Dayton Literary Peace Prize Finalists

Recognizing the power of literature to promote peace and reconciliation, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation has announced the finalists for the 2017 Dayton Literary Peace Prize in fiction and nonfiction. Inspired by the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords that ended the war in Bosnia, The Dayton Literary Peace Prize is the only international literary peace

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Celebrate Constitution Day September 17th

September 17th commemorates the 230th anniversary of the formation and signing of the U.S. Constitution, and recognizes the efforts, rights, and responsibilities of all citizens. To celebrate the occasion, we’re highlighting 3 books that we hope will not only help readers gain a better understanding of the Constitution, but also more fully appreciate its continuing

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Around the World with THE SEVENTH MOST IMPORTANT THING by Shelley Pearsall

by Shelley Pearsall Last summer, my novel The Seventh Most Important Thing went around the globe. It traveled in suitcases and backpacks to Israel, France, Iceland, and England. It sat on a beach. It became part of someone’s wedding photo. It went to football practice. Mayfield High School, a large suburban high school outside Cleveland,

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New Titles for August!

As the summer winds down we wanted to highlight our titles that have just been added to the Common Reads site. If you’re looking for some inspiration to get outdoors in the final weeks of the season, consider reading Trespassing Across America, by Ken Ilgunas. Or if you’re considering fiction titles for a younger audience, Indie Next

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A letter from Nadia Murad, author of THE LAST GIRL

My name is Nadia Murad. I am Yazidi, a member of a small, monotheistic religious community whose holy temples and homelands are located in northern Iraq. Early in the morning of August 3, 2014, militants with the Islamic State attacked Kocho, my small village, and from that moment on my life—as well as the lives

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SALT TO THE SEA is Now in Paperback!

We’re so excited to see Ruta Sepetys’s latest masterful historical fiction title, Salt to the Sea, is out in paperback! Salt to the Sea is an emotionally wrought, epic WWII-era novel that shines a light on one of the war’s most devastating–yet unknown–tradgedies. Perfect for readers of Between Shades of Gray and All the Light We Cannot Sea, Ruta

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Khary Lazarre-White, Author of PASSAGE, Shares a Letter to Readers

Passage is the story of a young man’s journey. Warrior, the protagonist, is surrounded by deep family love and a sustaining connection to his history—connections that arm him as he confronts both spiritual and human forces that seek his destruction. It is, in part, an allegory, and a poetic narrative that allows you to experience

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One Book, One New York with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

On June 5th, The New York Public Library and the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment celebrated the culminating event for New York City’s One Book, One New York program with a special evening featuring Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her book AMERICANAH at the historic Celeste Bartos Forum. Broadway and Showtime’s Billions series actress, Condola

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Tips for Creating a Community Reading Program

America is a nation of over 316 million individuals. Although many of us praise our unique American individuality, we also create strong communities. Some of those communities revolve around family, religion, enthusiasm for a sports team, hobbies or pastimes. But we also have the opportunity to build a community of readers, a community built around

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