Where shadowy crowds will watch the strife,And cheer the deeds of wonder

There are occasional advantages to "not really being part of the Library Service." Not being involved in meetings like this, for one...

Mary had collected together her lieutenants - Bronwyn, Maybelle, Nancy and Frog - to review workloads and projects for the next couple of weeks. Starting off with a quick review of what they're doing at the moment:

• Bronwyn - umpteen reading activities, four author visits, getting five trolleyloads of donations onto the catalogue and distributed, and giving Frog and the Acq. Team a hand with the latest batch Book Off books (a doddle this week, just the thirty boxes), and helping Maybelle with a couple of family literacy events with the local Asian community.
• Maybelle - the above-mentioned family literacy events, a couple of presentations and membership recruitment sessions to families of asylum seekers, a stock-edit of the Portuguese books in the outreach collection, and giving Frog a hand with the materials for a poetry event at Dutch Bend.
• Frog - the summer reading game, the summer holiday events and activities programme, BookStart, SureStart, Book Off, Book You, Booking Hell, et al.
• Nancy - "nowt really."

This was the day after Mary sprung the Sheep City poetry day on Frog. He brought along the mock-up of the activities he planned on delivering, including drafts of the material he was going to use with the children.

Mary could scarcely contain her indifference.

Maybelle, who usually presents as being very laid-back and easy-going (she isn't, but she presents as such very convincingly) was bouncing off the walls afterwards. It's difficult to know if she's the more pissed off with Mary or nancy.