Barbara Lawlor, Nederland. It was a labor of love.

The Nederland Community Library elves rolled up their sleeves and went to work last week, creating a most appropriate holiday tree for its environment. Layer after layer of books strategically placed to form the traditional cone shape greets library patrons.

The books were chosen with care, mostly red- and green-covered tomes in the spirit of Christmas. Many of the holiday colored books were written by James Patterson.

The elves carefully layered the books, keeping it balanced and structurally sound. The top of the tree was created by a technical folding process, using the pages of a Roman mythology textbook.

Geneva Mixon, library events coordinator, says people are delighted with the tree. Employees have launched a contest asking people to guess how many books it took to build the one-of-a-kind tree. Winners will receive a goody bag.

"I am so happy that folks like the tree and that it adds a little cheer to the holiday," says Mixon.