Anne Trubek ("A Skeptic's Guide to Writers' Houses") tonight in Decatur

Just because you are or have been one of the most famous writers in America does not guarantee you a house museum. Of course,there is little consensus as to who are the greatest American writers. Academics disagree. Does Jack London count? How about Ayn Rand? Plus,the general public's conception of the "greats" is often at odds with academic trends. John Steinbeck is often one of the first names Americans will cite when thinking of our "best," and he is almost universally taught in our schools. But few academics study him these days -- though of course his reputation may spike back up again someday. Modern Library's list of the hundred greatest English-language novels has many American authors with no house museums ... the "greats" on the list are much fewer."

(from A Skeptic's Guide to Writers' Houses, by Anne Trubek)

Fans of The Grapes of Wrath will be glad to know that Steinbeck is one of the few American authors on the Modern Library's list with a house museum they are able to roam. Literary house-hunters take note: Tonight at the Decatur Public Library, Anne Trubek will discuss her new book of essays about visits to writers' homes published by the University of Pennsylvania Press. The presentation is free and begins at 7:15 p.m.

From the Georgia Center for the Book:

We join with our good friends at The Wren's Nest in Atlanta and the Southern Literary Trail to present a program by Anne Trubek, the author of a wonderful new book, ”A Skeptic’s Guide to Writers’ Houses.” The book explores special places that celebrate the lives of writers with a vivid style that is part memoir, part travelogue, part rant and part literary analysis. Whether your favorite is Louisa May Alcott, Mark Twain, Edgar Allan Poe, Jack London, William Faulkner or Joel Chandler Harris, you’ll find some terrific insights in her book. Her appearance of part of the activities of the Southern Literary Trail, a three-state project that helps draw attention to the homes of classic Southern authors in Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi.

Adds The Wren's Nest blog:

Not since Brock Clarke’s An Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England has there been a book so prominently featuring the words “writers” and “homes” or “houses” in the title.It should come as no surprise then that we’re bringing Anne Trubek to the Decatur Library for a rousing discussion of just how bizarre writers’ homes really are.

Big ups to the Georgia Center for the Book for co-hosting this event as a part of the Southern Literary Trail. Books will be available for purchase, you bet.If you can’t stand the wait, amuse yourself with Ms. Trubek’s essay in the New York Times’ Sunday Book Review.

For more information contact the Georgia Center for the Book or The Wren's Nest, which is the home of author Joel Chandler Harris.