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THURSDAY, AUGUST 9 -16, 2018 • Page 2
Individuals voting at the PBS Great American Read voting booth kiosk at Decatur Library Aug. 3.
Great American Read makes pitstop in Decatur
BY HORACE HOLLOMAN
horace@dekalbchamp.com
There can only be one
winner from the list of
Americas ‘TOO best-loved”
novels, and Public Broadcasting
System’s Great American Read
series is on a mission to find
which novel reigns supreme.
According to PBS, The
Great American Read is an
eight-part television series that
explores and celebrates the
power of reading, told through
the prism of Americas 100
best-loved novels.
From Aug. 2-9, The Great
American Read interactive
traveling voting booth made
a stop at the Decatur Library.
Participants chose from a list of
100 best-loved novels selected
by a national survey.
Lesley Barber, collection
management coordinator for
DeKalb County Public Library,
said it’s fun to discuss the list in
detail, which sometimes leads
to intense debates.
“This is a chance for people
in DeKalb County to vote for
their most-loved novel based
on [PBS’s] list of 100,” Barber
said. “There are definitely some
DeKalb County favorites on the
list.”
Novels such as The Coldest
Winter Ever by Sister Souljah,
The Handmaid’s Tale by
Margaret Atwood, Harry
Potter series by J.K. Rowling
and Alex Cross Mystery series
by James Patterson.
Decatur Library was the
only branch in the DeKalb
County Public Library system
to host the voting booth.
“DeKalb County is
represented well in this list,”
Barber said. “In one format
or another, we have every one
of these titles. If you have a
DeKalb County library card
you can read your way through
the entire PBS Great American
Read series. We’ve got them
all.”
Barber said Decatur is
one of approximately 20
public libraries in the country
that carries the entire Great
American Read list.
Elizabeth Costello,
assistant branch manager at
Decatur Public Library, said she
voted for The Coldest Winter
Ever and one of her favorite
books is To Kill a Mockingbird.
“I love the classics, but I also
like the new up-and-coming
books like The Hunger Games,”
Costello said. “There are quite
a few on there that I encourage
the population to read.”
According to PBS, voting
ends Oct. 18. The interactive
voting booth will make another
appearance in Decatur this year
at the Decatur Book Festival,
according to Decatur officials.
“We encourage everyone to
read and I’m really enjoying the
voting. I’m going to vote again,”
Costello said, laughing.
Participants can vote by
using the voting app on The
Great American Read website,
https://www.pbs.org/the-great-
american-read/vote/, posting
an original post on Facebook
or Twitter using the official
hashtag of your favorite book
or by sending a text message
with a unique keyword hashtag
of your favorite book to 97979.
A list of hashtags can be
viewed on www.pbs.org/
the-great-american-read. On
Sept. 11, PBS will have toll-
free phone voting. The Great
American Read winner will be
announced on the PBS grand
finale show which premieres
Oct. 23.
“I think cinema has played a
huge role in introducing people
to books, and that’s exciting,”
said Justin Nixon, who voted
at the Decatur Library Aug.
3. “There are so many books
that are on this list [that have
been made as movies] that
are in theaters or have been
in theaters. The greatest thing
about reading a book is no one
can take that away from you.”
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice is hereby given that the Atlanta City Council will meet on Monday August 20, 2018 to
consider the approval of the use of eminent domain to obtain fee simple title to the following
parcels of land from Elm Street for the Development of the Rodney Cook, Sr. Park in
Historic Vine City, a public use:
TAX PARCEL ID #
14 011000060432
14 011000060440
14 011000060457
14 011000060473
14 011000030666
14 011000030682
ADDRESS
205 Elm St.
209 Elm St.
211 Elm St.
221 Elm St.
273 Elm St.
283 Elm St.
ORDINANCE #
18-0-1425
18-0-1425
18-0-1425
18-0-1425
18-0-1425
18-0-1425
The meeting will be held at the Atlanta City Hall Complex, 55 Trinity Avenue, Atlanta,
Georgia in the City Council Chambers located on the second floor beginning at 6:15 p.m. All
concerned citizens and each person with a legal claim in the properties are invited to attend.
A copy of the proposed legislation on file in the Office of the Municipal Clerk, City Hall, 55
Trinity Avenue, Atlanta, Georgia 30303 for public inspection.