RBC Library has a new book just added to our collection, First Gen a Memoir by Alejandra Campoverdi
(Synopses from Goodreads)
"An unflinching memoir about navigating social mobility as a first gen Latina — offering both a riveting personal story and an examination of the unacknowledged emotional tolls of being a trailblazer.
Alejandra Campoverdi has been a child on welfare, a White House aide to President Obama, a Harvard graduate, a gang member’s girlfriend, and a candidate for U.S. Congress. She’s ridden on Air Force One and in G-rides. She’s been featured in Maxim magazine and had a double mastectomy. Living a life of contradictory extremes often comes with the territory when you’re a “First and Only.” It also comes at a price.
With candor and heart, Alejandra retraces her trajectory as a Mexican American woman raised by an immigrant single mother in Los Angeles. Foregoing the tidy bullet points of her resume and instead shining a light on the spaces between them, what emerges is a powerful testimony that shatters the one-dimensional glossy narrative we are often sold of what it takes to achieve the American Dream. In this timely and revealing reflection, Alejandra draws from her own experiences to name and frame the challenges First and Onlys often face, illuminating a road to truth, healing, and change in the process.
Part memoir, part manifesto, FIRST GEN is a story of generational inheritance, aspiration, and the true meaning of belonging—a gripping journey to “reclaim the parts of ourselves we sacrificed in order to survive.” "
If you are a First Gen Graduate please fill out this form to have your information and picture added to a First Gen slideshow that will be shown at the Celebration of First Generation Graduates. This celebration will take place Wednesday, April 17th, 2004 from 2:00pm-3:00pm in Ernst Auditorium.
The RBC Library wanted to create and share a playlist for students to relax and study to. This was create by the RBC Library student assistant, Seth Franzyshen. Seth said this about his created playlist:
"I chose to create an RBC Library Playlist to have during studying or reading while at the library. The overall tone of the playlist is relaxed and smooth, having a lot of jazz and soul tracks. I often listen to these songs individually and curated those songs I felt had a similar energy to each other."
-Seth Franzyshen (RBC Library Student Assistant)
Welcome to the Open Book Club's first blog post! In this article, we're excited to share more about our club's mission to have a community of book lovers, engage in thoughtful discussions, and explore the endless possibilities found within the pages of a book. Whether you're an experienced bookworm or just beginning your reading journey, we invite you to learn more about our club and join us as we dive into captivating stories, diverse perspectives, and enriching conversations. Let's open up our minds and hearts to the magic of literature together!
Open Book Club was founded in the fall 23" semester here at Richard Bland and really took off in the Spring 24" semester. Open Book Club was created to be a safe space for anyone interested in books, movies, comics, and more (hence, the "Open" part of Open Book Club). Open Book Club is unlike any other book club, rather than being forced to read a certain book and discuss it, we leave it up to YOU to decide and give you the floor to discuss whatever you like book related. Some popular genres our members are reading include Horror, Manga, YA, Romance, Historic Fiction, Fiction, and Fantasy. Open Book Club meets every Friday at 2pm in RBC's very own library. (Meeting times are subject to change) Typically our meeting discussions can range anywhere from our current reads to up-and-coming movies we want to see.
The beauty of Open Book Club is that it is a low commitment club and all that is required to sign up is to show up! Open Book Club is as frequent as you make it, meaning you are never required to come to every meeting, nor are you expected to have read a certain number of books. We understand that reading can be considered more of a hobby or pass time to many and that is perfectly okay! Anybody no matter their level of interest is encouraged to come join us! If you want to learn more about us or speak to our club president, you can contact us via Instagram @openbookclub.rbc OR via email: ergarc120@rbc.edu Either is encouraged but make sure to check our Instagram page for regular updates and upcoming events!!
Open Book Club hopes to be a means by which you can connect with others on and off campus and build meaningful connections! One of our goals for Open Book Club is to hear more diverse perspectives and open ourselves up to others. We love getting to know more diverse and inclusive authors, books, and perspectives. Open Book Club is also a great way to get more in-tune with your own critical thinking and analysis as we discuss and interprets things. By joining Open Book Club, you also set yourself up to have a more dynamic resume and can get exclusive access to upcoming events and knowledge!
"I really enjoy Open Book Club, not only because it's a way to encourage myself to read, but also because it's a safe space to talk to my friends! I've been wanting to get back into reading but have always been intimidated in doing so as a result of what I think is dyslexia, and everyone makes me feel safe there to where I CAN get back into it!" - Open Book Club Treasurer Waylon Martin (he/him).
"Open Book Club has helped me find people with similar interest and talk about what I have been reading." - Open Book Club Member Seth Franzyshen (he/him).
"I support RBC Book Club because as a librarian and an avid reader I want to encourage others to explore books (or any form of media). I want people to search for new topics and to discover new information and to share these new discoveries with other people." - Open Book Club Faculty/Staff Advisor Tim Hurley (he/him)
"I've always had a love for books, creating Open Book Club was something that I created to contribute to our community here at RBC and put my own passions out there to share with my peers. I have so much love for books and this club, and I hope that I can share that love and passion with others" - Open Book Club President Eliana Garcia (she/her)
"Open Book Club has allowed for me to talk about books and just any media I've consumed, no matter what it's about. It's also encouraged me to start reading for myself again!" - Open Book Club Secretary Kristen Kountz (she/they)
Different ways to get involved with RBC's Open Book Club include things such as subscribing to our blogs mailing list by clicking "subscribe" on the home page, usually located on the right-hand side, attend one of our meetings to get a glimpse at what it is like to be a member, share this post and any other post about Open Book Club with friends, family, and peers, and reach out via email or Instagram with any questions/suggestions!
At Open Book Club, we're excited to extend an open invitation to all book enthusiasts to join us in the adventure of reading. We believe in the transformative power of literature to inspire, educate, and connect us. Whether you're seeking lively discussions, new friendships, or simply a space to share your love of books, movies, and more, our club welcomes you with open arms. Don't hesitate to reach out, attend our meetings, and become part of our vibrant community! Together, let's turn the pages of countless stories and embark on unforgettable literary journeys. Thank you for considering joining us, and we look forward to meeting you between the lines!
Ways to contact us include Instagram or Email:
ergarc120@rbc.edu
https://www.instagram.com/openbookclub.rbc?igsh=MWg3N2xxNjd5MmVzMQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
RBC Library has a new book just added to our collection, A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas.
A Love Born of Darkness
Feyre has undergone more trials than one human woman can carry in her heart. Though she's now been granted the powers and lifespan of the High Fae, she is haunted by her time Under the Mountain and the terrible deeds she performed to save the lives of Tamlin and his People.
As her marriage to Tamlin approaches Feyre's hollowness and nightmares consume her. She finds herself split into two different people: one who upholds her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court, and one who lives out her life in the Spring Court with Tamlin. While Feyre navigates a dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms. She might just be the key to stopping it, but only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future-- and the future of a world in turmoil.
Feel free to stop by the library and check it out!
What is Women's History Month?
According to history.com "Women’s History Month is a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture and society and has been observed annually in the month of March in the United States since 1987. Women’s History Month 2024 will take place from Friday, March 1 - Sunday, March 31, 2024." (History 2024) They go on to say that it is a dedication to reflect on all the things that women have done and accomplished that went overlooked. However, this is a celebration mainly supported by just the United States of America. Globally women are appreciated on International Women's Day, which happens to be today, March 8th, 2024. International Women's Day as well as Women's History Month stand to be much more than the celebration of women who have been overlooked, it is a beautiful reminder to appreciate the women today, whether that be your mom, sisters, friends, family, celebrities, or even strangers, every woman on this earth deserve a little love, appreciation, and recognition today and the rest of March.
Celebrating women in literature and film
It's no secret that words carry meaning, these authors, characters, and stories stand to prove that by empowering women in a beautiful sometimes complex way... Here are 5 books and films that YOU should read/watch this month!
1.) Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
2.) Barbie produced by Greta Gerwig
3.) Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
4.) All of you Every Single One by Beatrice Hitchman
5.) Sister Mother Warrior by Vanessa Riley
An inspirational dialogue from the movie Barbie that broke the internet and pulled so many heart strings in 2023:
"It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow, we're always doing it wrong.
You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can't ask for money because that's crass. You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean. You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas. You're supposed to love being a mother, but don't talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman but also always be looking out for other people.
You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining. You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood.
But always stand out and always be grateful. But never forget that the system is rigged. So, find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful.
You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line. It's too hard! It's too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault.
I'm just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don't even know."
(Greta Gerwig, America Ferrera 2023)
A Thank You to Women:
You are beautiful, you are strong, you are resourceful, you are amazing, you are inspirational, you are perfect just the way that you are. There are not enough words in this world to describe how fantastic you are, how appreciated you are, society as a whole need you we celebrate you today and everyday this month and it will not stop there. This month and this day especially be kind to yourself remind yourself, that you are worthy you are loved, and you are needed, today and every day. We ask that if there is a woman in your life today that you say thank you that you look at them and appreciate them for all that they do, all that they go through, and know that these women are the reason we are where we are today. Thank You to all women, everywhere.
April, or GAYpril, as it is referred to in some circles, is a great time of the year for (LGBTQA+) related resources. This month is an opportunity for the entire campus to learn from educational and celebratory resources on queer and trans communities and issues. The purpose of the commemorative month is to recognize the impact that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals have had on history locally, nationally, and internationally.
(All synopses from Goodreads and IMDB)
by
Dan Savage (Goodreads Author),
Terry Miller (Editor)
Growing up isn't easy. Many young people endure bullying that makes them feel they have nowhere to turn--especially LGBT kids and teens who often hide their sexuality for fear of being bullied. Without openly gay mentors, they don't know what the future may hold. After a number of suicides by LGBT students who were bullied in school, syndicated columnist Dan Savage uploaded a video to YouTube with his partner, Terry Miller, to inspire hope for LGBT youth. The video launched the 'It Gets Better Project', initiating a worldwide phenomenon. This is a collection of expanded essays and new material from celebrities and everyday people who have posted videos of encouragement, as well as new contributors. We can show LGBT youth the happiness, potential, and positivity their lives will have if they can get through their teen years. "It Gets Better" reminds teenagers in the LGBT community that they are not alone--and it WILL get better.
by
My name is Hida Viloria. I was raised as a girl but discovered at a young age that my body looked different. Having endured an often turbulent home life as a kid, there were many times when I felt scared and alone, especially given my attraction to girls. But unlike most people in the first world who are born intersex--meaning they have genitals, reproductive organs, hormones, and/or chromosomal patterns that do not fit standard definitions of male or female--I grew up in the body I was born with because my parents did not have my sex characteristics surgically altered at birth.
It wasn't until I was twenty-six and encountered the term intersex in a San Francisco newspaper that I finally had a name for my difference. That's when I began to explore what it means to live in the space between genders--to be both and neither. I tried living as a feminine woman, an androgynous person, and even for a brief period of time as a man. Good friends would not recognize me, and gay men would hit on me. My gender fluidity was exciting, and in many ways freeing--but it could also be isolating.
I had to know if there were other intersex people like me, but when I finally found an intersex community to connect with I was shocked, and then deeply upset, to learn that most of the people I met had been scarred, both physically and psychologically, by infant surgeries and hormone treatments meant to "correct" their bodies. Realizing that the invisibility of intersex people in society facilitated these practices, I made it my mission to bring an end to it--and became one of the first people to voluntarily come out as intersex at a national and then international level.
Born Both is the story of my lifelong journey toward finding love and embracing my authentic identity in a world that insists on categorizing people into either/or, and of my decades-long fight for human rights and equality for intersex people everywhere.
by
Lillian Faderman (Goodreads Author)
The sweeping story of the modern struggle for gay, lesbian, and trans rights from the 1950s to the present—based on amazing interviews with politicians, military figures, legal activists, and members of the entire LGBT community who face these challenges every day.
The fight for gay, lesbian, and trans civil rights—the years of outrageous injustice, the early battles, the heart-breaking defeats, and the victories beyond the dreams of the gay rights pioneers—is the most important civil rights issue of the present day. Based on rigorous research and more than 150 interviews, The Gay Revolution tells this unfinished story not through dry facts but through dramatic accounts of passionate struggles, with all the sweep, depth, and intricacies only an award-winning activist, scholar, and novelist like Lillian Faderman can evoke.
The Gay Revolution begins in the 1950s, when law classified gays and lesbians as criminals, the psychiatric profession saw them as mentally ill, the churches saw them as sinners, and society victimized them with irrational hatred. Against this dark backdrop, a few brave people began to fight back, paving the way for the revolutionary changes of the 1960s and beyond. Faderman discusses the protests in the 1960s; the counter reaction of the 1970s and early eighties; the decimated but united community during the AIDS epidemic; and the current hurdles for the right to marriage equality.
In the words of the eyewitnesses who were there through the most critical events, The Gay Revolution paints a nuanced portrait of the LGBT civil rights movement. A defining account, this is the most complete and authoritative book of its kind
by
Despite the tremendous gains of the LGBT movement in recent years, the history of gay life in this country remains poorly understood. According to conventional wisdom, gay liberation started with the Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village in 1969. The 1970s represented a moment of triumph -- both political and sexual -- before the AIDS crisis in the subsequent decade, which, in the view of many, exposed the problems inherent in the so-called "gay lifestyle".
In Stand by Me, the acclaimed historian Jim Downs rewrites the history of gay life in the 1970s, arguing that the decade was about much more than sex and marching in the streets. Drawing on a vast trove of untapped records at LGBT community centers in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia, Downs tells moving, revelatory stories of gay people who stood together -- as friends, fellow believers, and colleagues -- to create a sense of community among people who felt alienated from mainstream American life.
As Downs shows, gay people found one another in the Metropolitan Community Church, a nationwide gay religious group; in the pages of the Body Politic, a newspaper that encouraged its readers to think of their sexuality as a political identity; at the Oscar Wilde Memorial Bookstore, the hub of gay literary life in New York City; and at theaters putting on "Gay American History," a play that brought to the surface the enduring problem of gay oppression.
These and many other achievements would be largely forgotten after the arrival in the early 1980s of HIV/AIDS, which allowed critics to claim that sex was the defining feature of gay liberation. This reductive narrative set back the cause of gay rights and has shaped the identities of gay people for decades.
An essential act of historical recovery, Stand by Me shines a bright light on a triumphant moment, and will transform how we think about gay life in America from the 1970s into the present day.
by
Benjamin Alire Sáenz (Goodreads Author)
Dante can swim. Ari can't. Dante is articulate and self-assured. Ari has a hard time with words and suffers from self-doubt. Dante gets lost in poetry and art. Ari gets lost in thoughts of his older brother who is in prison. Dante is fair skinned. Ari's features are much darker. It seems that a boy like Dante, with his open and unique perspective on life, would be the last person to break down the walls that Ari has built around himself.
But against all odds, when Ari and Dante meet, they develop a special bond that will teach them the most important truths of their lives, and help define the people they want to be. But there are big hurdles in their way, and only by believing in each other―and the power of their friendship―can Ari and Dante emerge stronger on the other side.
by
When Making History was first published in 1992, the acclaimed oral historian Studs Terkel called it, “One of the definitive works on gay life.” Novelist Armistead Maupin said that author “Eric Marcus not only writes with grace and clarity but makes it look so easy—the ultimate measure of historian and novelist alike.” Now, for the first time, the original complete edition of Making History is available in e-book (Making History was published in part as Making Gay History in 2002).
Through his engaging oral histories, Eric Marcus traces the unfolding of LGBTQ civil rights effort from a group of small, independent underground organizations and publications into a national movement, covering the years from 1945 to 1990. Here are the stories of its remarkable pioneers: a diverse group of nearly fifty Americans, who hail from all corners of the nation.
From the period in history when homosexuals were routinely beaten by police to the day when gay rights leaders were first invited to the White House, Making History is the story of an against-all-odds struggle that has succeeded in bringing about changes in American society that were once unimaginable.
by
Archie Bongiovanni (Goodreads Author)
So, no one told you life was gonna be this gay! Grease Bats stars Andy, a trans genderqueer individual who is both tough and loving, and their BFF Scout, an all-feelings-all-the-time mistake-maker.
Andy and Scout are best buds, roommates, and gay disasters. Along with their friends and plenty of beer, they’re just trying to make it through their 20s, survive late capitalism, and navigate the dating world. Tough and loving Andy is a genderqueer trans individual, who dates like there’s no tomorrow, while Scout, an all-feelings-all-the-time mistake-maker, is still languishing over her ex-girlfriend…from like two years ago.
Created by Archie Bongiovanni (The Quick and Easy Guide to They/Them Pronouns) and originally published on Autostraddle, this edition collects all the best misadventures, internet dates, and bad decisions in one place!
Using flashbacks from a statement recorded late in life and archival footage for atmosphere, this film traces Harvey Milk's career from his 40th birthday to his death. He leaves the closet and New York, opens a camera shop that becomes the salon for San Francisco's growing gay community, and organizes gays' purchasing power to build political alliances. He runs for office with lover Scott Smith as his campaign manager. Victory finally comes on the same day Dan White wins in the city's conservative district. The rest of the film sketches Milk's relationship with White and the 1978 fight against a statewide initiative to bar gays and their supporters from public school jobs.
Looking for a way to engage with other members of the RBC community? Check out the RBC Library's Community Conversations series
The RBC Library is excited to announce the Community Conversations series in conjunction with the History Club, a way for the RBC community to engage in a dialogue about a common resource. The resource chosen for this Community Conversation is:
A Dancer in the Revolution: Stretch Johnson, Harlem Communist at the Cotton Club
The life of Howard Johnson, nicknamed "Stretch" because of his height (6'5), epitomizes the cultural and political odyssey of a generation of African Americans who transformed the United States from a closed society to a multiracial democracy. Johnson's long-awaited memoir traces his path from firstborn of a multiclass/multiethnic" family in New Jersey to dancer in Harlem's Cotton Club to communist youth leader and, later, professor of Black studies. A Dancer in the Revolution is a powerful statement about Black resilience and triumph amid subtle and explicit racism in the United States.
Johnson's engaging, beautifully written memoir provides a window into everyday life in Harlem--neighborhood life, arts and culture, and politics--from the 1930s to the 1970s, when the contemporary Black community was being formed. A Dancer in the Revolution explores Johnson's twenty-plus years in the Communist Party and illuminates in compelling detail how the Harlem branch functioned and flourished in the 1930s and '40s. Johnson thrived as a charismatic leader, using the connections he built up as an athlete and dancer to create alliances between communist organizations and a cross-section of the Black community. In his memoir, Johnson also exposes the homoerotic tourism that was a feature of Harlem's nightlife in the 1930s. Some of America's leading white literary, musical, and artistic figures were attracted to Harlem not only for the community's artistic creativity but to engage in illicit sex--gay and straight--with their Black counterparts.
A Dancer in the Revolution is an invaluable contribution to the literature on Black political thought and pragmatism. It reveals the unique place that Black dancers and artists hold in civil rights pursuits and anti-racism campaigns in the United States and beyond. Moreover, the life of "Stretch" Johnson illustrates how political activism engenders not only social change but also personal fulfillment, a realization of dreams not deferred but rather pursued and achieved. Johnson's journey bears witness to critical periods and events that shaped the Black condition and American society in the process.
Whether you'd prefer to read the book, watch the content, or explore related resources is up to you--we just want you to familiarize yourself with the content and join in on the conversation!
Our Conversation will happen on [March 23rd] at [2PM] via [Zoom]. Interested in participating? Add our zoom meeting to your calendar: https://richardbland.zoom.us/j/96546999628
READ
Want to read the book? You can access a copy through the RBC website! Below is the link to the library catalog and the resource, you must be logged in with your Statesman Account to retrieve this item.
https://rbc.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01COWM_INST/ve767t/alma991033119001503196
WATCH
RESEARCH
Want to check out some additional resources? Check out the links below:
The RBC Library's Community Conversations series will take place monthly on the last Wednesday from [2PM – 3PM]. If you have suggestions for future Conversations or if you are interested in co-facilitating a future Community Conversation, please reach out to [Tim Hurley (Head Librarian) ] by emailing library@rbc.edu.
Don't judge a book by it's cover, first rule of blind dating. Find your perfect match within the pages of a book but the catch is you only know small hints of what its about from the cover. This month the library will be hosting Blind Date with a Book! This is something I thoroughly enjoy each time I come across one, whether it's at a bookstore or a library, it broadens my horizons to different genres and new experiences! School is stressful, trust me I know (#gradschool), and reading offers me that ease of relaxation. Half the time I open a book on my kindle and I don't even remember the description so it's kind a like a blind date. One thing that has always intrigued me about blind date with a book is how people go about choosing their books, do they try for something completely new or go for something that sounds familiar to the genre they like? All the books put on display will be fiction, ranging from YA to Adult, a few are even new to the collection!
Simply browse the selection when it becomes available (the end of this week!), and bring it up to the desk for checkout! The barcode is on the back for our student assistants to check out, this way the mystery remains and you won't know what the book is until you open it! Once you're done with you book, bring it back and we'll give you a short five question "yes or no" survey to fill out about your experience! Along with a comments paper on how we can improve the experience for next time! Along with any suggestions of what you would like to see the library do next!
(All synopses from Goodreads)
February is Black History Month, a time to recognize, celebrate, and honor the history and important contributions and achievements of African Americans.
"The life story of Coretta Scott King—wife of Martin Luther King Jr., founder of the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change, and singular twentieth-century American civil rights activist—as told fully for the first time
Born in 1927 to daringly enterprising black parents in the Deep South, Coretta Scott had always felt called to a special purpose. One of the first black scholarship students recruited to Antioch College, a committed pacifist, and a civil rights activist, she was an avowed feminist—a graduate student determined to pursue her own career—when she met Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister insistent that his wife stay home with the children. But in love and devoted to shared Christian beliefs and racial justice goals, she married King, and events promptly thrust her into a maelstrom of history throughout which she was a strategic partner, a standard bearer, a marcher, a negotiator, and a crucial fundraiser in support of world-changing achievements.
As a widow and single mother of four, while butting heads with the all-male African American leadership of the times, she championed gay rights and AIDS awareness, founded the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change, lobbied for fifteen years to help pass a bill establishing the US national holiday in honor of her slain husband, and was a powerful international presence, serving as a UN ambassador and playing a key role in Nelson Mandela's election.
Coretta’s is a love story, a family saga, and the memoir of an independent-minded black woman in twentieth-century America, a brave leader who stood committed, proud, forgiving, nonviolent, and hopeful in the face of terrorism and violent hatred every single day of her life"
"Maya Angelou’s debut memoir is a modern American classic beloved worldwide. Her life story is told in the documentary film And Still I Rise, as seen on PBS’s American Masters.
Here is a book as joyous and painful, as mysterious and memorable, as childhood itself. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings captures the longing of lonely children, the brute insult of bigotry, and the wonder of words that can make the world right. Maya Angelou’s debut memoir is a modern American classic beloved worldwide.
Sent by their mother to live with their devout, self-sufficient grandmother in a small Southern town, Maya and her brother, Bailey, endure the ache of abandonment and the prejudice of the local “powhitetrash.” At eight years old and back at her mother’s side in St. Louis, Maya is attacked by a man many times her age—and has to live with the consequences for a lifetime. Years later, in San Francisco, Maya learns that love for herself, the kindness of others, her own strong spirit, and the ideas of great authors (“I met and fell in love with William Shakespeare”) will allow her to be free instead of imprisoned.
Poetic and powerful, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings will touch hearts and change minds for as long as people read."
"In Waking from the Dream David L. Chappell—whose book A Stone of Hope the Atlantic Monthly called "one of the three or four most important books on the civil rights movement"— provides a sweeping history of the fight to keep the civil rights movement alive following Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination. Chappell reveals that, far from coming to an abrupt end with King's death, the civil rights movement continued to work to realize King's vision of an equal society. Entering a new phase where historic victories were no longer within reach, the movement's veterans struggled to rally around common goals; and despite moments where the movement seemed to be on the verge of dissolution, it kept building coalitions, lobbying for legislation, and mobilizing activists. Chappell chronicles five key events of the movement's post-King era: the passage of the Fair Housing Act in 1968; the debates over unity and leadership at the National Black Political Conventions; the campaign for full-employment legislation; the establishment of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; and Jesse Jackson's quixotic presidential campaigns. With Waking from the Dream, Chappell provides a revealing look into a seldom-studied era of civil rights history, examines King's place in American memory, and explains how a movement labored to overcome the loss of its leader."
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Alice Walker's iconic modern classic is now a Penguin Book.
"A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early twentieth-century rural Georgia. Separated as girls, sisters Celie and Nettie sustain their loyalty to and hope in each other across time, distance and silence. Through a series of letters spanning twenty years, first from Celie to God, then the sisters to each other despite the unknown, the novel draws readers into its rich and memorable portrayals of Celie, Nettie, Shug Avery and Sofia and their experience. The Color Purple broke the silence around domestic and sexual abuse, narrating the lives of women through their pain and struggle, companionship and growth, resilience and bravery. Deeply compassionate and beautifully imagined, Alice Walker's epic carries readers on a spirit-affirming journey towards redemption and love."
"Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves, but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood—where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape. Matters do not go as planned—Cora kills a young white boy who tries to capture her. Though they manage to find a station and head north, they are being hunted.
In Whitehead’s ingenious conception, the Underground Railroad is no mere metaphor—engineers and conductors operate a secret network of tracks and tunnels beneath the Southern soil. Cora and Caesar’s first stop is South Carolina, in a city that initially seems like a haven. But the city’s placid surface masks an insidious scheme designed for its black denizens. And even worse: Ridgeway, the relentless slave catcher, is close on their heels. Forced to flee again, Cora embarks on a harrowing flight, state by state, seeking true freedom.
Like the protagonist of Gulliver’s Travels, Cora encounters different worlds at each stage of her journey—hers is an odyssey through time as well as space. As Whitehead brilliantly re-creates the unique terrors for black people in the pre–Civil War era, his narrative seamlessly weaves the saga of America from the brutal importation of Africans to the unfulfilled promises of the present day. The Underground Railroad is at once a kinetic adventure tale of one woman’s ferocious will to escape the horrors of bondage and a shattering, powerful meditation on the history we all share."
Hello everyone! My name is Emily Maitland and I am the new part-time librarian here at Richard Bland! A few things about me I am actually a former graduate of RBC I was here from 2016 to 2018 before transferring to Longwood University to finish my undergrad. I recently graduate from Longwood in May with a Bachelors of Arts in English Literature with a minor in Children's Literature. I originally set out on the path to become a teacher, but changed my path when I discovered I wasn't as passionate about it as I thought I was. So I started towards the path of becoming a librarian. I am currently in my first semester of graduate school at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in their Library Science masters program! My future goals are to hopefully be done by 2024 and either work in an academic setting or in a public setting working with young adults.
When I'm not taking classes or working, I enjoy reading, my current read at the moment is The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski, I love the Witcher series I'd played the games growing up, and am an avid fan of the show, but had never read the books until now! My reading goal for 2022 is at least a hundred books. Other than reading, I love binge watching Netflix, listening to music, going out with my friends, and boyfriend, playing with my dog, Harry, going to the beach (whether it's cold or warm) and trying out new dessert recipes. A few of my favorite things are: my boyfriend, Jake, Harry Styles ( I've seen him live three times and I cannot wait for his third album, I need it to get through grad school), MARVEL! I am HUGE marvel fan, my two main comfort characters are Bucky Barnes and Wanda Maximoff, I will talk your head off about marvel if you let me. Same goes for Harry Styles, I will talk endlessly about him if I am not stopped.
I am very excited to be back where I started my college career, and I look forward to meeting new faces when the semester starts!