“Have you read, Martina?” That’s the question people of all ages are asking each other in Habersham as the community continues to come together for One Book Habersham, Together We Read.
This community-wide reading campaign features the book Martina the Beautiful Cockroach by Carmen Agra Deedy. People are encouraged to read the book, sign the book and pass it on. The purpose of OBH is to encourage reading and foster a sense of community. “It’s about building community through stories,” says Level Grove Elementary School Media Specialist and event organizer Helen O’Brien.
O’Brien, who also serves on the Board of Directors for Volunteers for Literacy of Habersham County, has tirelessly worked alongside fellow committee members Nancy Carter and Rhonda Andrews for months planning and orchestrating the event. “We all had this vision of our community coming together and doing a One Book event, a community read which has been going on across the United States for the last ten years,” says Andrews. As Director of Elementary Schools for Habersham County she’s doubly excited because the One Book program directly ties in to the school system’s mission. “That was really the intent of this entire program,” says Andrews, “to bring diverse groups from our community together for one goal with one purpose, kind of tied into our ‘One Team, One Mission, Success for all Students’ mission for Habersham County schools.”
How it began
Martina the Beautiful Cockroach was selected as the first featured book because of its author. Deedy was born in Havana, Cuba and migrated with her family to the United States in 1963 following the Cuban Revolution. Her family settled in Decatur, Georgia and that’s where this internationally known, award winning children’s author still lives.
Carter and O’Brien are both fans of Carmen Agra Deedy’s work and they made that connection shortly after Carter took over as principal at Level Grove Elementary. They drew Andrews and Volunteers for Literacy of Habersham County into the conversation and One Book Habersham, Together We Read was born.
How it works
Copies of the featured book are available in venues throughout Habersham County. You can find them in Habersham County’s public libraries, public school media centers, in local business offices and waiting rooms, the Little Free Libraries in Demorest, and at the Senior Center and Health Department, among other locations. You get a copy of the book, read it, sign your name on the label inside the front cover and then pass it on. The goal is to get as many as people as possible in the community to read Martina the Beautiful Cockroach – it’s a quick, colorful, enjoyable read – and then come together to discuss the book during a free public event at Habersham Central High School this Thursday, March 27. Thursday’s event starts at 6:30pm in the HCHS cafeteria and continues in the HCHS Fine Arts Auditorium with Storytelling by Carmen Agra Deedy at 7:30pm.
Have you read Martina?
Organizers say they’re overwhelmed by the support they’ve received for OBH. Sponsors include the Cornelia Rotary Club, Piedmont College and Now Habersham. Plans are to make this an annual event.
If you haven’t yet joined in the One Book Habersham conversation, there’s still time. Just visit your local public or school library and pick up a copy of Martina the Beautiful Cockroach. Read the book, sign the book, pass it on and then join your family, friends and neighbors this coming Thursday, March 27, for an evening of fellowship and fun at Habersham Central High School beginning at 6:30pm.
Read the book. Talk it up. Ask your neighbor “Have you read Martina?” Let’s see how many people in Habersham County we can get to say “Yes!”
