WASHINGTON – Five libraries in Alabama’s sixth Congressional district have been awarded 15 classic books on the theme of “Becoming American” through the National Endowment for the Humanities’ We the People Bookshelf program.
“We are a nation of immigrants, and as our nation continues to grow and evolve, it is important that we hold dear our strongest common bond: that we are all Americans. It is my hope this program will give our communities a chance to come together, read and share our own stories of how we became Americans,” Congressman Spencer Bachus said.
North Shelby Library, Calera High School Library, Leeds Jane Culbreth Library, Vincent High School Library and Vestavia Hills Public Library are the chosen library recipients. As part of their award, libraries agree to hold public programming for students, such as reading competitions, essay contests, guest speakers and other community-enriching activities.
Each library will receive the following books:
Kindergarten to Grade 3
• The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland
• Watch the Stars Come Out by Riki Levinson
• Grandfather's Journey by Allen Say
Grades 4 to 6
• Immigrant Kids by Russell Freedman
• The People Could Fly: The Picture Book by Virginia Hamilton
• Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving
• In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Bao Lord
Grades 7 to 8
• Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith
• The Glory Field by Walter Dean Myers
• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
• Dragonwings by Laurence Yep
Grades 9 to 12
• Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
• Barrio Boy by Ernesto Galarza
• Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, edited by Louis P. Masur
• Giants in the Earth: A Saga of the Prairie by Ole Edvart Rølvaag
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