Boy Lifts Book; Librarian Changes Boy's Life

The story unwittingly demonstrates a case where zero-tolerance policies could have created frighteningly different results.<p>In some alternate universe, the story reads:<p><i>The librarian noticed Olly tucking the book under his jacket. Following school policy, she called the police. Olly spent the night in jail and was suspended from his school. Bitter and vengeful, he never went back. His street cred soared, and soon Olly was accepted into the local gang....</i>

Cover of the book he originally lifted:<p><a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/y/frank-yerby/treasure-of-pleasant-valley.htm" rel="nofollow">http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/y/frank-yerby/treasure-of-...</a>

The 8 levels of good deeds, as organized by Maimonides:<p><pre><code> 1. Giving begrudgingly. 2. Giving less that you should, but giving it cheerfully. 3. Giving after being asked. 4. Giving before being asked. 5. Giving when you do not know the recipient's identity, but the recipient knows your identity. 6. Giving when you know the recipient's identity, but the recipient doesn't know your identity. 7. Giving when neither party knows the other's identity. 8. Enabling the recipient to become self-reliant. </code></pre> By continually adding books, Mildred Grady fulfilled both numbers 6 &#38; 8. May her memory live on through her good deeds and the good deeds they spawned.

I am quite amazed that reading was considered uncool...even in the 50's

That's one hell of a story.