Featured Reader: Brooke Miller

Brooke Miller's parents instilled a love of reading in her at a young age, and she began reading on her own at the age of four. She could be found pushing around a grocery cart of books as a toddler and sleeping with books as a young child. She even got grounded from reading a few times as a teenger. Brooke believe that everyone is a reader, but sometimes it takes a while to find what you love to read.

Support Brooke in the Epic Read-A-Thon.

Why are you reading in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
I honestly believe that encouraging people to develop a love for reading and writing is one of the few things that can create long-lasting change in a person's life. I love that Desert Island Supply Co. is giving kids opportunities to develop skills that will impact their future opportunities, and hopefully instill confidence in themselves along the way.

What are you going to read in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
James and the Giant Peach. I adored this book as a child and remember my teacher reading it aloud to my class. Plus, I felt confident I would be able to pronounce all the words. :)

Which five books would you take to a desert island?
The Bible; Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott; A Summer to Die, by Lois Lowry (one of the few books I've read dozens of times); Humans of New York, by Brandon Stanton; Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens (because I've never read it in its entirety but a desert island would finally give me the chance to conquer it).

What else would you take to a desert island?
Chapstick, sun screen, a hammock, great music, and loads of Dr. Pepper.
 

[Support Brooke in the Epic Read-A-Thon]

Featured Reader: Yawntreshia Coleman

Yawntreshia Coleman is Managing Director of Coleman & Company LLC, an association management company that she founded in 2005. She also gives speeches on career and business management. 

Support Yawntreshia in the Epic Read-A-Thon.

Why are you reading in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
I am reading in the Epic Read-A-Thon and supporting DISCO's Woodlawn Writers Corps because the program provides Birmingham youth with a safe space to express themselves, process and reflect on what happens within and around them, and grow as people, thinkers, and writers.

What are you going to read in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
A Wrinkle in Time, because it was a friend's favorite book to read as a child.

Which five books would you take to a desert island?
Around the World in 80 Days, by Jules Verne; Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll; Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift; Vanity Fair, by William Thackeray; and Kimberla Lawson Roby's Reverend Curtis Black Series.

What else would you take to a desert island?
Journals or reams of paper and packs of pens.

[Support Yawntreshia in the Epic Read-A-Thon.] 

Featured Reader: Javacia Harris Bowser

Javacia Harris Bowser is an English teacher at the Alabama School of Fine Arts and the founder of See Jane Write, a lifestyle blog and community for women who write.

Support Javacia in the Epic Read-A-Thon.
 

Why are you reading in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
DISCO means so much to me. In 2011, I started See Jane Write, an organization for women who write and blog, and the most challenging part of sustaining this group has been finding an affordable venue at which to host workshops. At DISCO, See Jane Write found a home. I now host most of my events at DISCO and how perfect since our missions so closely align!

And as an English teacher at the Alabama School of Fine Arts, I also appreciate DISCO's efforts to encourage creative writing in local students.

What are you going to read in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
A Wrinkle in Time, because it was important to me to read from a book with a female protagonist.
 

Which five books would you take to a desert island?
I change my mind constantly about such questions, but right now my answer would be: Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston; Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury; When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost: A Hip-Hop Feminist Breaks It Down, by Joan Morgan; Year of Yes, by Shonda Rhimes and the Holy Bible.

What else would you take to a desert island?
My journal, of course!

[Support Javacia in the Epic Read-A-Thon]

Featured Reader: Daniel Blokh

Daniel Blokh is a Creative Writing student at the Alabama School of Fine Arts and author of In Migration (BAM! Publishing, 2016) and a forthcoming poetry chapbook called Grimmening (ELJ Publications, 2018). Support Daniel in the Epic Read-A-Thon.
 

Why are you reading in the Epic Read-A-Thon and supporting the Desert Island Supply Co.?
The Desert Island Supply Co. is like no other place in Birmingham. I've been to so many different events there, from experimental rock bands to poetry readings. They even hosted a reading of mine in 2016. As a 15-year-old, there are not a lot of venues that I'm allowed to go to, much less host an event at. But DISCO is an exception, and for that, I couldn't be more proud to support it.

What are you going to read in the Epic Read-A-Thon?
Excerpts from Russian Fairy Tales, collected by Alexandr Afanas'ev.

Why did you choose to read excerpts from Russian Fairy Tales?
Everyone but me in my family is a Russian immigrant, so I was surrounded by the Russian culture growing up. I learned Russian as my first language, ate borscht and grechka as my friends ate bacon and grits, and grew up surrounded by Russian folk tales. Instead of Disney movies, I watched cartoons where Baba Yaga flew after her victims, or where a hero fought Koschei the Deathless to free his lover. These fairy tales were a big influence on me growing up, and I would like to share them with those unfamiliar with the culture.

Which five books would you take to a desert island?
Rose by Li-Young Lee, Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris, Citizen by Claudia Rankine, and The Trouble with Poetry by Billy Collins.

What else would you take to a desert island?
A typewriter with an an endless supply of paper, or a computer with a word document open on it. My accordion. My drums. A sketchbook. A tent. A lot of bags. Bug spray. Knitting needles and yarn. An ax. A guide to surviving on a desert island.

[Support Daniel in the Epic Read-A-Thon]