UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — For the sixth consecutive year, the Pennsylvania Center for the Book, sponsored by Penn State University Libraries, will participate in Route 1 Reads, a road trip-inspired reading list that explores various genres through the network of state Center for the Book affiliates located along Route 1. In 2020, the theme of the reading is historical fiction.

The selected book to represent Pennsylvania is "Carnegie's Maid" by Pennsylvania author Marie Benedict. Benedict weaves a romantic, secret-laden tale through the letters of an 1863 Irish immigrant who forges her way to prosperity as a maid in the household of Pittsburgh industrialist Andrew Carnegie.

The diverse reading list created by Route 1 Reads highlights each State Center for the Book affiliate, while celebrating the East Coast as a whole. Armchair travelers can explore the East Coast without taking a single footstep. Featuring beloved classics and new noteworthy titles, there’s something for everyone on the 2020 Route 1 Reads list.

The full list of featured books for the 2020 Route 1 Reads initiative is available along with a map of participating states at Route1Reads.org.

Route 1 Reads is a partnership between the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, and its affiliates in: Connecticut; Delaware; Florida; Georgia; Maine; Maryland; Massachusetts; New Hampshire; New Jersey; New York; North Carolina; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; South Carolina; Virginia; and, Washington, D.C. The initiative was launched at the 2015 National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit Route1Reads.org or follow #Route1Reads on Twitter.

The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, an affiliate of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress, encourages Pennsylvania’s citizens and residents to study, honor, celebrate and promote books, reading, libraries and literacy. In addition to Route 1 Reads, it also administers the Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize; Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award; Public Poetry Project; A Baker’s Dozen: The Best Children’s Books for Family Literacy; Wordstruck: Micro Essays on Literature that Redefined You; Poems from Life; Words of Art; and the interactive Literary & Cultural Heritage Maps of Pennsylvania. For more information about Route 1 Reads in Pennsylvania, contact Nicole Miyashiro, editor, at nmm16@psu.edu.

The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, established by Congress in 1977 to “stimulate public interest in books and reading,” is a national force for reading and literacy promotion. A public-private partnership, it sponsors educational programs that reach readers of all ages through its affiliated state centers, collaborations with nonprofit reading-promotion partners and through its Poetry and Literature Center at the Library of Congress. For more information, visit Read.gov.