Louisiana Saves the Library by Emily Beck Cogburn

earlier, so she wasn’t worried. She dreaded the upcoming gift ritual most of all. The modest Play-Doh set she’d sloppily wrapped would pale in comparison to the expensive Legos, remote-controlled helicopters, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle action figures.
    â€œCome on, these are the kids from Max and Jimmy’s class, you know that,” Sylvia said. “There’s Ethan and his dad, Toby. Mahalia is at the top of the slide there, and her mom, June, is sitting at the table. Josie, Lindsey, and Martin are jumping in the ball pit.”
    â€œHow do you keep all these characters straight? It’s like reading a Russian novel, except that all the dialogue is about whose kid is already reading and which one is still sleeping with a pacifier.”
    â€œI like Tolstoy. Besides, I pay attention.” Sylvia adjusted Madeleine’s swaddling.
    At one month old, the baby spent most of her time sleeping. She was incredibly calm compared to Max and Zoe, who had done nothing but cry and nurse at that age. Though, to be fair, the worst part of their babyhoods was Brendan and his disappearing act. Seeing Madeleine and smelling her sweet baby scent brought back the good memories of cradling the children and staring at their tiny faces in rapture. Sometimes, Louise wished she could go back and rewrite that period of her life, replacing her ex-husband with a more likable character.
    â€œEven without a newborn I don’t have the mental energy to keep up with what day of the week it is,” she said. “Saturday, right?”
    â€œShut up,” Sylvia said. “I’m starving. When do you think they’re going to do the cake?”
    â€œThey don’t pass out the sugar bombs until the end. We only got here fifteen minutes ago.”
    â€œYeah, but we were half an hour late.”
    â€œTrue.”
    Zoe dropped the hoop and climbed on a rubber horse. She bounced up and down. “Horsey!”
    The other parents congregated in groups, laughing and talking. They were way too upbeat. Clearly none had been up half the night with kids who took turns having nightmares and demanding snacks and drinks. Louise yawned. Starbucks needed to open a store inside Bouncing Crawfish. Right away. “Kids’ birthday parties are worse than junior high dances,” she said.
    â€œHey, I had fun at those things. Girl, you are such a grump.” Sylvia gave Zoe a finger wave.
    â€œPlease. At least in junior high, there was always some cute boy with a skater haircut to make it exciting. Here we don’t have anything but a bunch of moms and a cardboard pizza. Speaking of which, I’m tired of kid food. I want a mocha latte with extra caffeine, a nice sandwich, and a piece of pie.”
    â€œLet’s make friends.” Sylvia shifted Madeleine to her shoulder and grabbed Louise’s arm.
    â€œHey, wait!”
    Under Sylvia’s strong grip, Louise felt like a kid being dragged to the principal’s office. But she gave in to the inevitable and allowed herself to be guided off the bleachers.
    Sylvia approached a group of women standing near one of the inflatables. They were all wearing skinny jeans, baggy A&M sweatshirts, and high heels. They looked impossibly young, rested, and beautiful. Louise glanced back at Zoe, still bouncing happily.
    â€œHowdy, y’all.” Sylvia unleashed her best “Hey, gals” smile.
    â€œIs that your child?” a woman wearing fake-fur-trimmed heels asked, pointing at the top of the slide.
    Max was trying to push the birthday boy out of his way. Luckily, Josh was nearly a year older than Max and outweighed him by ten pounds. He shrugged it off and continued down the slide.
    Louise put on her authoritative voice. “Max, you do not push. If you push anyone again, we’re leaving, do you hear me?”
    Max looked in his mother’s direction, but said nothing. He went down the slide, crashing into Josh at the bottom. They both