Before the Civil War: Fall Book Discussions Set to Begin in October

“So, you’re the little woman that started this big war,” Abraham Lincoln is reputed to have said when introduced to abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin – one of the five titles in our fall book discussions, sponsored by the Kansas Humanities Council.

Beginning on Monday October 11th at 7 pm with a discussion of Jane Smiley’s The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton, set in 1855 Kansas, all five featured volumes offer an intriguing gateway into the ante bellum world.

This series is especially appropriate for Kansas readers as we prepare to celebrate the Kansas Sesquicentennial this coming January 29th, as well as the national Civil War Sesquicentennial beginning with the December 20th 150th anniversary of the secession of South Carolina as the opening act.

Copies of our first featured novel are available now at the circulation desk, along with brochures describing the upcoming discussions, complete with brief descriptions of all five works and suggestions for further reading.