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It is Monday morning at the downtown library. Patrons drop by to pick up their reserves; classes of children flock to storytime; and regulars settle in to chat, read, and ruminate. As the noon hour strikes, people gather in the auditorium, doffing raincoats, unpacking lunches or needlepoint. They are men and women, young and old, singles and couples, and groups. The spiraling strains of Bernard Herrmann's soundtrack to Vertigo die down, the house lights dim, and the crowd settles into an expectant hush.
A librarian steps out before them and takes a seat at a small table with a microphone, clock, glass of water, and light. He opens a binder, looks out at the assembled listeners, and smiles. Peering into the semidarkness, he sees familiar faces, and those of curious newcomers. He greets them, mentions a few items of library news, and then lowers his gaze to the warm light reflecting up off the pages before him. The surrounding shadows seem to deepen, the silence to sharpen. He looks up again and addresses his audience - now his conspirators - with a curious glint in his eye. "Why don't we kill somebody?" he suggests. What remains of the cares of the day drop away. They're hooked.
The previous scenario has unfolded at our library twice each month since that day five years ago when I first presented Thrilling Tales. Over the years, many visiting librarians have asked me about this program - what it is, how it works - and I now realize that this kind of storytime might work very well in many libraries, done many different ways. In this article, I'm going to tell you the story of how I started my program; discuss ways that you might produce your own adult storytime to get your creative juices flowing; and offer practical tips for selecting stories, staging the program, and reading stories.
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