The Atlanta History Center presents the third annual Big Read initiative, a campaign designed to spark interest in reading and inspire literary discussion.  The Big Read, which spans the month of October, is an initiative of the National Endowment of the Arts, working locally through the Atlanta History Center’s Literacy Center at the Margaret Mitchell House, and is the largest reading program in American history.  This year’s Big Read focuses on the works of Edgar Allen Poe and will feature a variety of free programs, including book discussions and lectures, living history performances, poetry slam, and a classic film series based on the works of Poe.

The Big Read officially launches with a masquerade ball at the Atlanta History Center on Thursday, Oct. 14, from 6 – 9 p.m.  The free event promises a spooky, fun-filled, after-hours program.  There will be a dramatic Poe performance, live music, lantern-led tours of the AHC’s mid-nineteenth-century Tullie Smith Farm, places to design a masque at the event and enter for a chance to win a Poe prize pack in a Best Masque Contest.  The first fifty visitors receive a free copy of Great Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe. To make reservations, call (404) 814-4150.

For more information on this and other Big Read events and the Atlanta History Museum, call (404) 814-4000, or visit the Big Read’s homepage.