Polk County Middle School students will perform “An Evening with Ivan” on Wednesday, May 11, at 6:30 p.m. in the Saluda Elementary School auditorium. This original play is written and directed by Jade Day-Burdett and Rob Parsons and is based on the book, The One and Only Ivan, by Katherine Applegate. The event will also feature a concert by the Saluda Community Choir.

Students and community members have been reading The One and Only Ivan for Saluda Elementary School’s “One Book, One Community” project. The book won the 2013 Newbery Medal award and is based on a true story. Kirkus Reviews describes it as an utterly believable, bittersweet story that will inspire a new generation of advocates. If you haven’t read it yet, pick up a copy at the library or the office of Saluda Elementary School.

“An Evening with Ivan” is sponsored by Polk County Public Library and Communities for Children and is free and open to the public. Youth services librarians from Polk County Public Library will be at the event to share information about the library’s 2016 Summer Reading Program.

For information visit polklibrary.org.

-Submitted by Jen Pace Dickenson