When senior Sofia Bi heard the Glenbrook North library was offering free books to students, she could not pass up the opportunity.
“I was with my friend and she mentioned that the library [was offering] a free book,” said Bi. “So I was like, ‘Oh, that’s interesting.’ I went with her, and I got one because it’s a free book, why not?”
The Northbrook Public Library donated 50 copies of “Symphony of Secrets” by Brendan Slocumb to GBN as a part of its One Book, One Northbrook program.
One Book, One Northbrook is held every two years with the goal of bringing the community together through events relating to the selected book’s themes, said Lev Kalmens, adult services assistant manager at the Northbrook Public Library.
Beginning Oct. 4, the Northbrook Public Library is scheduled to host free events throughout the month including a film screening and a meet-and-greet with author Brendan Slocumb, scheduled to take place on Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.
Slocumb is looking forward to the meet-and-greet, he said.
“I love going and meeting people and just the prospect of bringing my work to a new audience and gaining their perspectives, and them gaining mine,” Slocumb said.
“I want to show my appreciation, so I’m happy to do meet-and-greets,” said Slocumb. “It’s what keeps me going.”
Additional events, including book discussions, a jazz concert and a Zoom call with a neurodivergent psychologist, are planned around themes of the book such as race, music and neurodivergence.
Events are targeted at a variety of age groups with the intention of involving as many community members as possible, Kalmens said.
“[The events include] a wide variety of topics that we’re hoping would be of interest to somebody who is a freshman in high school and somebody who is retired,” Kalmens said.
A teen book discussion about the novel “A Mango-Shaped Space” by Wendy Mass, which has similar themes to “Symphony of Secrets,” is scheduled to take place on Oct. 30 at 5 p.m. The first eight teens who register receive a free copy of “A Mango-Shaped Space.”
“I am excited, I’m thrilled, I’m humbled, I am amazed every time [I am selected for a program like this], … I know it’s not the typical thriller, it’s not a normal book that people would read every day,” said Slocumb. “Especially dealing with music and some of the subject matter in the story, but it’s thrilling because it lets me know that people are actually expanding their horizons and are open to different perspectives.”