As I was thinking about Haruf's books, I was reminded that none of them had ever been selected for the One Book, One Denver program, which John Hickenlooper introduced early in his first term as mayor of Denver as a way to get the city on the same page - literally. But Plainsong's teen-age sex scene made it too racy for the first pick, Hickenlooper's selection committee determined, and instead went with Leif Enger's Peace Like a River - a small-town yarn about life in rural Minnesota, instead of life in rural Colorado.
And thinking about that got me wondering what Denver would pick next for a program that had been serving the literary equivalent of a Happy Meal for close to a decade; the ninth book, chosen in the fall of 2012 by popular vote, had been Enrique's Journey.
Turns out, there won't be a tenth selection. The One Book, One Denver program has died out - at least for adults. "The program was successful initially from the standpoint of promoting a culture of reading and community through shared experience, but participation has declined throughout the last few years," says Daniel Rowland, spokesman for Denver Arts & Venues. So instead, the city will focus on a pint-sized version of the program, which in 2013 had kids reading The Capitol Ghost Mystery by Michelle Barone. Three juvenile books are now being considered for 2014: Savvy by Ingrid Law, The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi, and Alvin Ho: Allergic To Girls, School and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look.
For more adult fare, the city is promoting The Big Read, the National Endowment for the Arts program started in 2006, which the city also relied on for its reading choice in 2009. In 2014, the Big Read will be pushing Marilynne Robinson's PEN/Hemingway award-winning novel, Housekeeping -- but the city won't be in charge of the program in Denver.
Instead, the Lighthouse Writers Workshop will be carrying the torch for the Big Read here in Denver -- but the city will host the kickoff ceremonies on January 24 at the McNichols Building.
