One Book One Bloomington and Beyond, a communitywide program coordinated by the Monroe County Public Library, has announced The Book Thief as its 2009 community reading selection. The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak in 2007, is a coming-of-age story set in World War II.  Narrarated by Death, it chronicles the life of a young girl in Germany who learns from the books she steals and the friends she collects along the way.

The program was designed to create discussion of a single book and the issues therein to encourage literary reading and to build community by encouraging conversation and the sharing of ideas by members of the community.

Discussions for this year's selection will take place at numerous community locations including the Slocum Room at the Lilly Library on Wednesday, March 25 at 4:00 p.m.

An exhibition based on themes from the book is on display in the Elisabeth Ball Room of the Lilly Library through February 10. The exhibition includes materials pertaining to the Holocaust, the theme of Death personified, and the 1936 Olympics, among others.

Additional discussion dates and locations as well as program information can be found at www.mcpl.info/onebook