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Reads
Library presents Reads.The program aims to reach our community of readers, in Montcalm County and at , to inspire, uplift, and enlighten by reading books that touch the hearts and minds our readers, celebrate literature and encourage library use.
Request InformationIf you would like to be sent updates regarding Reads, send us your email address by emailing librarystaff@montcalm.edu.
Book Selections
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other.
The Roadis the profoundly moving story of a journey. It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, "each the other's world entire," are sustained by love. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.
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Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
When a meteor knocks the moon closer to earth, Miranda, a high school sophomore, takes shelter with her family.
Told in a year’s worth of journal entries,Life as We Knew Itchronicles the human struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all—hope—in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world.
As August turns dark and wintery in northeastern Pennsylvania, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected safe haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove.
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Reads EventsDelve deeper into The Road and Life as We Knew It by enjoying our outstanding “Featured Presentations” by staff and community members. Through these engaging presentations we will explore several of the themes from both booksand learn more about the literature.
Book Discussion questionsUtilize thiscompilation of book discussion questions to enhance your reading experience and generate group discussion.
Please be aware that this discussion guide contains spoilers.
Community Action
The Library is collecting new and gently used (clean) hoodies for those in need. Hoodies may be left in the Library.
Where to Purchase Books
The books will be available for purchase at the Bookstore on the college’s Sidney campus, and will continue to be available at the bookstore throughout the course of the Reads program. To purchase either of these books online in a variety of formats (print, large print, eBook or audio), visit montcalm.edu/bookstore or .
A limited number of the 2023 Reads titles will be available in eBook format and audio download through the following libraries’ digital collections, and they also plan to have circulating copies of the books available when they are again able to circulate books.
Reads Sponsors
Reads is sponsored by and the Foundation.