Delaware Humanities Forum

READ...DISCUSS...CONNECT ReddingTelegraph
DHF Presents Reading and Discussion Series

2011 Reading Program Dates
Sunday, February 27
Sunday, March 20
Sunday, April 10
All discussions are at 2 p.m. at Union City Grille, Wilmington

In 2009, DHF began offering reading and discussion programs. DHF selects books that tie to a theme, and also tell a story that is meaningful to Delawareans. Typically, the books are nonfiction.

In the past, DHF has engaged actors, presenters and even the books' authors to make the discussion sessions lively. Interpretive readings are typically incorporated into each program.

Our current reading and discussion series is described below. Scroll down for links to previous book series.

Hard at Work

First 2011 Book Series Offered on Sundays in Wilmington

Starting February 27, 2011, DHF presents a book series featuring novels that reflect the history of labor and industry in Delaware. The three novels span two centuries and many settings, from the lives of runaway slaves before the Civil War, to a time when towns and working people changed with the rise and fall of business, up to today.

Participants are invited to read the selected books and take part in three afternoons of book discussion and entertainment at Union City Grille, 805 N. Union St., Wilmington, Delaware. Events take place on February 27, March 20 and April 10 at 2 p.m. Food and drink will be available for purchase.

The series theme is "Hard at Work." Each book is insightfully written by a distinguished contemporary novelist. Actors from Wilmington's City Theater Company and the University of Delaware will begin each program with a brief dramatic reading from the featured novel. In addition, two local scholars will talk about the books' connections to Delaware business and employment.

Song Yet Sung by James McBride: Before the Civil War, runaway slaves flee through the swamps of Maryland's Eastern Shore, chased by Patty Cannon's gang of kidnappers. The Code of the Underground Railroad tells them how to go. But fugitive Liz Spocott has strange dreams of the future.

In the Beauty of the Lilies by John Updike: Between 1910 and the 1990s, four generations of the Wilmot family confront the modern America of factories, unions, booming cities and the fascinating movie business. But there's a spiritual loss, and small-town Delaware remains a refuge from ruthless competition.

Empire Falls by Richard Russo: In this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, the fictional river town of Empire Falls, Maine, is dominated by the wealthy Whiting family dynasty, even after the old textile mills close because of overseas competition. Yet the local people who gather at the Empire Grill diner prove to be resilient regardless of corporate fortunes. Finally a credit-card bank buys up and transforms the riverfront buildings. In real life, author Russo saw Delaware-based MBNA bank do this in Camden, Maine.

The book talk events take place as follows:

On Sunday, February 27 at 2 p.m., for Black History Month, participants will discuss Song Yet Sung. Percussionist Kamau Ngom will perform African drum music and talk about the African connection to blues music, country shouts and the Underground Railroad.

On Sunday, March 20 at 2 p.m., participants will discuss In the Beauty of the Lilies by John Updike. Terry Snyder of the Hagley Library will talk about Delaware's early millworkers.

On Sunday, April 10 at 2 p.m., participants will discuss Empire Falls by Richard Russo. University of Delaware business history specialist Jonathan S. Russ will talk about the evolution of modern industry.

There is no fee to participate and no registration is required. Food and drink is available for purchase, and Union City Grille has created a special menu for us. Please join us and bring a friend.

This book series is part of DHF's Delaware Industrial History Initiative (DIHI). It is funded with a "We the People" grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. For more information on the book program, contact Rita Truschel, DHF project consultant, by phone (302-838-7288) or by email.

Past programs:

Interpreting Dreams, 2009
Hard at Work, Kent County, 2010