To misquote Ernest Hemingway, “All good [blogs] are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened and after you are finished reading one you will feel that all that happened to you and afterwards it all belongs to you; the good and the bad, the ecstasy, the remorse and sorrow, the people and the places and how the weather was.”

In 2007, more than 200 communities nationwide will participate in the Big Read. NEA Literature Director David Kipen will visit many of those communities delivering keynote addresses and participating in read-a-thons, film festivals, parades, and many other book-inspired (and inspiring) activities. On his reader’s road trip, David will blog regularly about the events he attends, the readers and writers he meets, the insights community residents share about the Big Read novels, and much more. When he’s not posting from the road, he’ll post from his desk and from inside the books of the Big Read, perhaps even inviting a guest blogger or two to chime in.

David encourages e-mail from readers, and will occasionally post your e-mails and his responses to your e-mail. When you’re not busy reading the blog, we invite you to visit the Big Read web site to learn more about the program, the Big Read library of books, and what’s happening in community Big Reads nationwide.