Celebration of James Dickey. 7:15 p.m. July 15. Readings. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org. The recently published "Complete Poems of James Dickey" is the ultimate collection, including all 331 published poems collected in one volume for the first time. Reading from it will be Bronwen Dickey, John Lane and former Georgia poet laureate David Bottoms.
Susan Crandall, "Whistling Past the Graveyard." 7 p.m. July 15. Signing. Free. Books must be purchased on-site. FoxTale Book Shoppe,105 E. Main St., Woodstock. 770-516-9989, www.foxtalebookshoppe.com. Also appearing: 7 p.m. July 17. Talk and signing. Free. Eagle Eye Book Shop, http://eagleeyebooks.com. A young girl runs away from her Mississippi home in 1963, befriends a lonely woman, and embarks on a life-changing road trip.
Mary Alice Monroe, "The Summer Girls." 7 p.m. July 16. Talk and signing. Free. Books must be purchased on-site. FoxTale Book Shoppe, 105 E. Main St., Woodstock. 770-516-9989, www.foxtalebookshoppe.com. In a trilogy set on Sullivan's Island, S.C., Monroe captures the complex relationships between three sisters scattered across the country.
Adam Johnson, "The Orphan Master's Son." 7 p.m. July 16. Reading and signing. Free. Carter Presidential Library & Museum Theater, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov. In this 2013 winner of the Pulitzer Prize in fiction, a veteran of an orphan work camp in North Korea finds himself employed by the state in the worst possible jobs — tunnel soldier, kidnapper, naval spy — and finally ends up in one of the government's notorious prison camps.
Mark Kurlansky, "Read for a Brand New Beat: How 'Dancing in the Street' Became an Anthem for a Changing America." 7:15 p.m. July 17. Reading, talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org. Kurlansky ("Salt") chronicles the role that Martha and the Vandellas' simple party song played during the volatile summer of 1964.
Joseph J. Ellis, "Revolutionary Summer: The Birth of American Independence." 8 p.m. July 17. $10. Atlanta History Center, 130 W. Paces Ferry Road N.W., Atlanta. 404-814-4150, www.atlantahistorycenter.com/cms/Calendar/97.html. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ellis ("Founding Fathers") focuses on the dramatic few months when the 13 colonies agreed to secede from the British Empire, and the British dispatched the largest armada ever to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
The second annual Vouched birthday party: Blake Butler, Matt Bell. 7 p.m. July 18. Readings. $5. Atlanta Goat Farm, 1200 Foster St., Atlanta. www.facebook.com/TheGoatFarmArtsCenter. VouchedATL celebrates with a host of Atlanta's literary champions, including Rachel Maddux, Lain Shakespeare, Jamie Allen, Thomas Wheatley, Amy McDaniel, Myke Johns, Jayne O'Connor, Terra McVoy, Johnny Drago, Kate Sweeney and Jason Mallory. They will read the work of children who have benefited from the Wren's Nest Kipp Scribes tutoring program. Butler and Bell will read original works.
Brendon Koerner, "The Skies Belong to Us: Love and Terror in the Golden Age of Hijacking." 7 p.m. July 18. Reading and signing. Free. Carter Presidential Library & Museum Theater, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov. Koerner's book tells the true tale of a young couple who successfully hijacked a Western Airlines flight in 1972.
What's New in Poetry: Jen Tynes, Mike Sikkema, Megan Burns and Kristin Sanders. 8 p.m. July 19. Readings. Free. Ground Floor, Barnes & Noble @ Emory, 1390 Oxford Road, Atlanta. 404-727-6222, http://emory.bncollege.com.
Leslie E. Stern, "Living With a Legend." 5 p.m. July 20. Reading, discussion and signing. Free. A Cappella Books, 208 Haralson Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-681-5128, www.acappellabooks.com. Stern offers touching stories about growing up with the acclaimed Iwao Takamoto, who worked on many Hanna-Barbera cartoons — designing Scooby-Doo and Astro — as well as such classic films as "Lady and the Tramp" and "Cinderella."
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