DAPHNE, Ala.— The new year often is seen as a time for resolutions, making lifestyle changes. In 2009, the Daphne Public Library hopes one of those changes will involve more reading.

The “Resolve to Read” campaign, an initiative to help raise awareness of reading’s importance, will run throughout January at the library.

The initiative will include the Modern Library’s 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century and its 100 Best Nonfiction Works.

Some books topping Modern Library’s lists are: James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” and William Faulkner’s “The Sound and the Fury.”

The library has recently received several books, including classics, mysteries, histories and economics resources.

Reference librarian Anne Morris said January’s promotion aims for broad appeal—and, the library hopes, a general love of reading.

“It can be for all ages,” Morris said. “It’s for everybody.”

Morris is especially excited about a new shipment of Jane Austen novels, because she felt the library’s older copies were in poor condition.

“(The reading program) can also involve reading poetry and philosophy books,” Morris said.

Also available at the library are CD books—an evolved form of books on tape—that can be uploaded into an mp3 player.

Morris hopes that people will take advantage of the literary canon through the “Resolve” campaign.

“We’ll try to lead them to some old friends,” Morris said, referring to legendary fictional and historical characters like Huckleberry Finn and Napoleon Bonaparte. “Instead of just reading something new, we’ll have treasures, the great books that some people haven't read,” she said.

Call 621-2818 for more information.

Also at the library this month is the Jubilee Book Club, which meets every Wednesday at 10 a.m.