Georgia Center for the Book has selected the works of prize-winning authors and illustrators with Georgia connections for the 2017 lists of the “Books All Georgians Should Read” and “Books All Young Georgians Should Read.”
The authors and illustrators will be honored on Thursday, Aug. 17, at a free, public event at 7:30 p.m. in the Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore Street in downtown Decatur.
“The lists are a wonderful way to honor the extraordinary talent we have here in Georgia,” said Joe Davich, executive director for Georgia Center for the Book. “The lists give us the opportunity to inform readers across our state about the contributions to Georgia’s literary heritage, and a platform to celebrate the diverse body of work produced by Georgians.”
The new list of “Books All Georgians Should Read” includes three works of fiction, four of non-fiction, a cookbook, and two collection of poetry. The list of “Books All Young Georgians Should Read” includes three picture books, one Early Reader Book, one book for middle school readers, three books for young adults and two graphic novels.
Both 2017 lists are the result of months of discussions by the Advisory Council, which considered over 80 books by Georgians, or about Georgia.
2017 Books All Georgians Should Read
- Lisa Hodgens, editor—A Lillian Smith Reader
- Jonathan Rabb—Among the Living: A Novel
- Patrick Phillips—Blood at the Root: A Racial Cleansing in America
- Ted Geltner—Blood, Bone and Marrow: A Biography of Harry Crews
- Thomas Mullen–Darktown: A Novel
- Theresa Davis—Drowned: A Mermaid’s Manifesto
- Judson Mitcham; Michael David Murphy; Karen L. Paty—Inspired Georgia
- Asha Gomez—My Two Souths: Blending the Flavors of India into a Southern Kitchen
- Taylor Brown—A River of Kings: A Novel
- Melissa Fay Greene—The Underdogs
2017 Books All Young Georgians Should Read
- Tonya Bolden—Crossing Ebenezer Creek
- Eleanor Davis; Drew Weing—Flop to the Top
- Jaye Robin Brown—Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit
- Steve Nedvidek; Ed Crowell; Jack Lowe; J. Moses Nester, Illustrator; S.J. Miller, Illustrator—The Jekyll Island Chronicles, Volume 1: A Machine Age War
- John Lewis; Andrew Aydin; Nate Powell—March, Volume 3
- Laurel Snyder—Orphan Island
- Thomas Gonzalez, Illustrator—Seven and a half Tons of Steel
- Acree Graham Macam; Natalie Nelson, Illustrator—The King of Birds
- Marie Marquardt—The Radius of Us
- Carmen Agra Deedy—The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet