A new bronze monument is slinking into downtown Prescott, and unlike the other sculptures scattered around the courthouse square, this one has neither men nor horses. The kid- and humor-friendly Library Lizard makes its debut this Friday at 1:00 pm with a cookie and lemonade party at the Prescott Public Library's main entrance.

For Prescott sculptor Heather Johnson Beary, it's a goal come true.

“I've always wanted to do a sculpture for the library,” she said. “So now I can check that off my list.”

Being oriented to tactile experiences, Beary loves libraries because she prefers to get information by wandering through the stacks rather than surfing the Internet.

“Computers are really interesting, but it's not quite the same as getting a big beautiful book and opening it,” she said.

Beary added elements to the sculpture that echo the fun of making discoveries in the library. Like her earlier sculptures, including a recent addition to the Highlands Center for Natural History, the Library Lizard includes hidden critters and surprises, many of them at little person eye-level. She also made sure that library goers would walk away a little wiser by including readable text in the sculpture's open book.

She said that creating a piece that's whimsical and kid-friendly can be challenging.

“I have a tendency to exaggerate features. You really have to do that to bring a sculpture to life,” she said.

But, she added, you have to walk a fine line. Overdo it and the public ends up with something that evokes Bugs Bunny. In order to find the right balance, Beary said it takes about a year to design a sculpture of the Library Lizard's detail and scale (about 4 feet by 4 feet).

Beary has other pieces on display at Downtown Prescott's Van Gogh's Ear. Collectors of her smaller sculptures include super-entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson and the Captain and Tenille.

To learn more about Beary's work, visit www.hjohnsonbronze.com. To see the unveiling, visit the Prescott Public Library on Friday, July 18 at the downtown library main entrance, 215 East Goodwin Street, at 1 pm. At 1:30, enjoy a Library Lizard party on the Library Lawn, with cookies, lemonade and a lizard craft.