Ashe County Public Library joins public libraries nationwide in digital reading program Sept. 14-28, 2020

 

Ashe County Public Library is joining public libraries across the country in offering access to the same ebook for a two-week period through the Libraries Transform Book Pick. The ebook selection is Lauren Francis-Sharma’s epic saga “Book of the Little Axe,” published by Atlantic Monthly Press, an imprint of Grove Atlantic.

During the lending period, Sept. 14-28, ebook copies of “Book of the Little Axe” will be available without waitlists or holds through U.S. public libraries using OverDrive. Readers will only need a library card and the Libby app to borrow and read the ebook.

Ambitious and masterfully wrought, “Book of the Little Axe” is an incredible journey, spanning decades and oceans from Trinidad to the American West during the tumultuous days of warring colonial powers and westward expansion. In a starred review, Booklist said Francis-Sharma “offers fascinating characters across the broad sweep of the American continent at a time of great tumult, warring colonial powers, the spread of slavery, and expansion West” and described the story as a “compelling saga of family bonds, ambitions, and desires, all subject to the vagaries of powerful historical forces.”

The selection of “Book of the Little Axe” for the Libraries Transform Book Pick was made in consultation with experts at Booklist. Atlantic Monthly Press is providing this title to public libraries for simultaneous use for two weeks at no cost.

“We chose Book of the Little Axe by Lauren Francis-Sharma because it is a strikingly original and richly compelling historical novel which illuminates the roots of America’s dire systemic racism. Francis-Sharma’s profoundly relevant saga will surely inspire meaningful discussions. Book of the Little Axe is also exquisitely well-written, and features a strong and fascinating woman protagonist.”

— Donna Seaman, Editor, Adult Books, Booklist

 

Ashe County Public Library will be hosting online discussions surrounding Book of Little Axe and other complimentary topics as part of Involving Books programming this fall. Several copies of Book of Little Axe have also been added to the library’s permanent print collection.  For more information about the Libraries Transform Book Pick, and additional programming please visit https://arlibrary.libguides.com/involvingbooks.  You can also follow the Libraries Transform Book Pick on ALA’s Facebook and Twitter and join the discussion on social media using the hashtag #LTBookPick.

Programs like the Libraries Transform Book Pick help showcase how libraries are continuing to serve their communities during challenging times by providing digital content and virtual services people need now more than ever. Over the last few months, Ashe County Public Library has expanded access to electronic content by adding 3,000 digital magazines to its online collection and offering  Kanopy, a collection of critically acclaimed movies, inspiring documentaries, award-winning foreign films and more.  Kanopy Kids offers unlimited plays so kids are free to explore enriching, educational, and entertaining films and TV series.  Ashe Library is also finding innovative ways to continue virtual programming and other services, like chat reference on the library’s website.

The Libraries Transform Book Pick is a collaboration between Booklist, the book review magazine of the American Library Association; Libraries Transform, the American Library Association’s public awareness initiative; and OverDrive, ALA Library Champion and lead sponsor of Libraries Transform. 

Ashe County Public library promotes knowledge, reading, and imagination; supports and encourages life­long learning; and contributes to the sense of community and the economic well­being of Ashe County.