Meredith Viera. Courtesy image.
On Tuesday, October 23, the Mill Valley Library celebrates the near-completion of the Great American Read, a multi-platform digital, educational and community outreach campaign, designed to get the country reading and passionately talking about books. The centerpiece of the campaign is an eight-part PBS series that “explores and celebrates the power of reading, told through the prism of America’s 100 best-loved novels (as chosen in a national survey). The grand finale episode will be the main event at the Library’s free Top 10 Countdown Party at the Sweetwater Music Hall.
At the event, which begins at 6:30pm, attendees will able to fill out their own ballot predicting which books America voted into their top 10 favorites, sample cheese and cookies, grab a drink at the cash bar, and enter to win a door prize. At 7:30pm, organizers will do a raffle, followed by the PBS Great American Read grand finale countdown episode, hosted by Meredith Viera, at 8pm.
After the episode airs, special guests Lorin Rowan and Kirk Casey’s Deep Blue Jam will get people off their feet and onto the dance floor.
The Great American Read series features a series of documentary segments, with compelling testimonials from celebrities, authors, notable Americans and book lovers across the country. It kicked off in September with an episode revealing the list of 100 books, followed by five one-hour theme episodes that examined concepts common to groups of books on the list, and a finale, in which the results are announced of a nationwide vote to choose America’s best-loved book.
The 411: The Mill Valley Library hosts a Great American Read Top-10 Countdown Party at the Sweetwater Music Hall on Tuesday, October 23. Free. Starts at 6:30pm. Sweetwater Music Hall, 19 Corte Madera Ave. Registration recommended. REGISTER HERE.