Donate! Support your community news.
Subscribe! News delivered to your inbox.
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

Main Street Books Hosting Two Upcoming Events

by | May 13, 2021

Main Street Books logo
 
Two exciting (virtual) events will be held at Main Street Books next week. Both events are free on Zoom but require advance registration. 
 
First, on Tuesday, May 18 at 7 pm: An evening with culture commentator and writer Pete Davis, in conversation with Davidson’s own POLITICO journalist Michael Kruse.
 
 

ABOUT DEDICATED
A profoundly inspiring and transformative argument that purposeful commitment can be a powerful force in our age of restlessness and indecision.

Most of us have had this experience: browsing through countless options on Netflix, unable to commit to watching any given movie—and losing so much time skimming reviews and considering trailers that it’s too late to watch anything at all. In a book borne of an idea first articulated in a viral commencement address, Pete Davis argues that this is the defining characteristic of the moment: keeping our options open. We are stuck in “Infinite Browsing Mode”—swiping through endless dating profiles without committing to a single partner, jumping from place to place searching for the next big thing, and refusing to make any decision that might close us off from an even better choice we imagine is just around the corner. This culture of restlessness and indecision, Davis argues, is causing tension in the lives of young people today: We want to keep our options open, and yet we yearn for the purpose, community, and depth that can only come from making deep commitments.

In Dedicated, Davis examines this quagmire, as well as the counterculture of committers who have made it to the other side. He shares what we can learn from the “long-haul heroes” who courageously commit themselves to particular places, professions, and causes—who relinquish the false freedom of an open future in exchange for the deep fulfillment of true dedication. Weaving together examples from history, personal stories, and applied psychology, Davis’s candid and humble words offer a meaningful answer to our modern frustrations and a practical path to joy.

ABOUT PETE DAVIS
Pete Davis is a civic advocate from Falls Church, Virginia. He works on projects aimed at deepening American democracy and solidarity. Pete is the cofounder of the Democracy Policy Network, a state policy organization focused on raising up ideas that deepen democracy. In 2015, he cofounded Getaway, a company that provides simple, unplugged escapes to tiny cabins outside of major cities. His Harvard Law School graduation speech, “A Counterculture of Commitment,” has been viewed more than 30 million times.

ABOUT MICHAEL KRUSE
Michael Kruse is a senior staff writer at POLITICO and POLITICO Magazine. At POLITICO, where he focuses on “Trumpology” and profiles of presidential candidates and other political notables, he has won the National Press Foundation’s Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress and an honorable mention for the Toner Prize for Excellence in National Political Reporting. Prior to joining POLITICO, at the Tampa Bay Times, he won the American Society of News Editors’ distinguished non-deadline writing award and the Paul Hansell Award for Distinguished Achievement in Florida Journalism. His work has been anthologized in The Best American Newspaper NarrativesOut There: The Wildest Stories from Outside Magazine, and Next Wave: America’s New Generation of Great Literary Journalists. A native of the Boston area and a graduate of Davidson College, he lives in North Carolina with his wife, two daughters, two dogs and a guinea pig.

 
Then, on Thursday, May 20 at 8 pm, Main Street Books will be hosting Rita Woods in conversation about her debut novel Remembrance.
 
 

ABOUT REMEMBRANCE
“Stunning. … Family is at the core of Remembrance, the breathtaking debut novel by Rita Woods.” — The Boston Globe. This breakout historical debut with modern resonance is perfect for the many fans of The Underground Railroad and Orphan Train. 

Remembrance…It’s a rumor, a whisper passed in the fields and veiled behind sheets of laundry. A hidden stop on the underground road to freedom, a safe haven protected by more than secrecy…if you can make it there. 

Ohio, present day. An elderly woman who is more than she seems warns against rising racism as a young nurse grapples with her life.

Haiti, 1791, on the brink of revolution. When the slave Abigail is forced from her children to take her mistress to safety, she discovers New Orleans has its own powers.

1857 New Orleansa city of unrest: Following tragedy, house girl Margot is sold just before her promised freedom. Desperate, she escapes and chases a whisper…. Remembrance.

ABOUT RITA WOODS
Rita Woods is a family doctor and the director of a wellness center. When she’s not busy working or writing Dr. Woods spends time with her family or at the Homer Glen library where she serves on the Board of Trustees. Remembrance is her first novel.

 

Support Your Community News