Essex Library is one of 200 libraries across the country selected to receive a grant through Libraries Transforming Communities (LTC): Focus on Small & Rural Libraries, an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA). We were the only library in Connecticut to receive a grant in the first round of funding.
LTC: Focus on Small & Rural Libraries is a grant for those of us in small and rural communities to address issues of concern in our communities. Participating libraries receive training in how to lead conversations through an ALA e-course on facilitation skills; host a conversation with community members on a chosen topic; and receive grant funding to support community engagement efforts.
For our grant, Essex Library will host a series of book discussions on titles that examine income inequality, culminating with a discussion using the One Book, One Community model. We chose to examine income inequality because it is identified by ALA and the LION Consortium as a future trend of concern. Between 2018 and 2020, the percentage of ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) households and households living below the poverty line, as measured by United Way, grew by eight percent in Essex.
Our Book Groups will read the following titles for this series:
- Historical Fiction discusses The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck on Tuesday, March 9th at 10:30 a.m.
- American History discusses The Other America by Michael Harrington on Thursday, March 18th at 5:00 p.m.
- First Thursday Book Group discusses Caste: the Origins of our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson on Thursday, April 1st at 4 p.m.
- Classics Book Group discusses Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell on Thursday, April 8th at 5:00 p.m.
- Essex Meadows Book Group discusses Heartland by Sarah Smarsh on Wednesday, April 21st at 10:30 a.m.
- One Book, One Community discusses Our Towns: a 100,000-mile journey into the heart of America. Q & A Session with James Fallows and Deborah Fallows, authors of Our Towns on Tuesday, May 18th at 5 p.m.
Register in advance for this meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/
meeting/register/ tZEqdOqvrjooEteteTyozNYOScHKuq BLNOZr
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.