The Great American Read — The English Department is not alone in its efforts to promote the love of reading. This point was underscored for me last week when I participated in the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library’s kick-off event related to PBS’s eight-part series titled The Great American Read. This series celebrates 100 of America’s best-loved novels as chosen in a recent national survey. The kick-off event took place at the Main Library on August 9, and it involved a screening of the two-hour launch episode. At various points during the screening, the organizer of the event hit the pause button, and I then led a group discussion about some of the novels featured in the episode.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this episode of The Great American Read and talking about it with the librarians and members of the public who came to the event. We were a very diverse group, but we were brought together by a shared love of stories. Often our discussions veered off in unexpected directions, but they always had some connection to the 100 novels covered in the series. For example, when we were discussing James Baldwin’s Another Country (one of the novels on the list), we started talking about the jazz scene in Paris during the 1950s and ’60s. However, since jazz figures in the story, this detour still added to our understanding and appreciation of Baldwin’s novel.
As I drove home from the kick-off event, I reflected on the fact that this program involved a three-way partnership: the Public Broadcasting System, Charlotte’s public library, and the English Department of Charlotte’s public university. All three of these partners are committed to serving the public, and all recognize the importance of reading and the power of well-told stories.
Janaka Lewis recently published an essay titled “Why This Book?: Authorship, Genre, and Reader Reception in Tobe” in a collection titled Why Does No One in My Books Look Like Me?: Tobe and Ongoing Questions about Race, Representation, and Identity. Ashli Quesinberry Stokes edited this collection, which was published by UNC Charlotte’s Center for the Study of the New South in collaboration with the Charlotte Teachers Institute.
Upcoming Events and Meetings Here is a list of upcoming events and meetings related to the start of the fall 2018 semester:
–University Convocation Thursday, August 16 8:30am reception in Lucas Room/9:30am-11:00am Convocation in McKnight Hall
–CLAS All Faculty Mtg Friday, August 24 8:30am-12:00pm in McKnight Hall
Quirky Quiz Question — Another Country is James Baldwin’s third novel. His first novel came out in 1953 and is an example of autobiographical fiction. Does anybody know the title of Baldwin’s first novel?
Last week’s answer: Bloomsbury Publishing
Scholastic is the American publisher of the Harry Potter series. Do you know the name of the British publisher of the Harry Potter series?