Mayor Mike Ragsdale will host a roundtable discussion of The Grapes of Wrath as part of The Big Read. The discussion includes community leaders, business people, and local high school students from South Doyle and West Highs. It will take place on October 14 at 2:30 in the Small Assembly Room of the City County Building and will be broadcast live on Community Television. The public is invited to watch the discussion in several ways: in person at the City County Building, live on Comcast Channel 12 or streaming on www.ctvknox.org. After the event, the discussion will be available as a podcast on the Library's website and will also be rebroadcast on Community Television at a later date.
Community leaders taking place in the discussion include:
- Bill Haslam, Mayor of Knoxville
- Tom Beehan, Mayor of Oak Ridge
- Jerry Cunningham, Mayor of Blount County
- Clint Abbott, Vice Mayor of Alcoa
- Dr. James McIntyre, Knox County Schools Superintendent
- Rabbi Beth Schwartz, Spiritual Leader at Temple Beth El
- Franciel Azpurua Linares, Information International Assc. / Hispanic Chamber
- Rossy Toledo, Spanish Lecturer at MFLL at University of Tennessee
- Zachariah Wesley, College Prep Student, South Doyle High School
- Alexa Carter, AP Student, West High School
- Will Kronick, AP Student, West High School
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment of the Arts to promote literary reading across the community. Knox County Public Library and YWCA have teamed up to bring The Big Read to East Tennessee for the second year. The month-long program includes book discussions, film screenings, and other events across three counties.
For more information and for a schedule of Big Read events, visit the Library's website.
