Amanda Cleary Eastep
Little did I know that when I wrote Lions to the Rescue! that God was planting a seed in my heart. In my story, Jack Finch helps his best friend Ellison build a bike bookmobile to realize his dream of recommending more diverse books to people in his suburban neighborhood. Two things that inspired the writing of this third book in the Tree Street Kids series for kids 8-12 (Moody Publishers) were historic efforts to reach people who didn’t have easy access to books.
First: On the wall of the Moody Publishers office hangs an old photo of the horse-drawn wagon D.L. Moody’s booksellers used to deliver affordable books to the impoverished in Chicago. It’s a fascinating history you can read about here.
The second inspiring story was that of the packhorse librarians of the Great Depression, who delivered books to the remotest parts of Eastern Kentucky by horse and mule. In Lions to the Rescue!, I include a fun fact about these librarians.
Here’s where this story becomes amazing for me personally…
After the historic floods in September 2024 in western North Carolina where we live, I connected with a wonderful woman who had a heart to collect and give away books to children and their families in the hardest hit areas–some of these kids lost parents and homes. So I began to volunteer with this grassroots effort called 21st Century Packhorse Librarians. Instead of horses and mules, other volunteers and I work alongside founder Kirsten Crawford Turner to hand out hundreds of books via special events in our mountain communities.
I am officially a packhorse librarian. But to bring this story about stories full circle, here’s a sweet denouement.
Not only is Kirsten the founder of this incredible nonprofit, she’s also a book reviewer. And she recently reviewed–yep!–Lions to the Rescue! Read her review of my book and many others at Classically Kirsten:
Amanda Cleary Eastep 