Book Discussion Series starts 1/31
Our first book will be Pauline Meier's American Scripture
Upcoming event:
Book Discussion: American Scripture
January 31, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Bethel Library Association
6 Broad Street, Bethel, ME
The first meeting in our Independence 250 Book Discussion Series will take place on Saturday, January 31, at 2:00 p.m. at the Bethel Library Association. We will be discussing the book, American Scripture: Making the Declaration of Independence by Pauline Meier.
In American Scripture, Maier shows us the Declaration as both the defining statement of our national identity and the moral standard by which we live as a nation. The book explores everything from the Declaration’s birth in the hard and tortuous struggle by which Americans arrived at Independence to the ways in which, in the nineteenth century, the document itself became sanctified.
In a time when debates about equality, freedom, and national identity are at the forefront of our political and cultural conversations, American Scripture reminds us that America’s founding ideals weren’t inevitabilities—they were arguments shaped by people, politics, and compromise. We chose this book to open our book discussion series, because it’s a perfect way into thinking about what the Declaration of Independence means today.
And since a few people have asked, we want to reassure you the book is a breezy 215 page survey, not a dense academic tome!
A hybrid option will be available for those unable to attend in person. Please let us know if you would like to be put on the list!
If you need a copy of the book, they are available for a special price of $10 at the Museums of the Bethel Historical Society and the Bethel Library Association.