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The Sunnydale High Library in Buffy the Vampire Slayer

It’s National Library Week, and even fictional characters need a place to check out books from time to time. Though it’s not always the case, fictional libraries tend to be magical; after all, they’re created by writers, and writers know the power of the written word. If they’re going to invent a repository for knowledge, then at the very least, it should be an interesting one.

Of course, in the manner of mice, cookies, and milk, when a writer creates an unusual library, he or she is going to invent an unusual librarian to go along with it. Here are a few memorable made-up archives and their equally memorable keepers:

Matilda & Mrs. Phelps in Matilda: The Musical

The Local Public Library & Mrs. Phelps (Matilda): Roald Dahl’s classic opens by introducing the protagonist, Matilda, as a Reader, which perhaps makes Mrs. Phelps the most important librarian of them all – in taking a four-year-old’s request for a ‘grown-up’ book at the local library seriously, she sets the rest of the story into motion. Mrs. Phelps is the first adult in young Matilda’s life to encourage her to learn, and the first to feed her hunger for knowledge.

The magic here is in the moment when Mrs. Phelps presents Matilda with a library card and tells her she can start taking books home.

The Great Library & Cheshire Cat (Thursday Next): In the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde, characters can travel in and out of books, interacting with public domain heroes and villains – as long as an intrepid explorer has already found a way in. In Lost in a Good Book Thursday enters the Great Library for the first time, which contains every book ever written, every book that ever will be written, “and a few others beside.”

The Library is the starting point for all Prose Resource Operatives, or members of Jurisfiction, and is overseen by the ‘quite mad’ Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland (technically, the Unitary Authority of Warrington Cat due to adjusted county boundaries). He can give you the publication date, ranking, and up-to-the second reading figures for every book in the library – as long as you have tuna-flavored Moggalicious to trade.

Dr. Anthony DeBenedet, author of The Art of Roughhousing, gave another TEDx talk (his last one was in September 2011) at Eastern Michigan University. This time around, he talks about the benefits of being playful.

Reclaiming play as a priority in our lives can transform and perhaps even heal us in powerful and unexpected ways. Unfortunately, from the moment we leave childhood, our inner sense of play is attacked. Whether it’s in our workplaces, schools, or homes, play is thwarted by a pervasive culture of seriousness and productivity.

But what if play is just as important as genetics or personal choices when it comes to health, quality of life, and longevity? Would we set different priorities? Through science and personal anecdotes, we will explore the play-health connection. And hopefully, in the process, reawaken the playful child that lives within all of us.

Give it a watch. Nice job, Anthony!

PC Load Letter?!

Did you know that April is Workplace Conflict Awareness Month? Well according to Google and Wikipedia it is! And if the Internet tells you something, it has to be true. Right? Right.

In honor of this clearly legit declared month, we’re posting excerpts from Caroline Tiger’s How To Behave: A Guide to Modern Manners. In How To Behave, Caroline dedicates an entire chapter to office etiquette. It’s my hope that these bits of wisdom, posted every Wednesday this month, will help you to alleviate the conflict in your workplace.

Ah, brunch. It's the perfect meal to attempt a foray into pan-frying frittatas. It’s easy to prep when company’s coming or while the kids are on their Easter egg hunt. It's a versitile dish that allows you to add your own special additions.

This frittata cooks quickly. It’s fluffy, fully flavored with hefty meats, eggs, tomatoes, and lots of cheese. Your family and friends will grab frantically for slices. Enjoy!

Here at Quirk we know how to work hard and play hard. Our monthly office parties give us an excuse to celebrate. Katie Hatz, our resident party designer, picks fun and quirky themes for us to play with. We went for a Pink Piggy Party in March. We celebrated with pig ear headbands, ate pork-inspired treats, and played pink pig balloon volleyball.

Check out some photos, our music list, and great recipes below. Oink, oink!

Rich and Brenna Neeley, two clever book-loving crafters from Southern California, rescue discarded books and turn them into absolutely beautiful docks for your iPod, iPhone, and/or iPad.

But how can anyone chop up such gorgeous books? A lot of the books featured in their Etsy shop are really quite stunning. Well, according to their profile page, Brenna only recycles “books that haven’t been appreciated elsewhere” with “more than a few [sneaking] their way into [their] personal collection.” So you can be quite sure that the book being used “was not being loved as it should be.”

Visit their Etsy page for more. I’m definitely ordering one soon.