Library announces T.O. Reads book selection

The Grant Brimhall/Thousand Oaks Library has announced the selection for the second annual Thousand Oaks Reads- One City One Book program.

Building on the success of last year's citywide reading initiative, featuring Jonathan Safran Foer's "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," members of the community are once again invited to read and discuss the same book.

This year's book, "What is the What" by Dave Eggers, is a novel based on the real-life story of Valentino Achak Deng, one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan" who were forced to flee their East African villages during that country's civil war.

In an effort to reach a wider audience and encourage multigenerational participation, the One City One Book committee has endorsed three thematically related children's and young adult titles: "Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan" by Mary Williams, "Home of the Brave" by Katherine Applegate and "Of Beetles and Angels: A Boy's Remarkable Journey from a Refuge Camp to Harvard" by Mawi Asgedom.

Copies of all four books are available at the Grant Brimhall and Newbury Park Branch libraries and at book stores.

A monthlong One City One Book celebration kicks off at the Thousand Oaks Arts Festival on Sept. 20 and continues with community book discussions, film screenings, a panel discussion led by California Lutheran University faculty and an essay contest.

The centerpiece of the celebration will be an afternoon with author Dave Eggers on Sat., Oct. 11 at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza.

For more information, visit www.thousandoaksreads.org.