Book Studies
About Book Studies
Regular book studies (Zoom and in-person) address topics of faith, justice, and peacemaking. Recent studies have focused on:
HOW THE WORD IS PASSED: A RECKONING WITH THE HISTORY OF
SLAVERY ACROSS AMERICA
by Clint Smith
Beginning in his hometown of New Orleans, Clint Smith leads the reader on an unforgettable tour of monuments and landmarks—those that are honest about the past and those that our not—that offer an intergenerational story of how slavery has been central in shaping our nation’s collective history and memory. It includes the stories of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello plantation in Virginia, Whitney plantation and Angola prison, (both in Louisiana), a neighborhood in Manhattan, and more. Informed by scholarship and brought to life by the stories of people living today, this work of nonfiction is a landmark of reflection and insight that offers a new understanding of the hopeful role that memory and history can play in making sense of our country and how it has come to be.
Hope to see you soon!
Please contact facilitators Dean and Judi Martineau for Zoom connection and more details at topdot@gmail.com
Breathe
by Imani Perry
There are so many wonderful books out there and more come out every day! After MUCH research, we have chosen the book “Breathe” by an outstanding woman writer, Imani Perry (https://en.wikipedia.org/
We offer this book as a kind of “book end” balance to the Coates book, as it parallels the letter form and the topics that Coates covers, but from a woman and mother’s perspective. Though a short book we will give it the time it needs. During the study of this book, we can consult as a group as to what longer more ambitious book we would like to choose next and/or ideas you might have on whether we want to stay with book studies or together move on to some other methods of learning and inter-acting.
As always, this book is available in many forms. Here is the Amazon link, but of course feel free to purchase it from independent book sellers if you so choose. Breathe: A Letter to My Sons: Perry, Imani: 9780807076552: Amazon.com: Books (many good reviews and summaries)
YouTube very brief clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neXKhi9XwJA
“Living as prayer. I think that is when I am at my best. Because seeing through prayer provides a remarkable clarity. Not in the doctrinal sense, but because it is, at best, the lens of a love for every tattered inch of this earth.” ― Imani Perry
“The time for unearthing is always now.” Breathe is beautiful and powerful, and it’s the best memoir I’ve read all year. I read this book slowly, to soak it in instead of rushing to “create content.” This letter to her sons is also a meditation that reckons with what it means to be Black in America. It’s cerebral and emotional in all the best ways literature can be.” —Amazon Reviewer
Since we know you need time to purchase and start reading the book, we will not begin until Monday February 21 at 7 pm EST. Each Monday evening session will last for about 90 minutes. The zoom room opens at 6:45 pm for chatting. As usual, all are welcome, but we would like you to let us know if you will be coming, so we can send you the Zoom link. The book can likely be read in a day or two, but we are sure it will be bring forth much pondering and class discussion. If possible, by the first session try to read the first 50 pages, (the section called “Fear”) by the first class though we will likely not cover it all at that class. As usual, mark or underline parts you would like to bring up for discussion during class. And as usual you are welcome to come to as many or few sessions as you are able. Come whenever you can as YOU make the study worthwhile! Any questions or concerns, feel free to contact us, and please invite others.
Hope to see you soon!
Please contact facilitators Dean and Judi Martineau for Zoom connection and more details at topdot@gmail.com
The New Jim Crow
by Michelle Alexander
The October Book Study will focus on The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander, described by critics as: “An extraordinary book,” “Devastating,” and “An instant classic.”
Seldom does a book have the impact of The New Jim Crow. Since it was first published in 2010, it has won numerous awards and was on the New York Times bestseller list for nearly 250 weeks. It’s been cited in judicial decisions, read in countless faith-based and secular book clubs, and adopted in campus and community reads. It has inspired artists, philanthropists, policymakers, community leaders, and a generation of racial justice activists motivated by Michelle Alexander’s searing indictment of our criminal justice system and her unforgettable argument that “we have not ended racial caste in America: we have merely redesigned it.”
This book is as relevant as it was when published, especially because the author has brought this already excellent book up to date with a ringing preface and added content. Please make sure to read the 2020 10th anniversary edition of The New Jim Crow (Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness) by Michelle Alexander. In addition to her powerful preface, it has additional refinements of the first edition. https://www.amazon.com/New-Jim-Crow-Incarceration-Colorblindness/dp/1620971933
We will meet on Zoom on Monday evenings beginning October 11 at 7:00 Eastern, 6:00 Central, and plan for each session to last 90 minutes.
Please contact facilitators Dean and Judi Martineau for Zoom connection and more details at topdot@gmail.com
The Sum of Us (Completed)
by Heather McGhee
