In a fragmented society filled with countless media, a new project aims to get everyone in Denton reading from the same page.

Denton Reads, a citywide reading project, kicks off this month, and organizers hope it can unite the community through shared literary experiences.

DRC/Gary Payne

Annie Downey, chairwoman of the Denton Reads committee, on Feb. 3 holds the book The Legacy of Luna, which is the book choice for adults for the citywide reading program’s inaugural year.

“The libraries are doing this to promote literacy and a love of reading, and because we’re encouraging partnerships with the city and universities,” said Annie Downey, chairwoman of the Denton Reads committee. “We believe that it’s going to bring people together.”

The University of North Texas and Texas Woman’s University libraries, the Denton Public Library and the Denton school district are partners in the program.

Through Denton Reads, participants will read the same book and meet in groups to discuss it.

In the project’s inaugural year, the book choice for adults is The Legacy of Luna, environmental activist Julia Butterfly Hill’s memoir of the two years she spent living in a California redwood tree to prevent a logging company from cutting it down.

Children will read either The Lorax by Dr. Seuss or Hoot by Carl Hiaasen, depending on their reading level.

The selections are part of this year’s environmental theme, with events including a documentary film festival April 19 at Movie Tavern in Denton and a children’s environmental festival April 21 at UNT’s Fouts Field.

The events will culminate on Earth Day, April 22, with a speech by Hill at the UNT Auditorium Building.

“We wanted to do something that we thought the community would be interested in,” said Downey, outreach librarian at UNT’s Willis Library. “Because Denton has led the way with other environmental actions, we thought it would be something of interest to both community members and students.”

The effort is part of the One Book, One Community project, started in Seattle in 1998 by the Washington Center for the Book, a state affiliate of the Library of Congress’ literacy promotion group.

One Book groups “have been popping up all over the country and have been very successful in bringing the community together,” said Kimberly Wells, public services librarian at Denton’s Emily Fowler Central Library.

Starting this month, Denton readers can participate in single-session discussion groups at the city libraries, or in one of several book clubs that will meet in various locations for four weekly sessions.

Participants in the weekly clubs will receive VIP seating at Hill’s appearance at UNT.

Organizers said complete dates and locations of group meetings would be announced soon. Updates will be posted on the Denton Reads Web site at http://dentonreads.unt.edu .

LOWELL BROWN can be reached at 940-566-6882. His e-mail address is lmbrown@dentonrc.com .

Reading discussion groups:

* To join the reading discussion groups meeting weekly in March, contact Lilly Ramin at lramin@library.unt.edu  or 940-565-2762.

* To participate in the single-session discussion groups, call the Denton Public Library at 940-349-8752.

Other events:

* April 19: Film festival at the Denton Movie Tavern, featuring the 2006 documentaries An Inconvenient Truth and Who Killed the Electric Car?

* April 21: Children’s environmental festival at Fouts Field on the University of North Texas campus, featuring booths and hands-on science activities.

* April 22: Author Julia Butterfly Hill will discuss her book The Legacy of Luna, the 2007 Denton Reads book selection for adults, at the UNT Auditorium Building.

Online: http://dentonreads.unt.edu .