ISSUED: 6 February 2024
MEDIA CONTACT: Cecelia Mason
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — Shepherd University is selecting the Common Reading book for the 2024-2025 school year and is asking for input from the campus and community. Voting is taking place through March 15 and is open to the public. The book with the most votes will be announced on March 18 and will be highlighted throughout the next fall and spring semesters.
The Common Reading selection committee has chosen five semifinalist books — “Another Appalachia: Coming up Queer and Indian in a Mountain Place” by Neema Avashia, “Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America” by Heather Cox Richardson, “Poverty, By America” by Matthew Desmond, “Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist” by Judith Heumann with Kristen Joiner, and “Ink Knows No Borders: Poems of the Immigrant and Refugee Experience” edited by Patrice Vecchione and Alyssa Raymond.
To vote, complete the survey on the Common Reading Program webpage. Voting is anonymous and limited to one vote per person. The book receiving the most votes by March 15 will serve as the 2024-2025 Common Reading.
The Common Reading Program is sponsored by the Shepherd University Foundation, with additional support from individual donors and campus and community partners. 2024-2025 will mark the 18th year of this campus and community-wide program.
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