Tuesday, October 9, 2012

The Big Read wants Dallas to pick up a book

I was a kid who lived in my head a lot.  I escaped the boredom of life in a small town by burrowing into books.  The hours and hours I spent in these stories had me yearning for the adventures, excitement and drama I read about it books. Today, I still escape the chaos and stress of my life by slipping into a good love story or travel adventure.  I also think my insatiable appetite for books has given me superior vocabulary skills and infinite literary references that I can whip out to win any game of Trivial Pursuit or just make myself sound smarter than I really am.  That's why I am happy to share with you the endeavors of The Big Read.

Laura Bush will serve as the Honorary Chair for The Big Read in Dallas
photo: Essilor Vision Foundation

One of the goals of The Big Read Dallas is to bring the city together for one big book club through lectures, book discussions, street festivals, movie screenings, and performing arts events. Another goal is to get ninth and tenth grade students in DISD to appreciate the value of reading. The Big Read Dallas aims to place a book in the hands of the 18,500 ninth and tenth grade DISD students.

The Big Read announced today that Former First Lady Laura Bush has agreed to serve as Honorary Chair of The Big Read Dallas. “The Big Read Dallas combines three of my passions: literacy, libraries, and Dallas,” says Former First Lady Laura Bush. “My hope is that everyone in Dallas will pick up a good book and read, and I'm thrilled that The Big Read Dallas will begin with Ray Bradbury's classic Fahrenheit 451.” Written by the late Ray Bradbury in 1953, this novel was selected for The Big Read Dallas because its themes of courage, censorship, free access to information, and the value of literature are relevant today.

For more information, go to bigreaddallas.org.