CC on the Same Page book selection is 'A Walk in the Woods'

Librarians from the Camden Jackson Township Public Library, Flora-Monroe Township Public Library, and Delphi Public Library are following up last summer's successful "Carroll County on the Same Page" program with another great book suggestion to include on summer reading lists.

Carroll County on the Same Page, modeled after the One Book, One Community programs that have been duplicated around the country, is an effort to encourage the entire community to read the same book and to build a better community through reading and the sharing of ideas. During the last three years of Same Page programs, nearly 150 people per year have borrowed the selected title from one of the three county public libraries. People in Carroll County are still talking about the previous selections, "Crow Lake," "The Glass Castle," and "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle."

This year, the librarians opted to lighten things up and introduce some humor onto the same page. In light of the current economic woes of the community and the entire country, it seems everyone needs to find something to laugh about.

The 2009 selection for Carroll County on the Same Page, "A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail," promises to do just that - make readers laugh. Author Bill Bryson offers a new kind of travel classic when he decides to walk the Appalachian Trail. "A Walk in the Woods" is an adventure, a comedy, and a celebration of America, all rolled into one good story. Here's what the publisher says about the book: "The AT offers an astonishing landscape of silent forests and sparkling lakes - and to a writer with the comic genius of Bill Bryson, it also provides endless opportunities to witness the majestic silliness of his fellow human beings. For a start there's the gloriously out-of-shape Stephen Katz, a buddy from Iowa along for the walk. Despite Katz's overwhelming desire to find cozy restaurants, he and Bryson eventually settle into their stride, and while on the trail they meet a bizarre assortment of hilarious characters. But "A Walk in the Woods" is more than just a laugh-out-loud hike. Bryson's acute eye is a wise witness to this beautiful but fragile trail, and as he tells its fascinating history, he makes a moving plea for the conservation of America's last great wilderness."

Beginning July 1, stop by any of the three public libraries to get a copy of "A Walk in the Woods" and help get all of Carroll County on the Same Page!

Book discussions will be held on July 15 at 10 a.m. at the Flora Senior Center (sponsored by the Flora- Monroe Township Public Library); on July 24 at 9 a.m. at the Delphi Public Library; and on July 29 at 1:30 p.m. at the Camden-Jackson Township Public Library.

Anyone who has personally walked the Appalachian Trail is asked to contact one of the county librarians so the story can be shared.