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Readin' in the Rain
Eugene, Oregon's first citywide reading project features Ken Kesey's Sometimes A Great Notion
Here are letters from the Mayor and Library Director of Eugene about the project:Welcome to our first citywide reading initiative, "Readin' in the Rain." Eugene is known for its diversity, its richness of spirit and individuality. But sometimes it is important to do things together. Reading literature inspires us to think about our world, our ideas and ourselves. Talking about books together with friends, neighbors, family and even people we have never met before can add a new dimension to the experience of reading. "Readin' in the Rain" is an effort to encourage reading, and even more important, encourage us to talk together and to one another.
Our inaugural selection is Sometimes a Great Notion, written by the late Oregon author Ken Kesey. The book can be seen as emblematic of many of the issues that confront our city: issues of family, community, and the independent Oregon spirit, with the northwestern logging industry and natural landscape serving as its backdrop. It is a fitting tribute to begin the "Readin' in the Rain" initiative when Ken Kesey so recently left us - and will hopefully be the start of many good books shared collectively through the years ahead.
Find Sometimes a Great Notion at the Eugene Public Library, at your local bookstore or perhaps, on your bookshelf at home. Start reading and talking to your colleagues, your friends or family. Come to a discussion group or form one on your own. However you choose to participate in "Readin' in the Rain," we're sure these rainy days will provide you the cozy time we all need to sit down and read a good book.
Jim Torrey
Mayor, City of Eugene
Eugene Public Library is enthusiastic about Eugene's first community-read, "Readin' in the Rain." The Library's primary commitment is to support lifetime learning and the love of reading, and we welcome opportunities to provide access to great literature. Sometimes a Great Notion, by local author Ken Kesey, will provide material for lively discussions about our heritage as a logging economy, individualism as a regional characteristic, our choices about how to use and protect nature, and our personal conflict between taking part in society and the need for freedom.
This event is especially gratifying because the suggestion and impetus for "Readin' in the Rain" came from the neighborhood associations. The Library is an organization of the people, for the people, and we strive to respond to the community's desire to involve itself in reading and literature. We appreciate that several bookstores have donated copies of Kesey's great novel to the Library and so to the shared community, as an example of organizations investing in the Library to inform and educate ourselves.
One of the large themes in Sometimes a Great Notionis the importance and uniqueness of the individual. While we appreciate the community spirit that reading together can bring, we are aware that some community members may want to express their individuality by reading other works by Ken Kesey, or other materials entirely. Books and other items are continually being added to our collection, often in response to suggestions from the public. The Eugene Public Library is here to support and further your reading and informational interests, wherever in the universe of ideas you wish to travel.
When it rains, Eugene reads - so join us "Readin' in the Rain!
Connie Bennett
Library Services Director, Eugene Public Library