Readers of all ages are invited to participate in the East Baton Rouge Parish Library’s 19th annual One Book One Community initiative throughout March and April.
This year’s selected title is Season of Life: A Football Star, A Boy, A Journey to Manhood by Jeffrey Marx. The book follows the coaching journey of Joe Ehrmann, a former defensive star for the Baltimore Colts, as he leads the Gilman High School football team with lessons of love, kindness and service to others.
“This book has lessons and themes that everyone can relate to,” said Micki Talbot, EBRPL Public Relations Coordinator. “Over the last few years, we’ve chosen books that we feel will interest our community the most. We’ve selected ones about Louisiana outdoors and nature, blues music and food history. This year, we decided it was time to do football because we realized that’s one of the main passions in our community that we hadn’t touched on yet through this initiative. We also believe that mentorship and nurturing our youth is really important, and this book has some great lessons about that.”
One of the main reasons One Book One Community has remained so popular in Baton Rouge over nearly two decades is that it brings together readers from all walks of life and introduces many people to books they might otherwise not have chosen.
Author Jeffrey Marx
“I’ve definitely heard people say that some of the books we’ve selected have become their favorites,” Talbot said. “It’s also great to learn that many people read it in a group with their coworkers, friends or family. It’s not just about reading the book. It’s also about creating opportunities for deeper discussions on the book’s theme and how it relates to their own lives.”
To help facilitate those discussions and enthusiasm around One Book One Community, EBRPL will host multiple public events throughout March and April. Some of these events include:
- Tailgate Kickoff Party, Friday March 14, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Main Library at Goodwood
- Ronnie Rantz: My Life In Sports, Wednesday March 19, 6 p.m., Main Library at Goodwood
- Tailgate Recipe Exchange, Saturday, March 29, 3 p.m., Eden Park Branch Library
- Coloring and Meditation, Saturday, April 12, 2 p.m., Fairwood Branch Library
- Author Talk with Jeffrey Marx, Sunday April 27, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., Main Library at Goodwood
In addition, several football-themed craft activities for children and teens will take place at various EBRPL branches, including opportunities to make felt pennants, laser-cut painted footballs, bookmarks and more.
A full list of activities can be found at www.readonebook.org.
All EBRPL locations will have additional copies of Season of Life available for checkout this spring. Digital versions are also available on Libby, the library app.
Allison Gianelloni, EBRPL community programming librarian, said a list of recommended books with related themes is available on www.readonebook.org. The library has also curated digital resources for those who want to delve deeper into content about sports, teamwork or mentorship.
“With your library card, you can access Hiveclass, a digital sports encyclopedia with videos and tutorials on several activities, including yoga, soccer, tennis, dance and more,” she said. “We also have sports- and exercise-related magazines available for checkout in-person and online. LinkedIn Learning features a series of videos called Thirty Minute Mentors where successful people share stories about mentorship. We have so many resources available to the public, and this is a great way for people to go deeper into specific topics that are of interest to them.”