Williamsburg Regional Library and William & Mary Libraries partner for One Book One Community, an annual event that encourages our community to come together to have a shared reading experience. WRL hosts a series of events throughout the month that tie into the book. These programs complement the One Book One Community keystone event, a visit from the author.
The author visit is made possible thanks to the generosity of William & Mary and the Friends of Williamsburg Regional Library Foundation.
One Book One Community 2023
2023 Selection: The New American by Micheline Aharonian Marcom
VIEW MICHELINE AHARONIAN MARCOM’S TALK HERE
This “harrowing, heartbreaking story” (Kirkus Reviews) depicts the epic journey of a young Guatemalan American college student, a “dreamer,” who gets deported and decides to make his way back home to California.
Inspired in part by interviews with Central American refugees, and told in lyrical prose, Micheline Aharonian Marcom weaves a “powerful, heartbreaking” (Publishers Weekly) tale of adventure. In The New American, Marcom “depicts inhumanity with visceral force, but her bracing empathy (and hope) shines above all” (Entertainment Weekly). This is a compassionate story of one young man who risks so much to return home.
WRL Programs
Special thanks to the Friends of WRL Foundation for supporting One Book One Community programs.
Stacy Kern-Scheerer Discussion
February 1, 6:30 pm – Williamsburg Library Theatre & Online
Stacy Kern-Scheerer, Director of the William & Mary Law School’s Immigration Clinic, will talk about the people she serves and the state of immigration law.
One Book One Community Book Discussion
February 2, 10:30 am – James City County Library & Online
Join us for a Book Discussion, in-person in the Cosby Room of the James City County Library, or virtually on Zoom.
Art House Cafe Film: La Misma Luna (Under the Same Moon)
February 7, 2 pm – Williamsburg Library Theatre
When his grandmother dies, a child leaves his rural Mexican village and crosses the border into the U.S. in search of his mother, who is living somewhere in Los Angeles. This heartwarming immigration tale from director Patricia Riggen stars Eugenio Derbez and Kate del Castillo. In Spanish with English subtitles. PG-13. 1hr 46min.
One Book One Community Book Discussion
February 8, 10 am – Williamsburg Library & Online
Join us for a Book Discussion, in-person in Room B of the Williamsburg Library, or virtually on Zoom.
February 8, 6:30 pm – Williamsburg Library Theatre
Monika Gosin, chair of the Latin American Studies Department at William & Mary, will talk about the politics, economics, and chaos driving immigrants out of Latin America.
February 9, 6-8 pm – James City County Library & Online
We’ll provide the food, you provide the answers! Join us for dinner and a quiz on the US Citizenship Test and random bits of US History. Registration required; please call 757.741.3300, option 2 to sign up. Teams of up to 4 individuals can register together or be matched with other players on a new team. Participants can play in person in the Kitzinger Room at the James City County Library or via Zoom.
Special thanks to Friends of WRL Foundation for supporting this program.
One Book One Community Film: Waking Dream
February 11, 10:30 am – Williamsburg Library Theatre
This documentary weaves together the stories of six undocumented young people as they sit in limbo between deportation and a path to citizenship after the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) rules are rescinded. NR, 52 minutes.
One Book One Community Book Discussion
February 11, 2 pm – James City County Library & Online
Join us for a Book Discussion, in-person in the Cosby Room of the James City County Library, or virtually on Zoom.
One Book One Community Book Discussion
February 13, 6:45 pm – Williamsburg Library & Online
Join us for a Book Discussion, in-person in Room B of the Williamsburg Library, or virtually on Zoom.
February 16, 6:30-8 pm – Williamsburg Library Theatre
Local actors and readers voice the first-person views of people from around the world, including the US, about immigration and citizenship throughout our history.
Cinema @ Scotland Street: Queen of Glory
February 20, 6 pm – Williamsburg Library Theatre
When her mother suddenly dies, the daughter of Ghanaian immigrants must decide between pursuing her education, following her married lover to Ohio, or running her family’s small Christian bookstore in a migrant area of the Bronx. Director Nana Mensah won a Tribeca Film Festival award for this “witty and compassionate love letter to the Bronx.” NR 1hr 18min.
Advancing Social Change: Panel Discussion
February 21, 2 pm – Sadler Center, Chesapeake A, William & Mary
Join William & Mary Libraries as they host a One Book One Community panel discussion with Micheline Marcom, The New American author and professor of creative writing at UVA; Stacey Kern-Scheerer, W&M law professor; and Jennifer Bickham Mendez, W&M sociology professor; moderated by Reves Center director Teresa Longo. The panel will discuss how literature can be an instrument of social change and advocate for human rights.
Author Visit: Micheline Aharonian Marcom
February 21, 6:30 pm – Williamsburg Library Theatre & Online
Author Micheline Marcom will join us for a reading and discussion February 21 at 6:30 pm in the Williamsburg Library Theatre.
Finding Immigration and Naturalization Records Online
February 23, 2-3:30 pm – Stryker Center
Retrace the path of your ancestors who immigrated to the U.S. We’ll talk about where to look for ships’ passenger lists and immigration and naturalization records, plus why your family name wasn’t changed at Ellis Island! Register by calling 757.741.3300, option 2.
*Events, dates, and times may change.
Past Years of One Book One Community
2022
Palaces for the People, Eric Klinenberg
The 2022 One Book, One Community program focused on Eric Klinenberg’s book, Palaces for the People, which explores how shared spaces can positively impact society. In his book, Klieneberg reminds us that democracy is fortified by people coexisting together in public and that public spaces can produce community, belonging, and unity.
2021
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, Jason Reynolds
The selection for 2021’s program is national bestseller Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi. The book shines a light on the many insidious forms of racist ideas–and on ways readers can identify and stamp out racist thoughts in their daily lives.
2020
There There, Tommy Orange
The inaugural selection for One Book, One Community was Tommy Orange’s There There, which was a breakout bestseller and finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize. The book explores themes of native people living in spaces and the challenges they face from depression to unemployment to struggles with identity.
