Rule number one: Don't fuck with librarians.

Gaiman’s line is a profane, humorous warning that frames librarians as far more formidable than their quiet public image suggests. It plays on the idea that librarians are guardians of knowledge, community norms, and institutional memory—people who can enforce rules, control access, and outlast would‑be antagonists through patience and procedure. The blunt phrasing also signals solidarity: it elevates a frequently underestimated profession by casting librarians as allies worth respecting (or fearing) and implies that attacking them is both morally wrong and strategically foolish. In a broader literary sense, it celebrates the power structures behind books: those who preserve, organize, and defend stories.