Jeffrey Small, "The Jericho Deception." 7:15 p.m. May 20. Talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org. In Small's latest thriller (after "The Breath of God"), a Yale neuroscientist is on the verge of a groundbreaking discovery: a machine with the ability to produce religious ecstasy.
Larry Colton, "Southern League: A True Story of Baseball, Civil Rights, and the Deep South's Most Compelling Pennant Race." 7 p.m. May 20. Discussion and signing. Free. Jimmy Carter Library & Museum, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov. Colton tells the story of the Southern League's 1964 Birmingham Barons, the first integrated sports team in Alabama. Seventeen years after Jackie Robinson broke the major league color line, the Barons competed at the height of civil rights protests and race riots.
Joe Cook, "Etowah River User's Guide." 7:15 p.m. May 21. Talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org. Cook's handy, waterproof guide offers an appealing look at the biologically diverse Etowah River, a fascinating history of the area, and information of interest to novice and experienced paddlers, as well as fishermen.
Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, "My Greek Drama: Life, Love and One Woman's Olympic Effort to Bring Glory to Her Country." 7 p.m. May 21. Reading and signing. Free. Jimmy Carter Library & Museum, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov. In a memoir packed with lessons on leadership, Angelopoulos-Daskalaki recalls her remarkable rise from a childhood in Crete to law school in Thessaloniki and ultimately becoming the woman who turned the Athens Olympics into Greece's international triumph.
Jeff Shaara, "A Chain of Thunder: A Novel of the Siege of Vicksburg." 8 p.m. May 22. Talk and signing. $10. Atlanta History Center, 130 W. Paces Ferry Road N.W., Atlanta. 404-814-4150, www.atlantahistorycenter.com. Shaara continues his Civil War trilogy, chronicling another decisive battle in America's long and bloody war: Vicksburg, Miss., which cemented the reputation of Ulysses S. Grant and all but sealed the fate of the rebel cause.
Susan Puckett, "Eat Drink Delta: A Hungry Traveler's Journey Through the Soul of the South." 7:15 p.m. May 22. Talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org. Puckett, who for two decades was the food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, has crafted a book celebrating her native Mississippi Delta that is part travelogue, part memoir and part photo gallery.
Bill Cheng, "Southern Cross the Dog." 7:15 p.m. May 23. Talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org. In his extraordinary debut novel, Cheng channels the culture and stories of the Delta blues through the lives of three childhood friends and a mysterious bluesman whose fates are interwoven with the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and its aftermath.
Ivy Hall Writers Series: David Gillham, "City of Women." 6:30 p.m. May 24. Talk and signing. Free. Ivy Hall, 179 Ponce de Leon Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-253-3324, www.artofrestoration.org/events/calendar.cfm. In Gillham's acclaimed debut novel, set in war-torn 1943 Berlin, a model German citizen and soldier's wife keeps a secret that will have grave consequences.
Meg Moseley, "Gone South." 2 p.m. May 25. Signing. Free. Lawrenceville Books-A-Million #149, Discover Mills Mall, 5900 Sugarloaf Parkway, Lawrenceville. 678-847-5115, www.booksamillion.com. The second novel by Atlanta author Moseley ("When Sparrows Fall") tells the story of a woman who returns to her roots in Noble, Ala., only to find a frigid reception tied to her family's history.
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