Rick Bragg’s stories reflect on community, world

The Monroe County Public Library, in conjunction with the Friends of the Library  bookstore, wants the community to check out an event that has the due date of a lifetime.

The two organizations will present journalist and Pulitzer prize-winning author Rick Bragg at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater for their biennial series, “Power of Words: Changing our World – One Author at a Time.”
The series is used as a means to bring in authors whose work reflects issues in the community. The event is open to the public, and tickets are available for the reception afterwards in the MCPL atrium, where Bragg will be a guest.
“Two years ago, we wanted to put together something that involved reading, community and books,” said Dana Burton, Friends of the Library member and adult services librarian. “We wanted to invite an author whose writing was eloquent with a captivating speaking style.”
Bragg worked as a journalist at the Jacksonville News and the New York Times, covering stories of hardship, poverty and optimism regionally as well as internationally. He won a Pulitzer in 1996 for
feature writing.
The Alabama native’s own challenges with his family in rural Calhoun County, Ala., have made his trio of autobiographical novels bestsellers.
“He used writing as a way of making sense of his life,” MCPL director Sara Laughlin said. “He hasn’t given up the stories and language of rural Alabama – he’s been able to bring these stories to the world.”
This year’s decision to have Bragg speak went through a selective process.
“We had a tremendous list to go through,” said Sue Sater, MCPL administrative manager and Friends of Library chairwoman. “We looked at what he could give to the community, and he just clicked.”
Though Bragg was the final decision, the committee backed their decision by reviewing him once more.
“It wasn’t an easy decision. Everyone read his books just to make sure,” Sater said.
Both organizations are planning for Bragg to elicit a dialogue about poverty within the community that can be encountered through the author’s work rather than personal opinions.
“Language is what makes us human,” Laughlin said. “I see that as an important thing to think about, that there are ways to solve problems civilly and thoughtfully.”