Community Reads: Austin Page Turner
The Austin Page Turners was formed in 2001 by then Austin mayor Bonnie Rietz. The initial planning committee consisted of community members who enjoyed reading and discussing books. Patterned after similar citywide reading programs in Seattle and Chicago, the committee decided to focus on choosing a Minnesota author's work that would have broad appeal and bring the community together for a great discussion.
Each year the featured author comes to Austin for a series of activities culminating with a community presentation in the evening. The overwhelming popularity of the program is seen by the large number of book groups and individuals who read the book that is chosen for the annual event and who attend the various activities planned around the book.
This year, Austin brought in author Amy Thielen to discuss her book "Give A Girl A Knife."
273 participated
High attendance and participant engagement will help determine if this is a successful event.
Surveys were filled out at the events with an overall high score. Attendees seem to have a positive experience and surveys reflected it. The writers workshop was attended by area patrons that varied in writing levels from beginners to published local authors. The Austin High School presentation was attended by all grade levels of English classes where the author discussed the process of writing and publishing books. The evening event was attend by the public who had read her books and wanted to learn about her life and process of writing. Overall the main proposed goals were met the target audiences attend the events and learned about the author's life and literary works.
SELCO, Austin Public Library, Hormel House, Super Fresh, Jim Stiles, Austin High School, Emily Hovland