Urban Farming Book Selected for 2014 One Book One Marin

Released by Marin County Library
The Marin County Free Library, along with City Public Libraries of Marin County and Community Partners Book Passage and Dominican University, is pleased to announce that the 2014 One Book One Marin selection has been awarded to Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer by Bay Area author, Novella Carpenter. 

The Launch Party to introduce the bestselling author will be held on Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 7:00 PM at Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera. One Book programs take the idea of a localized book discussion club and expand it to cover a whole city or county. 

Each year, cities across the US select a book of their choice and encourage their communities to read and discuss that book.  The goal of One Book One Marin is to build a stronger, enriched community through library utilization, community dialogue, and the exploration of literature and culture. 

A variety of community partners collaborate to bring the community interesting programming and events related to the book throughout a three-month period, February - April, each year. 

Anyone can participate.  All events are free and open to the public. 

Sara Jones, Director of Marin County Library Services notes, the Marin County Free Library is proud to be a part of the One Book One Marin program. The choice of Novella Carpenters' Farm City is a wonderful example of an excellent literary work that will bring our community together. We are looking forward to being part of this collaboration that celebrates reading in our community, through discussion and library programs. An unforgettably charming memoir, Farm City is full of hilarious moments, fascinating farmer's tips, and a great deal of heart.

When Novella Carpenter-captivated by the idea of backyard self-sufficiency-moved to inner city Oakland and discovered a weed-choked, garbage-strewn abandoned lot next door to her house, she closed her eyes and pictured heirloom tomatoes and a chicken coop. The story of how her urban farm grew from a few chickens to one populated with turkeys, geese, rabbits, ducks, and two three-hundred-pound pigs will capture the imagination of anyone who has ever considered leaving the city behind for a more natural lifestyle. 

The Launch party at Book Passage on February 11, 2014 kicks off the celebration and introduces the author and programming events that take place during the months of February, March and April.  Most events take place at city and community libraries throughout Marin and are geared around themes of the novel. 

Planned events for this year include presentations on: bee keeping, keeping backyard chickens, beer making, fermentation and food preservation techniques.   

The One Book One Marin program will conclude with a special event on April 30, 2014, at Dominican University's Angelico Hall, featuring Novella Carpenter and KQED host Michael Krasny in conversation. All events are free and open to the public. 

Elaine Petrocelli, President of Book Passage shared:  "This year's One Book One Marin selection, Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer, is bound to inspire lively discussions throughout Marin. Novella Carpenter has written a thoughtful, fearless yet often hilarious look at what it means to attempt to become self-sufficient in an urban world.

When it was first published, The New York Times chose Farm City as one of the ten best books of the year, and I'm delighted that Novella has agreed to be our 2014 One Book One Marin author. The One Book One Marin program is funded by the Marin County Free Library, Book Passage, Institute for Leadership Studies at Dominican University, City Libraries and a large number of community sponsors.  

Dr. Denise Lucy, founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Leadership Studies at Dominican University of California remarked, "Dominican University's partnership with the One Book One Marin Award is an exceptionally rewarding experience by engaging our campus community with the library communities in Marin County. We are honored to participate in this vibrant community engagement program. "