Jaredd Craig on Unsplash