Meet New York Times best-selling author of “The Boys in the Boat” at 7 p.m. on April 24 at McGavick Conference Center @ Clover Park Technical College. Daniel James Brown will speak and sign books at the free event. Books will be available for purchase. No tickets required.

“The Boys in the Boat” is the 2015 selection for Pierce County Library System’s 8th annual Pierce County READS program, presented in partnership with The News Tribune. Pierce County READS is a one-community, one-book program that encourages everyone in the county to read the same book at the same time and then come together to talk about it.

About “The Boys in the Boat”

Pierce County READS titles are best-selling works by a living author that appeal to wide audiences, present relevant themes and provoke meaningful discussion. “The Boys in the Boat” meets that criteria and more. The No. 1 New York Times Best-Seller chronicles the 1936 University of Washington crew team and their epic quest for gold at the Berlin Olympics. Against the grim backdrop of the Great Depression, this nine-man crew of working class origins stormed the rowing world, transformed the sport and galvanized the attention of millions of Americans. The boys reaffirmed the American notion that hard work and merit outweighs birthright. They reminded the country of what can be done when everyone quite literally pulls together.

Told with an approachable style and skillfully woven with a cast of endearing characters, Brown’s book has something for everyone: personal redemption, local history, sports, the beauty of Puget Sound, and the challenges in America and abroad between the World Wars. “The Boys in the Boat” earned a 2014 Washington State Book Award and was the American Booksellers Association choice for 2014 Nonfiction Book of the Year. The Weinstein Company is working on a movie adaptation.

Find more information at www.piercecountyreads.org. Pierce County READS 2015 is presented by Pierce County Library System and The News Tribune, and sponsored by KeyBank Foundation and McGavick Conference Center, along with more than 20 private and public community partners.