Join private eye Sam Spade and thousands of readers in Pomona in the hunt for the ¿Maltese Falcon,¿ this year¿s featured book for the Big Read. Sponsored by the city of Pomona, Cal Poly Pomona and other community partners, the Big Read encourages people to come together to celebrate American and world literature.

Dashiell Hammett¿s 1930 classic sets Sam Spade on a mysterious case that involves murder, suspicious characters, and a priceless, jewel-encrusted bird. The detective novel became a movie in 1941, starring Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor.

Several Big Read events are scheduled through November, including reading circles, arts and crafts activities, film screenings, literature discussions, and a murder mystery dinner show. Cal Poly Pomona¿s University Library will host a movie screening on Oct. 19 and a discussion of noir literature on Nov. 10.

The Oct. 7 kick-off event will feature a classic noir panel moderated by Los Angeles noir author Denise Hamilton. Panelists include Julie Rivett, Hammett¿s granddaughter; Raymond Chandler biographer Judith Freeman; and Ross MacDonald biographer Tom Nolan. The event, to be held at Western University of Health Sciences, will include a reception and book signing.

The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), in partnership with Arts Midwest, designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. Last year, Pomona residents joined together to read Ray Bradbury¿s ¿Fahrenheit 451,¿ and hundreds of people also had the rare opportunity to meet the author in person.

For a full schedule of this year¿s Big Read events, visit the Pomona Public Library website or the NEA website. For more information, contact Pat Lambert, Pomona Public Library adult reference services supervisor at (909) 620-2043, Ext. 2706.