Plan on visiting your local Yuma or Wray library Friday, January 17, between 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. to borrow your copy of Emily St. John Mandel’s novel Station Eleven. Get some free bookmarks and a yummy snack while you’re at it. If you can’t make it to the library for the official launch, not to worry, books will be available during regular business hours. Audio, Spanish and large print books will also be available. We have just under two months to read the book before book discussions and writing workshops take place.
Mark your calendars! Book discussions are planned for Saturday, March 8 from 2:30 – 4:30 p.m. at 4th and Main in Wray and Sunday, March 9 from 2:30 – 4:30 p.m. at The Orphanage in Yuma. Both events will have food and live performances related to the book.
Creative writing workshops, inspired by this year’s Big Read Theme; “Where We Live”, are scheduled for Saturday, March 15 from 10 a.m. to 12 pm at Wray Library and later that afternoon on March 15 from 2 – 4 p.m. at the Yuma Library.
The Big Read is a project that aims to bring communities together around the shared activity of reading and discussing the same book. The goal of this program is to inspire meaningful conversations, celebrate local creativity, elevate a wide variety of voices and perspectives, and build stronger connections in each community. We invite everyone to get involved. (Though these books are for more mature audiences; high school and up.) If you have any special accommodations for your reading material, please talk to your librarian about how we can meet your needs. There is also a television mini-series (made by HBO Max) based off this book: same title – Station Eleven. Of course, the book is always better but the show’s not bad. This program would not be possible without funding from the National Endowment of the Arts, Arts Midwest and Gates Family Foundation. The project is brought to you by Prairie Sea Projects, and Yuma and Wray public libraries. To find out more information on this project you can email Prairie Sea Projects at hello@prairieseaprojects.org. In the meantime, stay tuned to your local libraries for announcements of events.