Digging for Words

<b>A gorgeous and inspiring picture book based on the life of José Alberto Gutiérrez a garbage collector in Bogotá Colombia who started a library with a single discarded book found on his route</b>. <p/>In the city of Bogata in the barrio of La Nueva Gloria there live two Joses. One is a boy who dreams of Saturdays-- that's the day he gets to visit Paradise the library. The second Jose is a garbage collector. From dusk until dawn he scans the sidewalks as he drives squinting in the dim light searching household trash for hidden treasure . . . books! Some are stacked in neat piles as if waiting for José́. Others take a bit more digging. Ever since he found his first book <i>Anna Karenina</i> years earlier he's been collecting books--thick ones and thin ones worn ones and almost new ones-- to add to the collection in his home. And on Saturdays kids like little Jose run to the steps of Paradise to discover a world filled with books and wonder. <p/>With an evocative text by a debut author and rich stunning illustrations from an up-and-coming Colombian illustrator here is a celebration of perseverance community and the power of books.