Very quietly, the Allegheny County Library Association has selected "I'm Proud of You: My Friendship With Fred Rogers" by Tim Madigan as its One Book, One Community selection this year.

The publisher, Gotham Books, announced the selection last week. So far, there have been no details from the library association except to confirm the title.

Released in 2006, the book grew out of a profile Madigan wrote for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He also is the author of "The Burning: Massacre, Destruction and the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921" and "See No Evil: Blind Devotion and Bloodshed in David Koresh's Holy War."

That's all we know about One Book, One Community, but we do know that the Pennsylvania One Book, Every Young Child program has named "Up, Down and Around" by Pittsburgh children's author Katherine Ayres as its choice for the year. The illustrator is Nadine Bernard Westcott, and the publisher is Candlewick.

Ayres, who teaches writing at Chatham University, will tour the commonwealth next month visiting schools, libraries and Head Start centers for the state program aimed at encouraging reading among young children. Her book is targeted to the 4-to-8-year-old set.

More information can be found at www.paonebook.org.

Ayres is also the author of several novels for young adults including "Macaroni Boy," set in the Strip District during the Depression. Stage Right Theater in Westmoreland County has adapted the book as a musical for a May production, she reports.

• Novelist Joshua Cohen reads and discusses his new book, "A Heaven of Others" (Starcherone Books), at 7:30 tonight at Kiva Han Cafe, 420 S. Craig St., Oakland.

This is the third novel for Cohen, 28, who is literary critic of the Forward newspaper. His visit is co-sponsored by the Cultural Studies and Jewish Studies programs of the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Jewish-Israeli Film Festival and the Hillel-Jewish University Center.

• The four-day Pitt at Greensburg Writers Festival continues tonight with two professors from Carnegie Mellon University discussing collaboration between writers and photographers.

The writer is novelist Jane McCafferty, and the photographer is Charlee Brodsky. The 7 p.m. program will be in the campus coffeehouse and is free.

The festival schedule: Tomorrow, comic essayist Steve Almond ("Not That You Asked") appears at 7 p.m. On Thursday, Jim Daniels, poet and short story writer as well as CMU writing professor, reads at 7 p.m.

Phone: 724-836-7481.

• Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., will be selling and signing his new book, "Never Give In: Battling Cancer in the Senate," Thursday from 2-3 p.m. at Mystery Lovers Bookshop, 514 Allegheny River Blvd., Oakmont; 412-828-4877.

• Pitt English professor Marianne Novy marks the release in paperback of her book "Reading Adoption: Family and Difference in Fiction and Drama" at the University Book Center, 4000 Fifth Ave., Oakland, Thursday at noon.

• New York literary agent and writer Jenni Ferrari-Adler discusses her career Thursday at 8 p.m. in Chatham's Mellon Living Room on the university's Shadyside campus. It's a free program of the MFA Reading Series.

• Poetry from Anita Gevaudan Byerly is on the menu of the ARTspace and Coffeehouse, 6736 Reynolds St., Point Breeze, Friday at 7:30 p.m. Byerly will read from her new chapbook, "October Light."

• The New Yinzer, a Pittsburgh online literary magazine, launches a monthly series of words and music April 16 at 8 p.m. at Modern Formations Gallery, 4919 Penn Ave., Garfield.

Called TNY Presents, the inaugural program presents writers Jason Jordan and Scott Silsbe and musician Julie Sokolow.

The next program is scheduled for May 21 at 8 p.m. Visit tnypresents.blogspot.com for more data.

• The Gist Street Reading Series ends its hiatus July 19 with a cookout and program devoted to the McSweeney's publishing empire of Dave Eggers.

As usual, the party is at James Simon's studio, 305 Gist St., Uptown. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. Its Web site is www.giststreet.org.