"Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean."
- Ryunosuke Satoro, writer and poet

If there's a theme to this new year, it's "Better Together."

This week we announced the featured title for Community Read 2019, The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas. It's a powerful, important book, and I'm excited about our community reading and discussing it - but I'm even more excited about how we'll be reading and discussing it. Together.

This year, support from Bank of America will provide 2,000 copies of the book for wide distribution, and programs will be developed and presented with over 30 partner organizations including Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and Time Out Youth. The novel portrays a tragic event viewed from multiple perspectives, and this March an anticipated 100,000 people with a broad range of perspectives will come together at Library and partner locations for purposeful dialogue.

We are better together. Partnerships expand our reach and impact, and make our programs more relevant and our community stronger. And our partnership with you, our Library Foundation supporters, makes all of this possible. Thank you.

Warmly,

Jenni Gaisbauer, CFRE
Executive Director

Open Books, Open Minds
This year's Community Read program, with support from presenting sponsor Bank of America and partner organizations throughout our community, will facilitate important conversations.

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Devices on Demand
An investment from the Vanguard Hometown Grant program makes borrowing a laptop at West Boulevard Library as easy as a swipe of a library card.

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Hero Stories
With a grant from the American Library Association's Great Stories Club, librarian Pamela McCarter is helping incarcerated teens recast themselves as heroes.

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What's Glenn Burkins Reading?
The editor and publisher of Qcitymetro shares a literary journey.

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