One City, One Book Author Presentation, Schedule of Activities Unveiled
Written by Post Public Information Representative, Sep 20, 2013, Comments Off
Courtesy Xochitl Mora,
For the sixth year, the Laredo Public Library’s One City, One Book program invites the entire community of Laredo to read, learn and share a common experience by reading a powerful, thought-provoking book by a modern-day author.
“This year’s selection is Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography–The True Story of a Black Youth’s Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa, by Mark Mathabane.
“We have two goals for One City, One Book,” says Maria G. Soliz, director for the Laredo Public Library. “One is, of course, to promote literacy, and the other is that we hope that this will build a sense of community by reading the same book. This initiative will open dialogue among families, friends, co-workers, classmates or even strangers. What better way than to talk about a book!”
“Mark Mathabane was weaned on devastating poverty and schooled in the cruel streets of South Africa’s most desperate ghetto, where bloody gang wars and midnight police raids were his rites of passage. Like every other child born in the hopelessness of apartheid, he learned to measure his life in days, not years. Yet Mark Mathabane, armed only with the courage of his family and a hard-won education, raised himself up from the squalor and humiliation to win a scholarship to an American university.
This extraordinary memoir of life under apartheid is a triumph of the human spirit over hatred and unspeakable degradation. For Mark Mathabane did what no physically and psychologically battered ‘Kaffir’ from the rat-infested alleys of Alexandra was supposed to do – he escaped to tell about it.”
Review from Amazon.com
This book also been selected by Texas A&M International University as the Global Read for the freshman class.
“We are excited to once again be sharing our book title and focus this year with One City, One Book. From campus to community at large, this represents a marvelous opportunity for us all to share in the magic and transformative power of reading.” — Conchita Hickey, Executive Director of TAMIU”s University College and Director of the University’s Reading the Globe campus read. This joint program is funded in part by Humanities Texas, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
In an effort to enhance the message and themes of the book, the Laredo Public Library will also host book discussions and screenings of an Apartheid themed family movie, leading up to the culmination of the One City, One Book initiative with Mathabane’s lecture in October. Mark Mathabane’s visit to Laredo will start with a lecture to students and faculty at TAMIU on Friday, October 11. The next day, Saturday, October 12, the general public will be able to meet and greet Mathabane at a reception at 9:30 AM, and hear his lecture at 10:30 AM at the Laredo Public Library Multi-Purpose Room, 1120 East Calton Road.
Leading up to his lecture is a schedule of activities designed to enhance the reading experience.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013 Discussion 6:15 – 7:30 p.m.
Friday, September 27, 2013 Family Movie Presentation 4:00 – 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 5, 2013 Discussion 2:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.
Family Movie Presentation 3:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
“It is important that we take the lessons we learn from the stories selected for One City, One Book and apply them to very real problems in our community,” said Soliz. “By understanding the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual toll the author faced, we can better appreciate our freedoms of expression and right to read books of any subject. This is just one more benefit of reading: becoming aware of the problems and challenges in the world around us and finding solutions to them.”
Everyone in the community is invited to stop by the Laredo Public Library to check out a copy of Kaffir Boy. The book will also be for sale at Books-A-Million bookstore.
For more information about One City, One Book or any of the related activities, call Hilary Frazier at the Laredo Public Library at 795-2400, x 2252, or visit the Laredo Public Library website at www.laredolibrary.org.
