EQuality Downers Grove (EQDG) announces “The Three Lives of Cate Kay” by Kate Fagan is this year’s selection for EQuality Downers Grove 4th annual One Book, One Town initiative.

Activites kick off March 10 with a discussion at the Downers Grove Public Library and culminate April 19 with a Spring Soiree fundraiser in partnership with the Downers Grove Public Library Foundation.

Other events include a mask making event and a womens-only yoga class as well as discussions at Anderson’s Bookshop and the Morton Arboretum. For more information on all events and to register, visit eqdg.org/obot2026.

New this year, EQDG and the library foundation will partner on a Spring Soiree fundraiser from 5 to 8 p.m. April 19 at Cadence Kitchen, 5101 Mochel Drive.

The event, themed “When Masks Fall, We Bloom!,” combines EQDG’s One Book, One Town with the foundation’s celebration of National Library Week 2026.

The soiree will include food, specialty cocktails, a DJ, entertainment, a photo station, silent auction, raffle, wine pull and more. Event proceeds will benefit both organizations and their missions within Downers Grove.

Tickets ($40 regular, $60 with two drink tickets) are on sale. For full details and to purchase tickets, visit givebutter.com/c/SpringSoiree2026.

“This event and partnership aligns with EQDG’s mission by bringing the Downers Grove community together as part of a reading program designed to promote inclusion, empathy, and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community,” Jodi Harap, EQDG board member and One Book One Town co-chair, said in a news release. “We’re excited to see the community out at this and all events celebrating our program this year.”

“The theme of this year’s National Library Week is ‘Find Your Joy,’ and what better way to do so than with a celebration the whole community can enjoy,” foundation President Maggie Thurman Roth said in a release. “Partnering with EQDG on this fundraising event draws attention to our shared values of creating a sense of community for all, and supports the library and its mission to be a welcoming place where everyone can discover, grow, play and learn.”

One Book One Town 2026 selection and programs

“The Three Lives of Cate Kay” by Kate Fagan is a powerful novel about identity, ambition and the cost of hiding one’s true self. It follows a reclusive, wildly successful author who has built a life and a career on carefully guarded secrets and the relationships and choices that shaped her along the way. As her past begins to surface, the novel invites readers to consider what it means to live authentically, and what we risk when we don’t.

• Book Discussion Group in Partnership with the DGPL,7 to 8 p.m. March 10 at Downers Grove Public Library, 1050 Curtiss St. Join fellow readers for an engaging discussion that promises insight, connection and lively conversation. Read more and register here.
• Coffee & Conversation: Connect with Community, 10 a.m. to noon March 14 at The Morton Arboretum, 4100 IL Rt.53, Lisle. Back by popular demand, join a welcoming morning of coffee, pastries, games and a guided hike at the Morton Arboretum designed to foster connection, reflection,and belonging. Read more and register here.
• “Out of the Shadows: Queer Authors and the Cost of Being Heard” 6 to 7 p.m. March 18 at Anderson’s Bookshop, 5112 Main St., Downers Grove. Attend this illuminating program led by renowned historian and author David Settje, which will explore the unique challenges queer writers have faced in getting their work published and accepted. Read more and register here.
• Move & Mingle, 7 to 8 p.m. March 20 YogaSix Downers Grove, 980 Warren Ave., Downers Grove. This women-only yoga class offers a welcoming space to move, breathe, and connect in a supportive community. Read more and register here.
• “The Faces We Show: Mask Making and Identity,” 7 to 8 p.m. March 24, Downers Grove Public Library, 1050 Curtiss St. This hands-on mask-making workshop invites participants to explore different versions of themselves by creatively expressing a facet of their identity. Read more and register here.
• Spring Soiree: When Masks Fall, We Bloom!, 5 to 8 p.m., April 19, at Cadence Kitchen, 5101 Mochel Dr., Downers Grove. Celebrate One Book, One Town and National Library Week at a festive Spring Soirée, co-hosted by EQDG and the Downers Grove Public Library Foundation. Enjoy great food, specialty cocktails, a DJ, and lively fun.Read more and register here.