ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
This Week and the List from Main Street Books
This Week and The List
Richard’s Coffee Shop is not just a coffee shop, but also a living military museum and gathering place for veterans living in the Lake Norman area. Richard’s is an incredible place of support, healing, and camaraderie for veterans, their families and many members of the community, where veterans of all ages and time periods from WWII to the current conflicts convene.
Within the broader community of veterans at Richard’s, a smaller one has formed, known to patrons as “The Happy Table.” The men of “The Happy Table” have been swapping stories for years – stories that they have wisely compiled in a short book, titled Stories of War and Conflict.
Main Street Books is proud to celebrate the publication of Stories of War and Conflict and to invite four of its contributors to share their reflections during a midday event at the store this Tuesday. We hope you can join us.
Read on for event details and a compilation of Black Futures reads. As always, we love to share books, community events, and general literary merriment. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Happy reading,
Adah
The veterans of Richard’s Coffee Shop present
STORIES OF WAR AND CONFLICT
Tuesday, 2/19 at 12 p.m.
MAIN STREET READERS
discussing
THE NINTH HOUR
by Alice McDermott
Tuesday, 2/19 at 7 p.m.
Wednesday, February 20th
STORY TIME WITH LESLIE
Saturday, February 23rd
STORY TIME WITH RIKKI
10 – 10:30 a.m.
All ages welcome.
Did you get a chance to peruse our Black Futures display table? No? Well, fortunately, we’ve got some highlights:
“Crown” by Derrick Barnes
This rhythmic, read-aloud title is an unbridled celebration of the self-esteem, confidence, and swagger boys feel when they leave the barber’s chair—a tradition that places on their heads a figurative crown, beaming with jewels, that confirms their brilliance and worth and helps them not only love and accept themselves but also take a giant step toward caring how they present themselves to the world. The fresh cuts. That’s where it all begins.
“Blended” by Sharon Draper
“You’re so exotic!” “You look so unusual.” “But what are you really?” Eleven-year-old Isabella is used to these kinds of comments – her father is black, her mother is white – but that doesn’t mean she likes them. And now that her parents are divorced (and getting along WORSE than ever), Isabella feels more like a push-me-pull-me toy.
Being split between Mom and Dad is more than switching houses, switching nicknames, switching backpacks: it’s also about switching identities. If you’re only seen as half of this and half of that, how can you ever feel whole?
“All the Colors We Will See” by Patrice Gopo
Patrice Gopo grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, the child of Jamaican immigrants who had little experience being black in America. From her white Sunday school classes as a child, to her early days of marriage in South Africa, to a new home in the American South with a husband from another land, Patrice’s life is a testament to the challenges and beauty of the world we each live in, a world in which cultures overlap every day. As she digs beneath the layers of immigration questions and race relations, Patrice also turns her voice to themes such as marriage and divorce, the societal beauty standards we hold, and the intricacies of living out our faith.
“An American Marriage” by Tayari Jones
Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. Until Roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime Celestial knows he didn’t commit. As Roy’s time in prison passes, Celestial is unable to hold on to the love that has been her center. After five years, Roy’s conviction is suddenly overturned, and he returns to Atlanta ready to resume their life together. This stirring love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control. An American Marriage is an intimate look deep into the souls of people who must reckon with the past while moving forward—with hope and pain—into the future.
“Black Panther” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
When a superhuman terrorist group called “The People” sparks a violent uprising, the land of Wakanda, famed for its incredible technology and proud warrior traditions, will be thrown into turmoil; but can its king, the Black Panther, save it from this fate? Written by MacArthur Genius and National Book Award-winning writer Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Want more curated lists? Subscribe to MSB’s blog, Sense of Shelf, for additional lists, book reviews, author interviews, and more.
The List Bonus Book (on Audio!)
As the former first lady gets ready to start her tour for “Becoming,” you can listen to her tell the entire story for free, with a Libro.fm membership.