Twenty-two percent of the adults in Moore County lack the basic literacy skills in order to function fully in everyday life.

"If you can read, you can help," says Susan Sherard, executive director of the Moore County Literacy Council.

The Moore County Literacy Council offers 12-hour workshops for volunteers who would like to become adult tutors. Volunteers are required to attend orientation prior to a training session.

All sessions will be at the Emmanuel Youth House, 385 E Indiana in Southern Pines.

Orientation is Monday, Aug. 22, from 1 to 2 p.m., and training takes place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Aug. 29, and Tuesday, Aug. 30.

Donations will be accepted to defray the cost of materials. Participants are asked to bring a lunch.

Register by the week prior to the session. Registrations may be made by calling (910) 692-5954 or emailing pammclc@nc.rr.com.

'N.C. Bookwatch'

UNC-TV's "North Carolina Bookwatch" begins a new season with UNC Greensboro's Michael Parker Sunday, Aug. 7, at 5 p.m. He will discuss "The Watery Part of the World," an imaginative story that blends coastal history and legends with race and other complexities to make a gripping story.

In "Aerotropolis: The Way We'll Live Next," John D. Karsarda, director of the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at UNC-Chapel Hill, explains why efficient, well-designed airports attract economic development and will be the central cities of the future. He discusses the challenges and opportunities that face North Carolina's major airports.

This episode airs Friday, Aug. 12, at 9:30 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 14, at 5 p.m.

Novel News

Allan Jefferys, of Pinehurst, announces that his latest novel, "Zoom in Tight," is now available for Kindle or ebook for $2.99.

"This is a new updated version of one I published some years ago called 'A News Story,'" he says.

Jefferys notes that the book contains strong language and some sexual situations.

Writing Contest

The Writers' Workshop, of Asheville, is sponsoring its sixth annual Fiction and Nonfiction Contest, open to any writer regardless of residence or experience.

The top 10 contest winners will meet National Book Award-winning authors E.L. Doctorow and Peter Matthiessen at their homes in Sag Harbor, N.Y., on Sept. 19-22. They will have the opportunity to discuss their story with the authors, and have books autographed.

The winners may also opt for free online workshops or editing of their work. In addition, 10 honorable mentions will receive recognition.

Submit an unpublished story or chapter of a novel (fiction or creative nonfiction), of 5,000 words or less. Pages should be paper clipped. Include name, address, email, phone, title and genre of work (fiction or nonfiction) on a cover sheet. Double-space; use a 12-point font.

The entry fee is $30 per story. Multiple entries are accepted. Enclose legal size self-sealing SASE for critique and list of winners. Make checks or money orders payable to The Writers' Workshop, and mail to: Author's Contest, 387 Beaucatcher Road, Asheville, NC 28805.

Emailed submissions may be sent to writersw@gmail.com, with "Author's Contest" in the subject line. The entry fee is payable online at www.twwoa.org.

New Book

They all came to Chapel Hill: scholars, U.S. presidents, activists, cooks, soldiers, artists, entrepreneurs, musicians and writers - many, many writers.

Even Gertrude Stein visited, despite having never before heard of the town, and found, much to her surprise, that there was indeed a there here.

Now 27 (and then some) of the legions of writers who call Chapel Hill home create a literary landscape of the fabled Southern college town.

"27 Views of Chapel Hill" casts a wide net, capturing the ethos of the town in prose and poetry. The essays, short stories, poetry and book excerpts represent a choir of voices that reflect the social, historic and creative fabric of Chapel Hill.

The collection addresses everything from first-hand accounts of the civil rights movement sit-ins to a paean to Battle Park to the genesis of Mama Dip's Kitchen.

This is the second book in Eno Publishers's "27 Views" series that features the literary communities of contemporary Southern towns. The series' initial book was the award-winning "27 Views of Hillsborough," with an introduction by novelist Michael Malone.

The introduction and cover art for this book were by novelist Daniel Wallace. Wallace says in his introduction "... this ground is fertile with ink-stained wretches of every stripe ... So many wonderful writers live here, it's impossible to fit them all in one volume. To do that, Eno would have had to change the title to '27,000 Views'... because everybody has their own view, every writer, every reader."

Contributors include Nic Brown, Erica Eisdorfer, Wells Tower, Daphne Athas, William Leuchtenburg, Elizabeth Spencer, Alan Shapiro, Paul Cuadros, Bland Simpson, Will Blythe, Lawrence Naumoff, Will McInerney, Samia Serageldin, Michael McFee, Moreton Neal, Marcie Cohen Ferris, Bill Smith, Paul Jones, Jock Lauterer, Sy Safransky, Karen Parker, Jim Seay, Harry Amana, Charles L. Thompson, D.G. Martin, Linnie Green, Mildred Council, Daniel Wallace, David E. Brown and C.J. Suitt.

The book, which is $16.50, is published by Eno Publishers, and will be released in September.

For more information, contact Gita Schonfeld at gita@enopublishers.org or visit the website www.enopublishers.org

This book is supported in part from a grant from the Orange County Arts Commission.