Racine Reads schedules book discussions on Motherland

April 6, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

RACINE - Racine Reads has scheduled book discussion programs at various venues during April and May, all focusing on the current selection, Motherland: Beyond the Holocaust by Fern Schumer Chapman. All book discussion programs are free and open to the public, although registration is required for most of them.

Upcoming book discussions include:

--April 13 at 7 p.m. at St. Edward Church, 1425 Grove Ave. Ann Steinkraus will be the discussion leader. No registration is required.

--April 14 at 2 p.m. at Racine Public Library, 75 Seventh St. Ellen Hiatt will be the discussion leader. To register, call the Library at 636-9217. Hiatt, a retired Park High School teacher, instructed her history classes about the Holocaust and participated, with her students, in Days of Remembrance events with the Beth Israel Sinai congregation.

--April 20 at 7 p.m. at Racine Public Library, 75 Seventh St. Jill Hartmann, head of adult and extension services at the Racine Public Library, will open her regularly scheduled evening book group to a limited number of people as they discuss Motherland. To register, call the Library at 636-9217.

--April 22 at 7 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 103 S. State St., Rochester. Nancy Elsmo will be the discussion leader. To register, call the Rochester Public Library at 534-3533. A retired librarian, Elsmo was head of several different departments during her tenure with Racine Public Library: the adult, children's, and technical services departments. She remains active in many community activities, including her current role as a member of the Racine Reads coalition.

--May 5 at 2 p.m. at Temple Beth Israel, 944 Main St. Retired educator John Brosseau will be the discussion leader. To register, call the Temple at 633-7093.

Motherland is a moving account of a mother and daughter who visit Germany to rediscover their past and face the Holocaust tragedy that haunts them. The book is a story of learning to face the past, of remembering and honoring, while looking forward and letting go. The book is an account of the war's lingering grip on its witnesses; yet, it is also a loving story of mothers and daughters, roots, understanding, and ultimately, healing.

Racine Reads is a community-wide reading project in which residents read the same book at the same time. The aim of the project is to stimulate reading and dialog among the people of Racine County.

www.racinereads.org

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