Fitchburg State College will explore themes of contemporary Jewish literature this school year by hosting a free five-part reading and discussion series called “Let’s Talk About It: Jewish Literature – Identity and Imagination.”
The series explores Jewish literature and culture through scholar-led discussions of contemporary and classic books on a common theme. The library’s series will focus on the theme Modern Marvels and includes a series of graphic novels. Throughout the Modern Marvels theme, five Jewish artists experiment with words and pictures to tell stories of childhood, war, and desire; to conjure up lost worlds, both real and imaginary; and to contemplate history, myth, and the individual psyche.
The library is one of more than 250 libraries nationwide receiving grants to host the series developed by Nextbook and the American Library Association (ALA). Local support for the series is provided by CenterStage’s New England Writers Series, by the Jewish Heritage Endowment and the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities.
The first program will bring graphic novelist Ben Katchor to campus to talk about his niche genre. The discussion is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. in Ellis White Lecture Hall of the Hammond Campus Center. It is free and open to the public.
The series continues with discussions on “Julius Knipl, Real Estate Photographer” on Sept. 23; “A Contract with God” by Will Eisner on Oct. 14; “Maus I/II” by Art Spiegelman on Oct. 28; and “The Quitter” by Harvey Pekar on Nov. 18. The series concludes with “The Rabbi’s Cat” by Joann Sfar on Dec. 9.
All books are available for check-out at the college’s Amelia V. Gallucci Cirio Library; as well as public libraries in Fitchburg, Leominster, Lunenburg, and Gardner; and libraries at Fitchburg High School and Leominster High School. Barnes & Noble in Leominster also has books available for purchase.
For details, please visit www.fsc.libguides.com/ltai, or contact librarian Sara Marks at (978) 665-3223 or at smarks@fsc.edu.– SOURCE: Fitchburg Pride
