“Four Towns on the Same Page” will include the towns of Mechanic Falls, Minot, Poland and Raymond.

POLAND – Poland Regional High School, the Advisory Group and the libraries of Mechanic Falls and Poland announce “Four Towns on the Same Page.”

The unique “community read” for Minot, Poland, Mechanic Falls and Raymond is to get as many adults and teenagers to read and discuss the same text as possible.

A kick-off event is planned for 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, at the high school. All are welcome. The event will feature refreshments and entertainment, as well as lots of opportunities to get hooked into reading the chosen novel, “Speak,” by Laurie Halse Anderson.

Attendees can participate in a brief book talk, listen to the novel’s opening chapter, “meet” the novel’s main characters and purchase or borrow the book.

The purposes of “Four Towns on the Same Page” are broad and ambitious: to foster literacy and overcome resistance to reading, to bring generations together for a communal, meaningful dialogue, to cultivate lifelong learners and readers, to offer a model of how to talk about books, to establish the school as a center and generator of learning and community in the towns.

The culminating event will be a Celebration of Reading on Thursday, March 11. The evening will revolve around cross-generation facilitated discussion groups of the novel. There will also be various ways to express and further understanding of the text, including skits, making art and a broadcast of the author interview.

The evening will be preceded by a community potluck supper in the cafe. All teenagers and adults in Minot, Mechanic Falls, Poland and Raymond are invited.

Contact the following school staff for additional information: Lori Gunn, extension 430; Michael Hayashida, extension 470; Derek Pierce, extension 129.