Free with Museum Admission
Recommended for ages 9–12 and their adults

This February we welcome critically acclaimed author Sharon Draper to discuss her powerful book about segregation, education, and family—Stella by Starlight. Draper is a five-time recipient of the Coretta Scott King Award and will join us to meet families and discuss her book and her writing. Afterwards, we will visit our Library and examine original images and objects related to education during segregation.

About Stella by Starlight
Eleven-year-old Stella Mills wakes up one night in 1932 to a horrific sight: Across the lake from her home a fire is burning, and men in white hoods stand around it. Stella knows immediately that this means the KKK has returned to her town. In the story that follows, Stella’s courage inspires her distraught community to match her resilience and determination to overcome the fear that the Klan’s re-emergence has brought to her town. With Stella, Draper has created a character who is “filled with hope, dreams and ambition in a time when such traits were dangerous for a girl of color.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)