The NEA Big Read: Attleboro begins an odyssey of its own on Sept. 10, as it launches its 2020 program based on the Greek-themed novel Circe by Madeline Miller.
The event is 6 to 8 p.m. on the patio outside Attleboro Public Library and at Balfour Riverwalk. Free copies of the book and event calendars will be handed out.
Events that day include a petting zoo with rabbits, ducks, chickens and baby goats sponsored by The Bristol County Savings Charitable Foundation, children’s take and make craft kits, Medusa headbands for children 3 to 7 years old, and a Light-Up Mythology jar for children 8 and up. Registering in advance is required for entrance to the petting zoo. The program website, attleboros1abc.org, has more information and steps for signing up using the Events link.
Circe is the story of a girl raised in the house of Helios who turns to mortals for companionship, menacing the Greek gods and at the same time celebrating fierce female strength in a man’s world. The book was an instant New York Times bestseller. Miller’s first book, The Song of Achilles, was also a Times bestseller and won the 2012 Orange Prize for Fiction. Miller, a Brown University graduate with a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Classics, will make a virtual Big Read appearance in a discussion of her book Oct. 8.
The two-month-long event includes an in-gallery and virtual exhibit at the Attleboro Arts Museum called “Scylla – The Ugly Truth Revealed” starting Sept. 12, as the NEA Big Read kick-off event; a STEAM project to build an ancient Greek temple the week of Sept. 14-18; a women’s suffrage virtual lecture by Barbara Benson Sept. 16; a mythological anime workshop via Zoom Sept. 24; and a lecture on the history of witch persecutions Sept. 30.
There will also be numerous book club discussions for adults and children. A full list of events in September and October is available online at attleboros1abc.org.
