This winter, midcoast Maine will dive into Robert Kurson's "Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries Of World War II," a riveting and vivid non-fiction account of two deep wreck divers, one of whom now lives locally.

In the fall of 1991 they found her six miles off the New Jersey coast and 230 feet below the surface of the deep blue Atlantic. She lay on her side, in a spot where all government experts concluded there could not possibly be a sunken WWII German U-boat. Who was she and what had happened to her? A mass of twisted wreckage, she gave no clue as to her identity.

With nothing to go on except a few tantalizing artifacts, deep wreck divers John Chatterton and Richie Kohler embarked on a historic quest. Over the next six years, their single-minded pursuit to unravel the mystery of the lost U-boat drew them deeper into the deadly dangers of wreck diving and into a growing brotherhood towards each other and the ill-fated U-boat crew.

"Shadow Divers" draws us into two very different worlds: the dangerous life of the thrill-seeking deep water diver and the somber last days of the young U-boat crew. This is a page-turner that is as much historical mystery as it is a gripping dive adventure and is sure to be a favorite.

The purpose of the Community Read is to bring people together by reading, discussing and participating in activities related to the same book. Past selections for the Read have included "To Kill a Mockingbird," "Endurance," "Kite Runner," and "The Grapes of Wrath."

This will be the seventh Midcoast Maine Community Read with Freeport Public Library and Merrill Memorial Library in Yarmouth joining for the first time.

Other Community Read participants include Curtis Memorial Library of Brunswick, Patten Free Library of Bath, Topsham Public Library, Wiscasset Public Library, Albert F. Totman Library of Phippsburg, Orr's Island Library, and Cundy's Harbor Library in Harpswell. Hundreds of copies of "Shadow Divers" will be available locally in January and February.

If participants are unable to read standard print, an audio version of the book will also be available on CD.

An alternate or companion book for younger readers, "Dive: The Discovery" by Gordon Korman, has also been chosen. This is an exciting suspense tale about four kids who are chosen to be part of a summer dive program where they discover sunken treasure. It is the first book in a trilogy.

For the youngest readers, there is the picture book, "Sunken Treasure" by Gail Gibbons. Accompanied by appealing illustrations, this book is full of information about sunken treasure, salvage operations, and the history of diving told in a style that is understandable and fascinating for younger children. Copies of companion books will be in libraries and book stores as well.

Discussions and activities will follow in March at local libraries as well as at partnering non-profit organizations and businesses. Detailed schedules will be available at the kick off on January 15. Look for more information onwww.midcoastreads.com. All events are free and open to the public.