Engaging thousands of people to read, learn and discuss a particular topic or issue isn’t a simple task, but it’s become a specialty for the folks behind Silicon Valley Reads, a community reading program that has not only taken on the responsibility of celebrating literacy but has thrived for more than a decade.

Silicon Valley Reads 2013 does not resemble the program that started 11 years ago, which humbly asked the community to read a selected book and then discuss it. Now, the featured selection is but a star at the center of more than 100 events and activities with a common theme.

“Because our program has changed, it is quite different from other community reads programs,” Silicon Valley Reads coordinator Diane McNutt said. “I like to think of it as a community reads program on steroids–we’ve really gotten ambitious.”

This year’s bulked-up edition embraces the “Invisible Wounds of War,” a topical theme that aims to give readers a look at the unseen consequences and effects of military conflict. As the theme suggests, the idea is to delve into the lives of combat veterans and those of their loved ones at home.

As such, the two featured selections for Silicon Valley Reads 2013 are The Long Walk by Brian Castner, an Air Force veteran who served in Iraq and later trained Army and Marine units ahead of their tours in Iraq and Afghanistan; and Minefields of the Heart by Sue Diaz, an award-winning journalist

whose son, a Purple Heart veteran, served two tours of duty in Iraq’s Triangle of Death during the height of the insurgency.

There are also selected books for children and teens, supporting the idea that Silicon Valley Reads should be a family affair suitable for book lovers of all ages and reading levels. Titles this year include Night Catch by Brenda Ehrmantraut for grades K-2; Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle by Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery for grades 2-5; Back Home by Julia Keller for grades 5-8 and Purple Heart by Patricia McCormick for teenagers 14 and up.

Presented by the San Jose Public Library Foundation, Santa Clara County Library District and Santa Clara County Office of Education, in addition to a host of other sponsors and donors, Silicon Valley Reads 2013 officially kicked off Jan. 30 with an on-stage interview with the two featured authors at the Campbell Heritage Theatre. The authors were also available on Feb. 2 at the Moffett Field History Museum’s open house event, which gave attendees a chance to learn about the historic airfield and its role in American military history since the 1930s.

There will be plenty of other opportunities to catch up with the authors in the next few months.

Castner, who lives just outside Buffalo, N.Y., and Diaz, coming from San Diego, will return to the Bay Area on several occasions for a handful of events between February and April, including talks at local libraries and colleges.

Castner’s appearances include Feb. 28 at De Anza College, March 2 at the Almaden Branch Library, March 3 at the Sunnyvale Public Library and April 10 at the Los Altos Library. Diaz will be at the Barnes Noble on Stevens Creek Boulevard on March 15, the West Valley Branch Library on April 10 and Mission College on April 12. She’ll also be interviewed by Silicon Valley Community Newspapers executive editor Dale Bryant during a “Tea and Talk” about her book on March 14 at the History Club of Los Gatos.

Castner, who began writing The Long Walk for his four sons as something of a historical family record, said he did not write the book as with a viewpoint for or against the war, nor to serve any particular agenda. He never expected the reaction his book has gotten, but admits it’s humbling to see all the emails, Facebook messages and blog posts from people who say they now understand their sons or nephews better.

“I was not the father I could have been following my return from Iraq, and I needed to explain my experience–my post-war anxiety, my fears, my actions in combat that haunted me daily, my adrenaline-fueled need to run every day–to both myself and them,” Castner said in his comments about the book. “I needed to get [it] down in writing, as best I could, what it feels like to come home from a war. I didn’t expect a catharsis or cure, simply a record.”

Diaz, an accomplished writer, began writing a series for the Christian Science Monitor from the perspective of a mother on the homefront while her son was serving in Iraq, which ultimately became the starting point for Minefields of the Heart. She wanted to document an important and fragile time in her family’s life, and share from a mother’s point of view all the “uncertainty, fear, worry, hope and sometimes frustration” that comes from the war experience, she said.

In the book, Diaz looks into bridging gaps that war creates, and explores how troops attempt to find some sort of normalcy upon returning home after such a physically, emotionally and mentally taxing experience.

“It is a journey, a journey that lasts a lifetime. To have seen an experience, to come back a changed person, it’s transformative; there’s no other experience in the world like the war experience,” said Diaz, who has been leading writing workshops for war veterans at the San Diego Vet Center, Naval Medical Center San Diego, and Veterans Village of San Diego since 2007. “It takes a long time to come to terms with that, with people they’ve lost and the things they’ve done; it’s something they carry with them always. I think you learn to live with your memories, but you don’t ever really put it behind you; it becomes part of you and it’s an important part of what you are.”

Such heavy subject matter is at the heart of the Silicon Valley Reads experience, which pushes readers to learn, explore, discuss and start thinking and asking questions about topics rarely discussed in everyday conversation.

“What it does is give the whole community–and Silicon Valley Reads stretches from Gilroy to Palo Alto–a public awareness of some of these issues that definitely affect us, but we don’t really know in which ways they do,” said Alyce Parsons, a Silicon Valley Reads board member and also a member of the Friends of the Los Gatos Library.

McNutt said the process of selecting a theme starts with a brainstorming session with a committee made up of librarians and avid readers, who go through any number of books and topics. This year, 10 possible themes were narrowed down to three and eventually one was selected. The books, McNutt said, “started at 60 before narrowing it down.”

For Silicon Valley Reads, the turning point came in 2010, when it featured the selection In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, and had “1,500 people show up for an 800-seat event” at the Heritage Theatre, McNutt said. That’s when organizers found the formula for selecting the right theme and also in choosing the ideal book and events and activities to go along with it.

“Ever since then, we figured out picking a theme that is relevant and topical as well as finding well-written books on that subject is the key to success,” McNutt said. “We’ve expanded the number of community partners that we have, and every year it seems to get a little bit bigger.”

Indeed, the robust programming for this year’s Silicon Valley Reads features events suitable for everyone in the community and fits in with the theme of “Invisible Wounds of War.”

Notable events include “Poetry from War: A Conversation with Poets Brian Turner and David Sullivan” on Feb. 26 at The Harker School; a staged reading of Back Home with local celebrities and young actors on March 3 at Cupertino Community Hall; and a “Speak of War” panel discussion on March 10 at The Tech Museum in San Jose.

There are many other events–more than 100, to be exact–to get people of all ages learning and engaged in the discussion.

As Parsons says, Silicon Valley Reads is about “finding these really exciting connections between people and events, and finding that commonality for everybody–and there is something for everybody.”

For more information about Silicon Valley Reads and a schedule of events, visit siliconvalleyreads.org.

Free events for readers of all ages are scheduled from now through the middle of April all over the Santa Clara Valley as part of Silicon Valley Reads 2013, “Invisible Wounds of War.” Some of the upcoming events are listed here. For a complete list of activities and for more information, visit siliconvalleyreads.org.
Feb. 19–Celebrity Story Time: This special Family Story Time features TV news journalist and host Maggi Scura reading “Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle.” All ages welcome. 7:15 p.m. Campbell Library 77 Harrison St., Campbell. 408.866.1991
Feb. 21–Teen Book Group: The Teen Book Club will discuss “Purple Heart” by Patricia McCormick. All teens welcome. 4-5 p.m. Cupertino Library, 10800 Torre Ave., Cupertino. 408.446.1677
Feb. 26–Day of Remembrance: The California History Center sponsors the 11th annual De Anza College Day of Remembrance that commemorates the 1942 Executive Order that led to the imprisonment of more than 120,000 Japanese Americans during WWII. This program will discuss the long-lasting psychological and social impacts of the internment and war on survivors. 1:30-3 p.m. Hinson Campus Center Conference Room B, De Anza College, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino. 408.864.8986
Feb. 26–Book Group: “The Long Walk” and “Minefields of the Heart” will be discussed. Open to the public. 6:30 p.m. Los Gatos Library, 100 Villa, Los Gatos. 408.354.6800
Feb. 26–Poetry from War, A Conversation with Poets Brian Turner and David
Sullivan: Brian Turner, author of the award-winning collection of poetry, and David Sullivan, editor of a multi-voiced manuscript about the war in Iraq entitled “Every Seed of the Pomegranate,” are interviewed by Parthenia Hicks, Los Gatos Poet Laureate Emeritus. Refreshments and book signing follows. Co-sponsored by LiveSV and The Harker School Speaker Series. 7-9 p.m. Nichols Hall Auditorium, The Harker School, 500 Saratoga Ave., San Jose. 408.354.6664
Feb. 27–Art Exhibit Reception: A reception for the “War and Healing” artists with printmaking demonstrations by Diego Marcial Rios. 5:30-7:30 p.m. Euphrat Museum of Art, De Anza College, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino. 408.864.5464
Feb. 27–Book Group: “The Long Walk” will be discussed. Open to the public. 7 p.m. Vineland Branch Library 1450 Blossom Hill Road, San Jose. 408.808.2173
Feb. 28–Celebrity Story Time: Santa Clara County Supervisor Mike Wasserman will read “Night Catch.” 10:30 a.m. Los Gatos Library, 100 Villa, Los Gatos. 408.354.6800
March 1–Brian Castner: Reading and book signing by Brian Castner, author of “The Long Walk.” 7 p.m. Barnes Noble, 3600 Stevens Creek Blvd., San Jose. 408.984.3495
March 2–“Wartorn 1861-2010”: This HBO documentary chronicles the lingering effects of combat stress and post-traumatic stress on military personnel and their families throughout American history, from the Civil War through the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. 2-3:15 p.m. Saratoga Library, 13650 Saratoga Ave., Saratoga. 408.867.6126
March 2–“Striking a Chord”: Boredom and loneliness–the side effects of repeated and long-term deployments–can plague soldiers, as can depression, anxiety, and insomnia. This documentary explores what happens when exhausted and often traumatized soldiers on the frontline of America’s war in Iraq encounter a band from back home. 2-2:30 p.m. Campbell Library, 77 Harrison Ave., Campbell. 408.866.1991
March 2–Brian Castner: Reading and book signing by Brian Castner, author of “The Long Walk.” Co-sponsored by Friends of Campbell Library. 2:30 p.m. Campbell Library, 77 Harrison Ave., Campbell. 408.866.1991
March 4–Julia Keller: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Julia Keller wrote a series of articles about traumatic brain injury for the Chicago Tribune in 2004 and became more aware of American soldiers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan with invisible wounds of war. This background inspired “Back Home”, a novel for grades 5-8, that describes one family’s reaction when Dad returns home with physical and brain injuries. Julia will talk about how and why she wrote this book, and also answer questions about her most recent book, “A Killing in the Hills”, a mystery novel for adults. 7 p.m. Saratoga Library, 13650 Saratoga Ave., Saratoga. 408.867.6126
March 5–Celebrity Story Time: KBAY radio personality Lissa Kreisler reads “Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle.” All families welcome. 7:30 p.m. Saratoga Library, 13650 Saratoga Ave., Saratoga. 408.867.6126
March 11–Mary Nethery: Mary Nethery, co-author of “Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle” will read and talk about writing the book. A video interview of Maj. Brian Dennis and Nubs will be shown. 4 p.m. Los Gatos Library, 100 Villa Ave., Los Gatos. 408.354.6894
March 14–Tea and Talk about “Minefields of the Heart”: Book clubs and individual readers come together to meet Sue Diaz, author of “Minefields of the Heart,” and hear her interviewed by Dale Bryant, executive editor of Silicon Valley Community Newspapers. QA and a chance to discuss the book while enjoying light refreshments sponsored by Friends of the Los Gatos Library. Reservations required. To RSVP, call 408.399.5700 or 408.395.3651 or email Programs@FriendsofLGlibrary.org and leave your name, phone, email and number attending. 10-11:30 a.m. History Club of Los Gatos, 123 Los Gatos Blvd., Los Gatos. 408.399.5700
April 10–Sue Diaz: Sue Diaz, author of “Minefields of the Heart,” talks about the emotional roller coaster her family experienced when her son was deployed. QA follows. 6:30 p.m. West Valley Branch Library, 1243 San Tomas Aquino Road, San Jose. 408.808.2173
April 13–Closing Event of Silicon Valley Reads 2013: Our two featured authors, Brian Castner and Sue Diaz, come back together for a conversation about their books and the Silicon Valley Reads experience, moderated by De Anza College President Brian Murphy. Announcement of winners of the Cupertino Library Foundation Essay Contest follows, along with book signing. Co-sponsored by Cupertino Library Foundation. 12:30-1:15 p.m., private reception; 1:30-3:15 p.m., program; 3:30-4 p.m., book signing. Cupertino Community Hall, 10350 Torre Ave., Cupertino. 408.446.1677