Janine Richards does much more than just maintain the collection of the Woodlawn Hills Elementary library. She may very well contribute her own book to it. 

The library instructional assistant published her first book, "Paci, Oh, Paci!" in January, and has more children's literature in the works. 

"My heart always has been to work with children in some capacity, placing their excellence first and foremost, and bringing the world to them through books," Richards said. "So why not write my own, with a focus on finding those everyday ways we all live in common, as one?"

"Paci, Oh, Paci!” is a sing-along book that features babies and caretakers from different cultures with much in common: babies need to be soothed, and the pacifier is one way they self-soothe. Caretakers, loving their little ones, share in the angst when that favorite item is misplaced.

“For Mom, Dad, G-Ma, or G-Pa, whoever the caretaker is, when that pacifier comes up missing, the desperate search is on to find it,” she said. “We as a people have way more in common than, sometimes, we think or believe. My books will focus on how we connect in more ways than one.”

Richards is working on a second book about the special bond between grandparents and grandchildren, and a historical fiction novel for middle grades. 

"Paci, Oh, Paci!” is available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble.