I saw a copy of Alcatraz Smedry versus the Evil Librarians at my local library. Being a bored thirteen-year-old with nothing to do, I picked it up and began reading. I don't really remember much besides being totally confused and annoyed for the first half of the book, though I remember finishing it. I thought it was okay but not great, and thought nothing of it again for years.
Then about three years ago, I picked up a totally unrelated novel called Mistborn: The Final Empire. I was on a bit of a fantasy kick at the time, and thought the premise of an epic fantasy heist novel sounded interesting enough to merit a read. The Mistborn OT have since become some of my favorite fantasy books, though it was a long time before I found the Coppermind Wiki and connected the dots and realized the they had the same author.