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Malden Reads
What if all of Malden reads the same book?
Malden Reads is a One City One Book program brought to Malden by a collaboration between Urban Media Arts and the Malden Public Library, that explores what happens when everyone in Malden reads the same book and explores its themes together in various activities.
Initiatied in 2010, it has grown to include more community members, organizations, and events. Each year it hosts book discussions, educational programs, film screenings, and more events–which are developed around themes within the book selection.
Malden Reads’ first season began in 2011, with The Soloist by Steve Lopez. Over the years, book selection include The Martian by Andy Weir, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, and Born a Crime by Trevor Noah. An American Sunrise by Joy Harjo marks Malden Reads’ 12th season!
Malden Reads works in collaboration with UMA, Malden Public Library, city leaders, and community groups and residents.
Visit the Malden Reads website for more information on this season and previous seasons' book selections, volunteer opportunities, and upcoming events:
2022 Book Selection
An American Sunrise by Joy Harjo
Author's book summary
"In the early 1800s, the Mvskoke people were forcibly removed from their original lands east of the Mississippi to Indian Territory, which is now part of Oklahoma. Two hundred years later, Joy Harjo returns to her family’s lands and opens a dialogue with history. In An American Sunrise, Harjo finds blessings in the abundance of her homeland and confronts the site where her people, and other indigenous families, essentially disappeared. From her memory of her mother’s death, to her beginnings in the native rights movement, to the fresh road with her beloved, Harjo’s personal life intertwines with tribal histories to create a space for renewed beginnings. Her poems sing of beauty and survival, illuminating a spirituality that connects her to her ancestors and thrums with the quiet anger of living in the ruins of injustice."
2021 Book Selection
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Malden Reads works in collaboration with:
Urban Media Arts
an interconnected hub of creativity, dialog and evolving community, both virtually and through local physical spaces.
Malden Public Library
providing open access to information and promoting love of reading and lifelong learning to Malden residents and all citizens of Massachusetts
