It’s time to dust off your old copy of “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
St. Johns Read kicks off the first week in February and Harper Lee’s Pulitzer-Prize winning novel has been chosen as this year’s title. The event will culminate with a discussion by the actress who played Scout in the movie adaptation.
The novel, was published in 1960 and won a Pulitzer the following year. It was also adapted into an Academy Award-Winning film in 1962 starring Gregory Peck as the protagonist, Atticus Finch.
“To Kill a Mockingbird” is set in the small southern town of Maycomb, Alabama during the Depression Era and told from the perspective of young Jean Louise Finch, nicknamed “Scout.” The story spans a three-year period in Scout’s childhood and deals with a myriad of themes including prejudice and racial injustice in the coming of age tale that quickly became a classic.
Throughout the month of February, St. Johns County residents are encouraged to participate in the community-wide event and read or re-read the novel. All of the St. Johns County Library Branches will be hosting events related to the novel. The events are mostly geared towards adults and teens, but there are a few events planned for children as well.
In addition to book discussions, other events include viewings of films related to the African American Civil Right Movement, southern-style cooking demonstrations and tastings, lectures by community scholars and authors, southern inspired gardening and flower arrangement tutorials, and more.
The event will culminate with “To Kill a Mockingbird: An Evening with Scout” Saturday, Feb. 27 at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre. Mary Badham, the Academy Award nominated actress who portrayed “Scout” in the 1962 movie adaption of the novel, will talk about her on-set experiences, her lifelong friendship with Gregory Peck, and the legacy of Harper Lee. Following the discussion, the film will be shown.
Gates open at 5 p.m. The film will be screened at 7 p.m. The St. Augustine Amphitheatre is located at 1340 C A1A S., St. Augustine. For more information, call (904) 827-6928 or visit www.staugamphitheatre.com. The event is free.
Visit www.sjcpls.org or call the library for more information about St. Johns Reads events.
St. Johns Reads 2016 Schedule of Events:
Ponte Vedra Beach Branch
2/4 – Family Storytime, 11 - 11:45 a.m.
2/16 - Book Discussion, 3-4 p.m.
2/24 - To Cook a Mockingbird, 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
2/27 - Sisterhood of the Traveling Plants – Southern Flowers, 2 – 3:30 p.m.
Anastasia Island Branch
2/6 – Journey to Maycomb – Book Inspired Acrylic Art, 2-4 p.m.
2/13 – Sisterhood of the Traveling Plants – Southern Flowers, 2-4 p.m.
2/16 – Book Talk with Keith Schlegel, 4-5:30 p.m.
2/18 – Anastasia Island Book Club: “To Kill a Mockingbird,” 6:45 p.m. - 7:45 p.m.
2/20 – Books and Bites: Journey to Maycomb, 2-4 p.m.
2/24 – Kids Printmaking Craft, 2:30 p.m.-4 p.m.
Bartram Trail Branch
2/5 – Book Discussion, 10 a.m.-11 a.m.
2/19 – Books and Bites: Journey to Maycomb, 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
2/20 – The Everyday Life of Our Ancestors. 2-4 p.m.
2/22 – Book Discussion, 7-8 p.m.
2/26 - Book Cover Inspired Acrylic Art, 10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Main Library
2/3 - “To Kill a Mockingbird” and Southern Literature, 3-4 p.m.
2/10 – Everyday Life in the Jim Crow South, noon-1 p.m.
2/16 – Screening of “Rosewood,” 1-3:30 p.m.
2/23 – To Cook a Mockingbird, 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
2/24 – Book Discussion, 11 a.m.-noon
2/24 Southern Gardening, 2-3 p.m.
Southeast Branch
2/1 - Everyday Life in the Jim Crow South, 6:30 – 7:45 p.m.
2/3 - Civil Rights Cinema, 1-3 p.m.
2/4 – Slave Narratives: Identity and Race in the Era of Slavery and the 1930s, 6:30 – 7:45 p.m.
2/6 – Compassion & Peace Meditation, 11 – 11:45 a.m.
2/6 – Rosamond Parrish: Lincolnville, 2 – 3:30 p.m.
2/10 - Civil Rights Cinema, 1-3 p.m.
2/11 – Screening of “Rosewood,” 5:30 – 8 p.m.
2/17 - Civil Rights Cinema, 1-3 p.m.
2/20 – Documentary and Danish Featuring “Eyes on the Prize,” 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
2/20 – Difference, Community, and Humanity, 2-4 p.m.
2/24 - Civil Rights Cinema, 1-3 p.m.
2/25 – Fresh Southern Fixin’s Presented by The Floridian, 4:30 - 6 p.m.
2/25 – Adult Book Club, 6:45 – 7:45 p.m.
Hastings Branch
2/6 – Mixed-Media Bird Collages, 1-2 p.m.
2/17 – Adult Book Club featuring “To Kill a Mockingbird,” 11 a.m. - noon
2/19 - Memories and Stories of Growing up Southern, 6 – 7:30 p.m.
St. Augustine Amphitheatre
2/27 – An Evening with Scout at 6 p.m.
2/27 – Film Viewing of “To Kill a Mockingbird” at 7 p.m.
