A.M. ATL: 📖 Read a book!

Morning, y’all. High temperatures will approach 70 degrees (!) today, with only a small chance of rain.

• While you were (hopefully) sleeping, the Falcons submitted their awards season entry for “Worst Performance in a Winning Role,” beating the dreadful Las Vegas Raiders 15-9.
• Columnist Michael Cunningham’s review: This team is “going nowhere.”

More sports coverage in a bit, including a rundown of the newest state football champs. But first: a look at today’s gathering of Georgia’s Republican presidential electors, a key stretch of Athens real estate slated for a makeover and some Southern fried reading recs.

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PRIMO PAGE-TURNERS

Courtesy of Doubleday/Algonquin/St. Martin's Press

I like books! And, my boss’ skepticism notwithstanding, can in fact read them.

Which is why it brings me great pleasure to announce the arrival of the AJC’s list of the best Southern books of 2024.

Critic Leah Tyler (no relation) put together her top 10 offerings from our part of the country, both fiction and non. Here they are, sorted by publication date:

• “Old Crimes: And Other Stories” by Jill McCorkle*
• “James” by Percival Everett*
• “The Mango Tree: A Memoir of Fruit, Florida, and Felony” by Annabelle Tometich
• “Rednecks” by Taylor Brown*
• “Grown Women” by Sarai Johnson*
• “A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy” by Tia Levings
• “That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America” by Amanda Jones
• “Two-Step Devil” by Jamie Quatro*
• “The Barn: The Secret History of a Murder in Mississippi” by Wright Thompson
• “John Lewis: A Life” by David Greenberg*

I’m afraid I’m going to make you read the full story (or the AJC reviews linked in the starred titles) for more intel on some of the books.

I’m also ashamed to admit that my reading tends to run … behind schedule. So I’ve only tackled one thing on this list: “James,” which is an award-winning retelling of “Huckleberry Finn” from the enslaved Jim’s point of view.

It’s extremely good!

• Otherwise, “Rednecks” (historical fiction about the labor uprising and military clash that gave birth to the term) and “Two-Step Devil” (“a dying recluse with prophetic visions rescues an adolescent sex trafficking victim desperate for liberation”) have lingered near the top of my list for a while.
• So has most of the nonfiction stuff — though I hadn’t heard of “Mango Tree” and am now I’m intrigued.

Books that I did get around to reading this year (and deeply enjoyed) include “Fire Exit” by Morgan Talty, “Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett and “Secrets of Ash,” a delightful and harrowing novel from my pal Josh Green.

But what’re the best books (Southern or not!) that YOU read in 2024? Shoot me an email and maybe we’ll put together our own little list in a future edition of A.M. ATL.

More musically inclined? Check out our list of the year’s best albums from Georgia artists!

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FOUR YEARS LATER …

A slate of electors nominated by the Republican Party of Georgia cast their own electoral votes for President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in 2020.

Georgia’s 16 Republican electors will gather at the state Capitol today to formally cast their votes for Donald Trump and JD Vance.

It’ll be a victory lap for the activists and insiders tapped to do the honors — and, as the AJC’s Greg Bluestein reports, a stark contrast to the 2020 undertaking that involved an “alternate” slate of GOP electors and an eventual indictment.

• Judge rejects Trump’s bid to dismiss hush money conviction
• David Scott rebuffed in bid to remain House committee’s top Dem

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CRIME WATCH

» A Coweta County jury found Jacob Christian Muse guilty of murder in the 2022 killings that left three members of the same family dead at the gun shop they owned.

» Court documents suggest an Army National Guard soldier triggered Saturday’s lockdown at Fort Eisenhower in Augusta after shooting and killing a man he saw at his ex-girlfriend’s home.

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ARCH EVOLUTION

A rendering of the proposed College Square redesign in downtown Athens.

Over in Athens, developers are preparing to revamp an important piece of real estate: the stretch of College Avenue that runs between UGA’s famed arch and City Hall.

• The multimillion-dollar project will include new pavers, outdoor seating and plenty of trees, providing a more pleasant car-free gateway to restaurants and bars — and “a handshake between the university and downtown,” one official said.

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STUDENT LOAN LIMBO

The state discontinued its primary need-based student loan program after an audit found nearly one-third of borrowers defaulted. But experts say the move may be a blessing.

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THE NEW CHAMPS

North Oconee head coach Tyler Aurandt (right, in red) celebrates with his team.

North Oconee closed out Day 1 of high school football state championship games by beating top-ranked Marist 14-7 for the Class 4A crown — the Titans’ first-ever title.

Earlier in the day, Bowdon (Class A-Division II) claimed its third straight championship while Southeast Bulloch and Greenbrier repeated in flag football.

Today’s slate at Mercedes-Benz Stadium includes: Toombs County vs. Northeast-Macon (A-Division I) at 1 p.m.; Burke County vs. Carver-Columbus (2A) at 4 p.m.; and Hughes vs. Milton (5A) at 7 p.m.

• Braves won’t host Fan Fest in January
• Report: Michael Vick interviews for college football coaching jobs

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PAYING RESPECTS

A public memorial service for Steve Mensch, the beloved Tyler Perry Studios president who died in a plane crash earlier this month, is set for Dec. 28 at Atlanta’s Tara Theatre.

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MORE TO EXPLORE

» 15-year-old girl kills teacher, teenager at Wisconsin school, police say

» Metro Atlanta food-as-medicine startup raises millions in funding

» Restaurants serving Southern fusion, Mexican cuisine open in Cobb County

» Atlanta blogger/design consultant takes rooms from imagination to reality

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ON THIS DATE

Dec. 17, 1926

Jolly old Santa Claus himself drew quite the crowds — and garnered quite the press coverage — when he paid visits to Decatur (yes there used to be a trolley!) and Athens.

The photos are from the latter, where an estimated 20,000 people showed up.

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PHOTO OF THE DAY

AJC photographer Jason Getz recently captured 8-month-old Maverick, a search and rescue dog being trained to find lost dementia patients, on a practice run at a Gwinnett County park. Holiday stress can lead Alzheimer’s patients and those with dementia to wander.

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