Runaway Scales at the Library

            Scaly, creepy critters made their way into the Calhoun County Library to continue the excitement for our Summer Reading Program last week. A very special visitor, a Hydrosaurus weberi, named Ashes, broke free and led staff on a chase around the building. She was exploring our stacks and looking for something nice to read! Maybe she was searching for books on her dinosaur relatives.

Critter Keeper, the brave man with all these amazing animals, did two shows on Thursday, June 25, 2026. Both were PACKED! In total, over 310 people watched the shows with amusement, lessons, and thrills.

To kick things off, the Critter Keeper challenged people to Mr. Beasley, his friendly bearded dragon. Some attendees eagerly accepted the challenge, others hesitated before bravely reaching out, and a few opted to skip the petting, something the Critter Keeper graciously allowed.

Once the show started and everyone was in the seats, with the scaredy-cats in the back, patrons were able to see animals they never would in St. Matthews. There were giant African millipedes, cane toads from South America, and a Mexican beaded lizard, just to name a few. Each and every animal that was brought out created a crowd reaction that was exciting to witness. Screams and laughs filled the library with every new animal.

Then it was time for crowd participation! The Critter Keeper choose a child from the audience to read out a sticker that stated “I held a tarantula.” Some of those kids got super excited and were ready to hold a giant spider for the first time in their life and others were terrified! However, after talking about being brave, every person went through with it. They conquered their fear and held Cookie, the tarantula. Then, each child got to choose an adult to hold the adult-sized spider, a pinkfoot goliath birdeater. This spider was much bigger. At one point, the spider even jumped off the person onto the ground in an attempt to run away!

This wasn’t the end of the crowd participation though. At the very end of the show, the Critter Keeper choose seven people to help hold the main event: Julius Squeezer, a 50 pound albino boa constrictor. Picking him up took strength and bravery. This was the perfect photo opportunity for all as they held the massive snake that was stretched across their bodies!

We are only three weeks into the Summer Reading Program here at the Calhoun County Library. Looking forward, we have Porkchop Productions (Thursday, July 9, 2026) and a brand-new, never performed for us before, Story Ship (Thursday, July 16, 2026)!

Also, don’t forget! The library is offering FREE lunches every Thursday in June and July to anyone under 18, FREE crafts and snacks to program attendees, and FREE 100% fun while the summer lasts!

This event couldn’t have been possible without the support from the South Carolina State Library and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.