FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Pete Winton, Lee County Administration
(239) 335-2777
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS POSE WITH BOOKS FOR "READ" POSTERS
FORT MYERS, Fla. (September 23, 2003) - As part of International Literacy Week events that began Sep. 8, Lee County Commissioners are being featured on local "READ" posters along with the books of their choice.
The posters are to promote reading and will be displayed in the county's libraries. Below are the commissioners, their book choices, and why they selected their books:
Commissioner Bob Janes: "Point of Honor" by Robert Macomber
Macomber is a local author and former Lee County Sheriff's Major. He has published two of a projected seven volume historical fiction series about the life and times of Peter Wake in his thirty-five years in the United States Navy, beginning during the Civil War. His first novel, "At the Edge of Honor" is the winner of the 2003 Patrick D. Smith Literary Prize for Best Historical Novel of Florida. The second, "Point of Honor" was named the winner of the 2003 John Esten Cooke Literary Award, a national award for Civil War fiction.
Selected because: Commissioner Janes read and thoroughly enjoyed both of these books and is looking forward to a third title in this series.
Commissioner Doug St. Cerny: "Childcraft Series: Folk and Fairy Tales"
Folk and Fairy Tales, includes about 45 stories. Some of those are: The Little Red Hen, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Three Little Pigs, The Teeny, Tiny Lady, The Pancake, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Bremen Town Musicians, The Shoemaker and the Elves, Jack and the Beanstalk, Dick Whittington and His Cat, The Emperor's New Clothes, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, Rapunzel, and over thirty others. Authors include the Brothers Grimm, Carolyn Sherwin Bailey, Gudrun Thorne-Thomsen, Beatrix Potter, Hans Christian Andersen, Ruth Sawyer, Arthur Ransome, Wanda Gág, Aesop, and others (from valerieslivingbooks.com).
Selected because: This is the book that Commissioner St. Cerny read to his children every night.
Commissioner Ray Judah: "The Territorial Imperative" by Robert Ardrey
Three decades after it first burst onto the American scene, Robert Ardrey's argument that animal instincts guide human behavior remains both compelling and controversial. Regional conflicts around the globe constantly demonstrate the destructive force of the drive to claim and guard a specific territory. But Ardrey goes beyond such obvious examples, insisting that many of the noblest sentiments we call human - the love of family, the willingness to sacrifice for a community larger than the self - are rooted in this instinct (from publisher Kondasha International).
Selected because: Commissioner Judah read this book while he was in college and says it had a major impact on his life.
Commissioner Andy Coy: "The Federalist Papers" by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay
The Federalist Papers were written and published during the years 1787 and 1788 in several New York State newspapers to persuade New York voters to ratify the proposed constitution. <http://www.foundingfathers.info>In total, the Federalist Papers consist of 85 essays outlining how this new government would operate and why this type of government was the best choice for the United States of America. All of the essays were signed "PUBLIUS" and the actual authors of some are under dispute, but the general consensus is that Alexander Hamilton wrote 52, James Madison wrote 28, and John Jay contributed the remaining five. The Federalist Papers remain today as an excellent reference for anyone who wants to understand the U.S. Constitution (from foundingfathers.info).
Selected because: "As a former U.S. History Teacher, I still have a love and a passion for history and the original documents that provided for our Constitution."
Commissioner John Albion: "The Greatest Generation" by Tom Brokaw
In this book, Tom Brokaw goes out into America, to tell through the stories of individual men and women the story of a generation, America's citizen heroes and heroines who came of age during the Great Depression and the Second World War and went on to build modern America. This generation was united not only by a common purpose, but also by common values - duty, honor, economy, courage, service, love of family and country, and, above all, responsibility for oneself (card catalogue description).
Selected because: Commissioner Albion thought highly of the book and believes it will become a signature book of this generation about the previous generation. It also is a very recognizable book that may encourage those who don't normally read to give it a try.