WILLIAM H. HANNON LIBRARY | Dear LMU Colleagues,
This year, we are taking a new approach to the LMU Common Book. Instead of focusing on a single title, we have selected five books, unified by a common theme, to be this year’s “LMU Common Book Collection.”
The selection of the 2021 LMU Common Book Collection was a collaborative process between the Academic Resource Center, the William H. Hannon Library, Rhetorical Arts, the Core, and new this year, students representing #BlackAtLMU. Collectively, these five books explore and reflect upon the Black experience in American and abroad, offering readers both local and global perspectives. The five books selected are:
Americanah
by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Homegoing
by Yaa Gyasi
White Tears / Brown Scars
by Ruby Hamad
How to be an Antiracist
by Ibram X. Kendi
The Sum of Us
by Heather McGhee
The LMU Common Book program is designed to unite the campus community in a common intellectual endeavor that goes beyond the classroom. It is our hope that the Common Book serves as a mechanism through which students, faculty, and staff can all share a common experience through the uncommon discoveries in reading.
We encourage faculty to adopt any or all of these titles in their courses, either in whole or in part. The Common Book planning committee will work over the summer to develop campus programs and events related to the Common Book. If you have ideas for programming, please don’t hesitate to contact us at commonbook@lmu.edu. We hope that faculty, staff, and students will feel inspired and engaged by these texts.
Sincerely,
John Jackson, William H. Hannon Library
Mia Watson, Academic Resource Center
