A drag queen and a 4-year-old walk into a public library. It's not the setup to a joke -- it's Saturday morning in Oakland at the Drag Queen Story Hour.

Hundreds of parents and kids crowded into the Dimond Recreation Center on a recent Saturday to hear drag queen Black Benatar read Pride-themed storybooks.

According to its website, Drag Queen Story Hour is "just what it sounds like -- drag queens reading stories to children in libraries, schools and bookstores." The program started in San Francisco and has spread to cities across the United States.

Miriam Meadow first heard about Drag Queen Story Hour when it was held at the San Francisco Public Library two years ago. She immediately knew she wanted to bring it to the East Bay. Meadow is the children’s librarian at the Dimond Branch Library.

She expected 100 people to attend when Drag Queen Story Hour came to Dimond earlier this summer. "We had 300 people come here today," she exclaimed, unable to contain a huge smile.