CHAPEL HILL -- It's no secret that the Triangle is a highly literate place. But even with the universities and technology concerns, there are startling discrepancies.
In Orange County alone, 12 percent of the population - or about 8,600 residents - has significant literacy needs, according to the Orange County Literacy Council. Approximately one-third of those with a Hillsborough address lack high school diplomas or GEDs.
Nationwide, 30 million Americans 16 and older are at the lowest level of skills proficiency. More than 88 million adults have literacy issues that prevent them from entering college or job training programs.
And then there is this: In testimony to Congress last year, the National Commission on Adult Literacy warned that of the 30 free-market countries in the international Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the United States is the only one whose young adults are less educated than the previous generation.
So who better to fight illiteracy than writers?
On Monday, Daniel Wallace, author of the celebrated novel "Big Fish" and a UNC-Chapel Hill English professor, will emcee the annual Writers for Readers benefit luncheon sponsored by the Orange County Literacy Council. Five noted writers will give short presentations on their work and on the topic of literacy: Dorothy Allison, a National Book Award finalist for her novel "Bastard Out of Carolina"; Charlaine Harris, author of The Southern Vampire Mysteries book series that inspired the hit HBO drama "True Blood"; UNC-Greensboro alum George Singleton, author of two novels and four short-story collections; novelist and homeless advocate Lee Stringer; and acclaimed short story author Wells Tower.
"Literacy skills provide a foundation for everything you do in life - from work to communicating with friends and family," said Alice Denson, literacy council executive director. "Even in a well-educated, well-read area like Chapel Hill, Orange County and the Triangle, illiteracy remains a problem."
The Orange County Literacy Council is a nonprofit agency that helps adults reach their educational, employment and personal development goals. Proceeds from the event will pay for one-on-one and small-group instruction in reading, writing and math and for English for speakers of other languages. Denson said the nonprofit spends about 85 percent of its funding on direct service.
That kind of direct one-to-one work is critical, said Wallace, a former director of the literacy council.
"Such programs are important because without language we can't make total sense of our lives," Wallace said. "Through reading, even and maybe especially in its most fundamental form, we get closer to the truth of the world."
Author Harris, who is traveling from Arkansas for the event, concurs.
"Literacy is the key to life, and I really don't think that's such an exaggeration," she said. "From understanding signs and directions and forms to reading for pleasure and instruction, this world is based on the premise of literacy. For an adult to seek help to achieve this is an amazingly brave step."
Wallace said an additional hazard to basic, traditional literacy is our increasing multimedia world of TV and texting, YouTube and twitters.
"It's a real danger," he said. "We're bombarded by information we can't make sense of every single day. Real readers are rare. But they will never go away. There's a real pleasure in reading that is matched by nothing."
The council will also host a reception for the visiting authors this evening at the UNC President's House, 400 East Franklin St. Tickets are $100 per person for this event, with all proceeds going to the council. The reception will feature seven local cookbook authors, who will be bringing along samples of their food.
