Maus Course and Banned Books Week
Our Maus Course in October coincides with the American Library Association's Banned Books Week October 1-7. Banned Books Week's theme this year is brilliant.
Let Freedom Read !
Maus Course
U-Turn in Education is pleased to announce a partnership with the Christian County Library; Dr. Scott Denham, Professor of German Studies at Davidson College; and Dr. Barbara Mann, Professor of Modern Hebrew Language and Literature at Case Western Reserve University.
Beginning in October a virtual and in-person hybrid course on Maus, by Art Spiegelman will be offered for FREE on Tuesday evenings.
Maus is a brutally moving work of art—widely hailed as the greatest graphic novel ever written—Maus recounts the chilling experiences of the author’s father during the Holocaust, with Jews drawn as wide-eyed mice and Nazis as menacing cats. It is a haunting tale within a tale, weaving the author’s account of his tortured relationship with his aging father into an astonishing retelling of one of history's most unspeakable tragedies. It is an unforgettable story of survival and a disarming look at the legacy of trauma.
U-Turn in Education is pleased to have helped coordinate the creation of this educational opportunity for us all. Because of the events surrounding what was then an upcoming challenge to The Complete Maus in the Nixa High School library, Drs. Denham and Mann reached out to U-Turn in Education to make a surprising offer. They had designed and would graciously provide for free, a class tailored to the ages and grades most affected by the attempted censorship of this book. When McMinn County in TN banned Maus from its 8th grade curriculum in January 2022, a version of this course was offered for that community. Both of those actions received considerable national attention. Since we are fortunate to have retained Maus in our high school library, this has become a celebratory event for us here locally, but we are acutely aware of continued challenges to the Jewish community, and that attempts at the censorship of this book can represent some of those challenges.
Come join us in celebration, but also plan on an enjoyable learning experience about a groundbreaking, genre defining, Pulitzer prize winning book. This course has something to offer for much of our local community and beyond - students, teachers, parents, professors, college students, book clubs... all can benefit.
We understand that an outside local group has donated funds to make available 30 boxed sets of Maus 1 and Maus 2 (the equivalent of The Complete Maus ) to course participants that want them. The level of community support for this program is phenomenal. Keep your October Tuesday nights free and come join us.
see p.5 of Christian County Library's September-October 2023 catalog
or their Calendar of Events
Springfield News-Leader 6/25/2023
Some success! Nixa Public Schools to create 'standing committee' for future library book challenges. If this can be done transparently, and without significant soft censorship, the Nixa School District and our entire community will benefit considerably.
Nixa Public Schools to create 'standing committee' for future library book challenges
U-Turn in Education has been featured in The New Yorker magazine.
Join us in this "Fight For the Soul of a School Board"
The journalist, Sue Halpern, is phenomenal.
And more of Nixa and our efforts in the news
the Washington Post
the Washington Post
the Washington Post
coda
the Washington Post
the Washington Post
pen america
the Washington Post
pen america
PEN America
PEN America
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