Reading Groups

The Stories of NYC: Coming of Age in New York City with Regina A. Bernard

Four Sessions Fridays, 6:00 pm EDT - 7:30 pm EDT April 19 to June 21, 2024

Online via Zoom

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The ‘With Books’ option includes all titles required for this group at an additional 10% discount from our Bookstore.

Meeting Dates:
4/19, 5/10, 5/31, 6/21
Online via Zoom

In recognition of the 400th anniversary of the establishment of New York City in 1624, we’re exploring The Stories of NYC.

Treat your inner young adult with a reading group that will explore themes of struggle, beauty, art and coming of age, all while centering our beautiful city! In this spring reading series, we will examine young adult novels spanning from the 1940s to the late 2000s and consider the lives of young people and what it means to come of age in New York City throughout different eras. Perhaps we will read in these stories reflections of ourselves, or maybe we will gain insight into the young people currently in our lives. Either way, this reading group will examine what we think about YA literature, and how we can engage with it as a literary genre to enrich our lives.

Participants should read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn in advance of the first meeting.

Session I: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
Session II: Down These Mean Streets by Piri Thomas
Session III: Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
Session IV: The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

What to expect from this reading group: Our sessions will be in the format of a book club with lots of conversations and sometimes discussion prompts that can circulate among members of the group.

Led by

Regina A. Bernard, Ph.D.

Regina A. Bernard, Ph.D.

Regina A. Bernard, Ph.D., was born and raised in Hell’s Kitchen, New York City. She holds a graduate degree in African American Studies from Columbia University and also holds several other graduate degrees, including a Ph.D. in Urban Education. Dr. Bernard’s research and teaching focuses on women of color and the ways of wellness. She is the author of three books on education, young women of color and feminism, and Black Studies. She has also published articles in the Journal of Pan African Studies, Small Farms Quarterly, Breathe Magazine U.K., Inside Higher Education, and Audubon magazine, among other publications.

About this series

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Whether you’re looking to catch up on great novels or you’re interested in exploring a new writer or literary period, our reading groups offer high-level literary discussion led by experts in the field.

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