NCompass Live - October 29, 2014. http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ncompasslive/ In this tenth year of One Book One Nebraska, Nebraska libraries and other literary and cultural organizations continue to plan activities and events to encourage all Nebraskans to read and discuss the same book. Join us to hear more about this statewide reading promotion activity, sponsored by the Nebraska Library Commission and the Nebraska Center for the Book. Our special guest, Rosalie Lippincott, will also share memories of her time volunteering at the North Platte Canteen. Join Mary Jo Ryan, Nebraska Library Commission Communications Coordinator; Rod Wagner, Nebraska Library Commission Director; Molly Fisher, Nebraska Center for the Book; and Nancy Johnson, Nebraska Center for the Book to: •Learn about how to create a successful local reading promotion using Nebraska’s year-long, statewide celebration featuring Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen, by Bob Greene. •Brainstorm strategies to read and discuss Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen, a nonfiction story that bestselling author and award-winning journalist Bob Greene discovered while searching for "…the best America there ever was." He finds it in a small Nebraska town few people pass through today—North Platte, Nebraska, a town where Greene discovers the echoes of a love story between a country and its sons. •Find tools to help engage your community in local activities to encourage them to come together through literature to explore this classic work in community-wide reading programs. •Learn about the Celebration of Nebraska Books, set for Nov. 8, which will celebrate this book, along with the winners of the 2014 Nebraska Book Awards.

1. 2014 One Book One Nebraska
Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the
North Platte Canteen
by Bob Greene

2. One Book One Nebraska
• Encourages Nebraskans across the state to read and discuss
one book, chosen from books written by Nebraska authors or
that have a Nebraska theme or setting.
• Committee of the Nebraska Center for the Book selected this
book from a list of 71 titles nominated by 141 Nebraskans
from across the state.
• Sponsored by:
– Nebraska Center for the Book,
– Humanities Nebraska,
– Nebraska Library Association, and
– Nebraska Library Commission

3. 2005 - 2014

4. Once Upon a Town: The Miracle of the North Platte Canteen
by Bob Greene
• Nonfiction story
• Finds "the best America there ever was" in a small
Nebraska town
• During World War II, American soldiers from every city and
walk of life rolled through North Platte on troop trains en
route to Europe and the Pacific.
• Railroad depot was transformed into the North Platte
Canteen.
• Every day of the year, every day of the war, the Canteen--
staffed and funded entirely by local volunteers--was open
from five a.m. until the last troop train of the day pulled
away after midnight, providing welcoming words,
friendship, and baskets of food and treats to more than six
million GIs by the time the war ended.

5. Nebraskans Actively Engaged throughout 2014

6. • Publicity
• Book Club Kits, Website and other resources, including:
– The NebraskaStudies.org website
www.nebraskastudies.org/0800/stories/0801_0116.html
– NET program: The Canteen Spirit,
http://netnebraska.org/basic-page/television/canteen-spirit-0
– Resources from the Nebraska State Historical Society—school and
public
– Resources from Humanities Nebraska, including presenters and
funding for programming:
• “Nebraska Spirit: The North Platte Canteen” by Charlotte M.
Endorf
• “Sharpie: Queen of the Air” by Diane Bartel
• “Nebraskans Remember World War II” by Doug Rung
• “Produce for Victory: Nebraskans in World War II” by Martha Ellen
Webb

7. Canteen Worker Remembers
Rosalie Lippincott,
Canteen Volunteer
interviewed by
Nebraska Center for the Book Board member,
Nancy Johnson

8. Get Involved
• Schedule a book club or book talk
• Book a program
• Local radio and tv talk shows
• Join us at the November 8 Celebration of
Nebraska Books:
– 3:30 - 6:30 p.m.
– 1200 N Street, Lincoln
– Nebraska Center for the Book Annual Meeting at 2:30
– Awards Reception, book signings, and announcement
of the 2015 One Book One Nebraska book choice

9. For more information:
Mary Jo Ryan
Communications Coordinator
Nebraska Library Commission
maryjo.ryan@nebraska.gov
402-471-3434
http://onebook.nebraska.gov/2014/index.aspx
www.facebook.com/OneBookOneNebraska