BookTalk introduces readers to a carefully chosen, provocative selection of novels for reading and informal discussion, considering the author’s writing techniques and the character’s personal journeys. Readings include translations of books from other countries and cultures in the search for fictions that illuminate the lives and understanding of those from all across the globe.
This class focuses on Caucasia (1999) by Danzy Senna. Birdie and Cole are the daughters of a black father and a white mother, intellectuals and activists in the Civil Rights Movement in 1970s Boston. After their parents’ marriage collapses, their father and his new girlfriend take off with Cole while Birdie, who is often mistaken for white, is left to drift across the country with their mother. Birdie is haunted by the loss of her sister and runs away on a desperate search for the Black family that left her behind. This debut novel and coming-of-age story has become a modern classic, addressing themes of race and identity.
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