Housatonic Community College (HCC) announced today that their pick for the third annual HCC One Book, One College program will be Never Look An American In the Eye: A Memoir of Flying Turtles, Colonial Ghosts, and the Making of a Nigerian American by Okey Ndibe.
“We are very happy to welcome Okey Ndibe to campus for our third annual One Book, One College event,” said Jennifer Lutris, HCC Librarian. “We’re looking forward to incorporating his book into our classrooms, and welcoming members of the local community to our exciting programming.”
Ndibe earned a MFA and PhD from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, and has since taught at numerous colleges across Massachusetts and Connecticut. His opinion pieces have been published by numerous publications, including The New York Times, BBC online, Al Jazeera online, Financial Times, Fabian Society Journal, and the (Nigerian) Daily Sun, where his widely syndicated weekly column appears. Never Look An American In the Eye details Ndibe’s move from Nigeria to America, where he wrote for the iconic African Commentary magazine. The book chronicles his transition into becoming an African-American, his relationships with his fellow writers including the legendary Chinua Achebe, and how he settled into American life.
“This book is very fitting for our time, when the topic of immigration is at the forefront of American politics,” said Paul Broadie, President of Housatonic Community College. “It also connects deeply to the makeup of Housatonic’s student body, which has a significant number of first generation students and immigrants themselves. We’re thrilled to encourage college-wide conversation, creativity, and community through this program.”
Leading up to a book signing and lecture by Ndibe on Thursday, March 28th, HCC will offer a Book A Day Giveaway, in which the school will hold a drawing for one book each day prior to the date of the event. All are welcome to enter, just visit the HCC library, located at 900 Lafayette Blvd., in Bridgeport. Additional programming events will be announced next month.
“We are especially excited that this year’s project features Connecticut author, and 2017 Connecticut Book Award winner for nonfiction, Okey Ndibe,” said Dr. Jason R. Mancini, Executive Director Connecticut Humanities. The HCC One Book, One College program is generously supported by a grant from Connecticut Humanities.