Oliver Wormwood is the youngest and only boy in his family of six siblings.
On the day of The Calling in his 13th year, Oliver is expected to try out for a trade and become an apprentice. His sisters are a ranger, a blacksmith, a mage, a lawkeeper and an explorer, so Oliver is tested in those disciplines first. He fails dismally, much to his father’s disappointment, and is resigned to having to wait another year when he is accosted by Heironymus Finch-Thackeray, librarian. After showing that he can read and also read other languages such as Alterwald, Alcest, Cro-Shugguth and the Old Tongue, Heironymus pronounces him to be the 113th assistant librarian.
Oliver expects to be bored in the library – but nothing is further from the truth. Not only are the books dangerous, especially if you turn your back on them, but they are magical. Oliver finds himself in charge of the library when his new master unexpectedly dies before his eyes. He gets very rapid lessons in various library procedures when he is attacked by a horde of murderous bookworms, which are only controlled by the returns book bats, and when a library patron releases a troll from a book of fables.
After more deaths, Oliver finds himself facing a violent opponent who escaped from a codex. How he and a library resident called Agatha restore the evil knight to his rightful page is an exciting climax to a book which is a wonderful, inventive, original fantasy, not just for middle grade readers but also their parents and others who love books and libraries.
Reviewed by Lynne Babbage
Age Guide 9+
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stuart lives in Melbourne, Australia with his wife and son.
An omnivore when it comes to consuming stories, he reads too many books, watches too many films and plays too many videogames. After many years transcribing the lives of others, from their phone calls to their court appearances, he finally got a chance to write his own stories.
He is the author of The 113th Assistant Librarian (QBD Books’ Children’s Book of the Year 2024 and shortlisted for the Indie Book Awards 2025!) and the ‘Prometheus High’ series.
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