Allen Memorial Library

First Baptist Church Decatur Media Center

About Our Library

Located on the second floor of our Sanctuary building, The Allen Memorial Library and Media Center provides quality reading selections and media resources for church members and the local Decatur community.

Our church library contains over 15,323 cataloged items, including 

• Books

• Bibles and Commentaries 

• Periodicals

• Audiobooks

• Movies and films

• A/V equipment rental

• Reading programs and curriculum

• And much more!

Library Collections

Books for Adults  

We have books about our world, the latest fiction bestsellers, non-fiction texts to help with Sunday School study, self-help books, history, biography, periodicals, large-print books, audio-books, and computers to look stuff up. Books we can’t use in our collection, we offer for sale.

Books for Children and Youth

We’re your children’s source for the latest award-winners! Our volunteer staff includes people who know children’s books inside-and-out and can recommend top fiction and non-fiction titles to put in your collection (pre-K—Young Adult). 

Resources for the Decatur Reading Community

The Library is an information source and cheerleader for book festivals (Decatur Book Festival) and author talks (Georgia Center for the Book, Conversations, local bookstores). We post calendars for community book sales, book recommendations, interesting websites — all things BOOK.

Beth’s Books

Each month, Beth Withers, one of our library volunteers, shares the newest books that have been added to our church library this past month:

• PICTURE BOOK

  • Knight Owl by Christopher Denise.
    Ever since he was hatched, Owl has dreamed of becoming a real knight. He may not be the biggest or strongest but he is smart and determined. When a number of knights go missing, Owl, after training at knight school, guards the castle at night. Late one evening a hulking and very hungry dragon shows up and Owl must use his wits to avoid meeting a horrible end. “Full of wordplay and optimism, this surprising display of bravery proves that cleverness (and friendship) can rule over brawn.” The sepia toned illustrations add a medieval feel to the story. For ages 4-8. A Caldecott Honor book. Recommended by Beth’s sister, also a former librarian, and proud grandmother of three small granddaughters.

• JUVENILE FICTION

  • How to Cheat a Dragon’s Curse: the Heroic Misadventures of Hiccup the Viking by Cressida Cowell. In this sidesplitting adventure, Hiccup Horrendously Haddock III must rescue his best friend, Fishlegs, from a deadly disease. The only cure is a potato! But where can Hiccup find such a thing? He will have to battle Sharkworms and Doonfangs and outwit crazy Hooligans if he can be a hero and save Fishlegs! A fast paced plot, slapstick humor and witty dialogue enhances this exciting tale. For ages 8-12.

• ADULT FICTION

  • To Kill a Cook by W. M. Akers
    “A fizzy, hilarious whodunnit about a fierce-but-lovable food critic who finds her chef friend murdered and realizes she might be the only one to find the killer.” Author Rob Hart says that he has “never been so hungry reading a book, but it is hard to grab a snack when you’re glued to the pages”.

• ADULT NON-FICTION

  • The Gales of November: the Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald by John U. Bacon
    “At the height of America’s postwar boom, no region was more vital to the nation’s economic strength than the Great Lakes. It was the beating heart of the global economy-possessing all the power and prestige that Silicon Valley enjoys today.” No vessel had been better designed to sail the waters of the Great Lakes than the SS Edmond Fitzgerald. At 75 feet wide and 729 feet long, the Mighty Fitz was the largest ship on the lakes. But on November 16, 1975, when the “storm of the century” threw 100-mile-an-hour winds on Lake Superior, the Mighty Fitz sank with all 29 men onboard. Award-winning journalist John U. Bacon “presents the definitive account of the disaster, drawing on more than 100 interviews with the families, friends, and former crewmates of those lost…The Gales of November is both an emotional tribute to the Fitzgerald’s captain and crew and a propulsive, page-turning narrative history of America’s most-mourned shipwreck.”

Contact the Library

Give us a call at 404.373.1653 (ext. 2229) or send us a message using the form below.