Montgomery County Celebrates the Diverse Immigrant Experience Through the 2018 National Endowment of the Arts Big Read from April to June

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, April 10, 2018

Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) in partnership with the Friends of the Library Montgomery County, Montgomery Community Media, the Gaithersburg Book Festival, and Montgomery History launches the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) 2018 Big Read to Montgomery County this week, which is National Library Week.

NEA Big Read broadens the understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book. The book selected for the 2018 Big Read in Montgomery County is author Dinaw Mengestu‘s, The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears, which tells the story of the immigrant experience in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and in Montgomery County.

Varied programs will be held through May around the County to celebrate the diverse immigrant experiences of its residents through discussions about The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears, storytelling, music, panel presentations, documentary film showing and several different types of programs.

To conclude the Big Read, Mengestu, a MacArthur Foundation Fellow will participate in Contemporary Conversations @ MCPL, speaking about his award-winning novel and his own immigrant experience. The program will take place on June 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Silver Spring Library located at 900 Wayne Avenue.

For more information about the programs related to the Big Read, visit http://montgomerycountymd.gov/library or contact Mary Ellen Icaza at 240-777-0006 or by email at Mary.Icaza@montgomerycountymd.gov.

Release ID: 18-507
Media Contact: Judy Stiles 240-777-6536