Core Committee, Academic Affairs, Student Development, and the Office of Sustainability Education are pleased to announce Memory of Water as the 2017 Common Reading for Central College. In Finnish author Emmi Itäranta’s first novel, a young woman’s secret source of fresh water sets of a series of unpredictable events in this novel set in a dystopian future. Can her community come together to save both Noria and the water she protects?
Winner of several literary awards in Finland, Itäranta wrote both the Finnish and English-language versions of Memory of Water. Itäranta’s second novel, The Weaver, was published in the US in 2016, and she will be working on her third in 2017. Her professional career includes a variety of activities, including writing as a columnist, critic, and press officer.
Faculty from all disciplines are invited to participate in and contribute to a campus-wide teach-in on Water from September 6-8 connecting to the theme for 2017-18. Emmi Itäranta will be in conversation with the Central College community through a series of video conferences as part of the teach-in. We hope to enhance our interdisciplinary consideration of water’s role in our world with other guest speakers, panel discussions, and curricular events.
Your first assignment at Central College is to read Memory of Water. We look forward to discussing it during our first meeting of your Intersections class during Welcome Week.
Memory of Water is available at the Spirit Shoppe in Maytag Student Center, or in the online bookstore.
You should be prepared to discuss the following questions, when your class meets for the first time on August 22:
