Nova Scotians will be Reading Ali Bryan’s Roost

For the third consecutive year, Nova Scotians will read the same book and share the same story during a province wide reading initiative called One Book Nova Scotia. This year’s selected title is Roost, the first novel from author Ali Bryan, who grew up in Halifax and Sackville, New Brunswick.

“Roost is a novel that explores family issues,” said Jeff Mercer, co-chair of the One Book Nova Scotia steering committee. “It was selected because it is an accessible, humorous book that also tackles serious issues such as the death of a parent, divorce, and caring for an aging parent.”

“While the main character Claudia faces many challenges, Ali Bryan presents the story with numerous laugh-out-loud moments. We think Nova Scotians will be able to relate to Claudia,” said Tasya Tymczyszyn, co-chair of the One Book Nova Scotia steering committee.

Roost was selected by a committee of librarians and Nova Scotian industry professionals who were looking for a novel that met the following criteria: 

• must be written by a living Canadian author;
• must be able to generate discussion and exchange of ideas;
• must be appealing to a broad range of adult readers of varying ages, literacy levels, and life experience;
• must be in print and available for purchase in paperback; and,
• must be strongly written with a compelling story, characters, and setting that will generate excitement among readers.

The program’s official launch will take place during this year’s Word on the Street event and will feature the first of seven readings by Ms. Bryan. The rest of the readings will take place at various public libraries and venues across the province.  

“For those who can’t make it to a reading, there are other ways to participate, such as interacting with us through Twitter or Facebook, or joining a book club discussion at a public library,” said Mr. Mercer.

Roost is available to borrow at libraries throughout Nova Scotia, and it can be purchased at your local bookstore or online. 

It is available for existing CNIB clients in DAISY formats (CD, MP3, and direct downloads), as well as in Braille and eBraille formats.

In October 2014, an eAudio version will be available through the National Network of Equitable Library Service (NNELS). Nova Scotians with perceptual disabilities can access this service by visiting their public library to activate an account.

One Book Nova Scotia is organized under Libraries Nova Scotia (LNS), which represents public, university, and community college libraries, and the Nova Scotia Provincial Library.