Public Employee Press

Sr. Librarian Susan Scatena
Purple hair and a Jell-O bath

Senior Librarian Susan Scatena will do just about anything it takes to fulfill her mission of getting children to love reading.

Is it worth a little public humiliation? That’s OK with Scatena, who has a special talent for nutty schemes that convince kids to read more.

Last summer, 200 people showed up at the White-stone Community Library in Queens to watch Scatena take a bath in a kiddy pool filled with colored gelatin while gleeful children dyed her hair purple. That was Scatena’s way of rewarding kids who met the challenge of the library’s reading program.

Scatena had promised the kids who’d signed up for the summer reading program that she’d take the Jell-O plunge if they would collectively read 1,000 books.

Two hundred and fifty kids took up Scatena’s challenge — and they read a total of 4,654 books. Ordinarily, about 120 children participate.

“During the summertime, reading slows down a little because the kids don’t have to do book reports,” said Scatena, the children’s librarian at Whitestone. “We wanted to grab their attention, and this obviously worked.”

The library’s program caught the attention of the local media and bestselling author James Patterson. In March, Scatena received a prestigious $5,000 James Patterson PageTurner of the Year Award for coming up with the creative reading program. She was among 39 individuals, schools and organizations honored for going to extraordinary lengths to spread the joy of books and reading across the country.

“We are all very proud of Susan,” said Margalit Susser, president of Queens Library Guild Local 1321. “Her dedication shows how far our members will go to promote reading and to provide the best possible library services to the community. She is one of the Queens library system’s wonderful treasures.”

Scatena is a 25-year veteran of Queens Borough Public Library.

As a student, she considered becoming a teacher, but changed her mind after she worked as a page in the library. She earned her undergraduate degree in early childhood education at Queens Borough Community College and her master’s from the Queens College of Library Science.

“I thought it was quite an innovative program,” said Queens resident Barbara Yee-Lam, whose children Daniel, 6, and Jessica, 4, devoured lots of books last summer.

“The kids really enjoyed it.”

Yee-Lam has known Scatena for years, and says her enthusiasm for reading is “contagious. She really draws the kids into reading,” Yee-Lam said. “We consider her part of the family. She is a wonderful asset to the library and the community.”

Like many Queens children and parents, Yee-Lam suspects that Scatena is cooking up another scheme for this summer. But Scatena isn’t talking.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do yet,” said Scatena coyly, speaking as if she were guarding a state secret.

— Gregory N. Heires