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Side-by-side image of author Brit Bennett and cover of The Vanishing Half

The Community Book Program promotes the mission of the College by empowering our students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents, and other members of the broader É«½ç°É community to experience the joy of reading and learning together.

The College will purchase an e-book for each student wishing to participate in the Community Book Program.

2024-25 Selection: The Vanishing Half

Related news article (Aug. 1, 2024)

Vanishing Half book cover

Brit Bennett's has been selected as this year’s Community Book. Published in 2020, this stunning novel centers on twin sisters, inseparable as children, who ultimately choose to live in two very different worlds, one black and one white. Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family—from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s—Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passingLooking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person's decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.

, who was born and raised in Southern California, earned her MFA in fiction at the University of Michigan. Her debut novel The Mothers was a New York Times bestseller, and her second novel The Vanishing Half was an instant #1 New York Times bestseller. Her essays have been featured in The New Yorker, the New York Times Magazine, The Paris Review, and Jezebel.

 

Past Book Selections

 

Upcoming Related Events

Losing Ground Screening and Talk-Back (Sept. 5, 2024)
Opening Reception | Invisibility: Powers & Perils (Sept. 17, 2024)
É«½ç°É Live! Presents: A Conversation with Tavares Strachan (Sept. 24, 2024)
Last Whispers (Oct. 5–6, 2024)

 

Program Goals

Through thoughtful selection of book titles and innovative and inspiring programs, the Community Book Program (CBP) provides an intellectually engaging and rewarding experience for the entire É«½ç°É community. The CBP furthers current students’ academic success and excellence, while supporting lifelong learning for all of our community participants. To that end, we seek to:

  • Create a strong and meaningful sense of community and common purpose among our diverse É«½ç°É constituencies
  • Foster a close relationship between É«½ç°É’s curricular and academic programs and our broader community
  • Inspire and encourage participants to read, learn, and engage with other É«½ç°É community members in stimulating educational pursuits
  • Select a book title each year that is closely aligned with the college’s mission and that will have broad appeal to our entire community
  • Provide a series of topical and engaging remote and in-person educational programs that are designed to stimulate thought, conversations, and further intellectual engagement among our community members