Read Against the Machine is a monthly book club where we dig into the ideas, systems, and stories that shape our world.
From niche histories and personal memoirs to cultural commentary and investigative journalism, each selection invites us to question our assumptions and explore new perspectives.
Join us for discussion on the 4th Thursday of each month!
In September, we are reading Our Migrant Souls by Héctor Tobar:
"In Our Migrant Souls, the Pulitzer Prize–winning writer Héctor Tobar delivers a definitive and personal exploration of what it means to be Latino in the United States right now.
‘Latino’ is the most open-ended and loosely defined of the major race categories in the United States, and also one of the most rapidly growing. Composed as a direct address to the young people who identify or have been classified as ‘Latino,’Our Migrant Souls is the first account of the historical and social forces that define Latino identity.
Taking on the impacts of colonialism, public policy, immigration, media, and pop culture, Our Migrant Souls decodes the meaning of ‘Latino’ as a racial and ethnic identity in the modern United States, and gives voice to the anger and the hopes of young Latino people who have seen Latinidad transformed into hateful tropes and who have faced insult and division—a story as old as this country itself."
A limited number of copies of the book selection are available at the circulation desk downstairs.