During the 17th annual One Read program, Fulton and the surrounding areas will plunge into the pages of "The Turner House" by Angela Flournoy.
"The public helps us pick a book and we do programming around it for the month of September," said Lauren Williams, adult and community services manager at Daniel Boone Regional Library.
DBRL sponsors the event, and a task force from local libraries - including the Callaway County Public Library and the libraries at Westminster College and William Woods University - help plan lectures, art competitions and discussions surrounding the chosen book's themes and ideas.
The community gets to choose the book. This year, community members suggested more than 140 options, which were narrowed down to two: "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly and "The Turner House."
"This was a very close vote - a single-digits close vote," Williams said.
Since the vote was so narrow, Williams said, the Task Force might plan an event or two around "Hidden Figures" as well.
"The Turner House" is set in Detroit, Michigan, in the depths of the Great Depression. The 13 colorful and dramatic Turner siblings must figure out what to do with the house they all grew up in, now in an underwater mortgage.
As the family matriarch's health declines, eldest son Charles "Cha-Cha" Turner must take over - but a literal ghost from his childhood is taking a toll on his own mental health.
"The themes include family dynamics, especially among black families, the Great Migration, mental health and more," Williams said. "It's a very rich book."
"The Turner House" was named a New York Times Notable Book of the Year and was a finalist for a number of other honors, including the National Book Award. It was Flournoy's debut novel. She has taught at the University of Iowa and Columbia University.
Williams hopes Flournoy will be able to visit Fulton and give a talk, though the date isn't confirmed.
Greg Reeves, manager of the Callaway County Public Library, pitched a few ideas for other events.
Since one of the book's themes is the Great Migration (the northward movement of African Americans away from the rural southern U.S.), Reeves suggested an evening focused on Migration music.
"Instead of playing fish fries, these musicians were now playing night clubs," Reeves said.
There will also be some type of art competition open to all types of art media, though a theme has yet to be decided.
For more details on upcoming events, watch the One Read website: oneread.dbrl.org. Copies of "The Turner House" can be checked out at area public libraries and may feature in upcoming giveaways.
