BACK STORY encore
Karen Trout
Reading Together coordinator and selection librarian Kalamazoo Public Library
Karen Trout says her position is
“the dream library job.” Trout oversees selection of adult fiction for the library and is the coordinator of the annual Reading Together program, which encourages community members to all read the same book and participate in programs organized around the themes of the book. This is the 15th year of the program, and Trout says this year’s will be quite different from previous programs. The book is Writings on the Wall: Searching for a New Equality Beyond Black and White, by NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who will visit Kalamazoo in March. Trout says the organizers expect this year’s program to attract attention from readers of all ages, races and genders.
Brian Powers
(continued on page 45)
46 | Encore DECEMBER 2016