Dibs

Libraries grow ever more sinister, as the cute toys distributed to participants in summer-reading programs nationwide have been found to contain perilous quantities of lead. As reported by Lexington, Kentucky’s Lex18.com, the bendable cats and dogs were distributed at fourteen Kentucky libraries as well as in 36 other states whose libraries conducted similar literacy-enhancing programs. A test by the Indiana State Department of Health revealed that the toys’ lead content exceeded the maximum allowable by federal regulations, and they have since been recalled, but thousands have already been distributed as free incentive gifts. A spokesman from the Kentucky Department of Public Health is now urging parents to take the toys away from their children: “Chronic exposure leading to an elevated blood lead level in children can cause numerous health problems for young children, including hearing loss and liver and kidney damage. Such developmental problems can have a lasting impact in terms of performance in school and an overall impact on quality of life.” That’s a high price to pay for a span of summer-reading fun.