Pete Hamill, best-selling author and renowned journalist, came to Long Island's Farmingdale School District to help kickoff the community's second annual literacy project "Farmingdale Reads." Hamill spoke to a standing-room-only crowd in the 400-seat Lecture Hall at Farmingdale High School, all of whom had come to hear him discuss his work Snow In August, the core novel of this year's "Reads." The turnout was impressive not simply for its sheer number, but also because of the diversity of the crowd. Middle schoolers who know of Jackie Robinson only through PowerPoint presentations in their English classes sat next to senior citizens who still haven't gotten over the Brooklyn Dodgers' move.

"Farmingdale Reads," initiated last year by the Farmingdale Community Summit Council, has at its core a simple goal: to unite the community through a single literary work. The "Reads" committee, comprised of more than a dozen people representing a cross-section of the community, considered several possible centerpiece novels, but Hamill's novel won out because it is so accessible to Farmingdalers.

Hamill began the afternoon event by talking about the Columbia Shuttle crash and the emotions surrounding the tragedy. "I'm struck always about how much literature is about going home. September 11 is about people who didn't make it home. The shuttle crash is about people who almost made it home," he said. He talked about the triumphant strength of New York City, how it was built and continues to be built by immigrants seeking only a better life for their children.

"I'm so thrilled to see young people here," Hamill said, encouraging them to take advantage of the literature available in public libraries. "Read it like a predator. Read it like its food." In response to a question about encouraging others to write, Hamill said, "first you find somebody who hits a note in your head. Then, imitate, emulate, equal and surpass."

Howitt eighth graders Brenna Dugan and Yanique Carty said they came to the book discussion because "we heard he had something interesting to say," adding that they were not disappointed. Elsewhere in the community, the "Farmingdale Reads" concept was being embraced by even younger readers, or more accurately, their parents. Preschooler Jake Formisano was at the Farmingdale Library with his mom reading The Crayon Box That Talked, selected by Farmingdale School District library-media specialists and the Farmingdale Public Library as a companion to Snow in August for the younger set

Proceeds from ticket sales of the book discussion will help fill baskets of books for families in need. Donations of new and almost-new books, videotapes, books on tape and learning toys for babies are also being accepted. Residents are asked to bring their contributions to the March 6 Summit Council event, "Farmingdale: A Community of Opportunity," at Farmingdale High School from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The Girl Scouts have volunteered to put the baskets together.