L-R News

College begins Visiting Writers Book Club

This fall, Lenoir-Rhyne College’s Visiting Writers Series will offer a book club for area residents interested in discussing the work of the series’ writers.

At each meeting, the book club will discuss a book written by one of the fall semester Visiting Writers. There is no charge to attend the discussions, and registration is not required. Those attending should have read the book and should bring a copy of the book to the meeting.

Each meeting will be led by a different L-R faculty member. The format will be a discussion rather than a lecture.

The first meeting will be at 7 p.m. Sept. 14 in the Quiet Room of the Rudisill Library on campus. The book to be discussed will be “Flags of Our Fathers” by James Bradley. This discussion will be led by Mike Dugan, Alex Lee Professor of Business at Lenoir-Rhyne College. The author will give a public reading on Sept. 21 at 8 p.m. in the P.E. Monroe Auditorium.

Dugan joined the L-R faculty in 2004, after retiring as chairman and chief executive officer of Henredon Furniture Industries Inc. Dugan holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto, and an MBA with a concentration in marketing from Syracuse University. During a distinguished career, he worked was vice president, sales and marketing, for Pennsylvania House; senior vice president, sales and marketing of the furniture division of Sperry & Hutchinson Corp.; and CEO of Jamestown Sterling Corp, a furniture manufacturer. He said coming to work at Lenoir-Rhyne was the fulfillment of a lifelong desire to teach. Before joining the faculty, he had been actively involved with the Visiting Writers Series and the Lenoir-Rhyne Business Council.

He had these comments about the book: “ ‘Flags of Our Fathers’ is an extraordinary book on multiple levels. It is a war story of the first order recounting the Battle of Iwo Jima, a biography of six diverse soldiers who were in the battle, and a brilliant evocation of another generation at another time in our country’s history.”

He added: “The Marines seem to have things under control at first, but then they discover that there is more to the Japanese defense than meets the eye. So too, the reader discovers there is more to the book than meets the eye. The recounting of a battle fought some 60 years ago makes you reflect on the nature of wars and the people who fight them. The book is neither a polemic against war nor a puff piece espousing war. You can simply read and enjoy the book as an interesting history or you can let it push you to rethink your own feelings and beliefs about things like war, heroism, patriotism, sacrifice, and suffering. The Visiting Writers Series Book Club discussion should provide readers with a great opportunity to dive deep into this fascinating book.”

The second meeting of the book club will be at 7 p.m. Sept. 28 in the Quiet Room. Adrian Rice, a former Visiting Writer and current adjunct faculty member at Lenoir-Rhyne, will lead the discussion of Don Paterson’s book of poems, “The White Lie.” Paterson, a Scottish poet, will read from his work at 8 p.m. Oct. 5 in the Belk Centrum.

Rice is an Irish poet and educator who served as an L-R Visiting Writer on two occasions, in 1999 and 2005. He grew up in a tough neighborhood in Northern Ireland and was sent to a school in the country by his parents, who were trying to keep him away from bad influences. Much to his surprise, he discovered he liked literature. He later earned two degrees — in literature and in Irish literature — from the University of Ulster. A friend from his childhood later convinced Rice to try his hand at writing. Rice has now published several books of poems. He also has conducted writing workshops for children in Ireland and the United States. He is a popular speaker, commenting on literature and his life experiences.

The third meeting of the book club will be at 7 p.m. Nov. 9 in the Quiet Room of the Rudisill Library. Participants will discuss “Terrorist,” the most recent novel by John Updike. The discussion leader will be Stephen Neuville, an adjunct faculty member at Lenoir-Rhyne. Updike will read at Lenoir-Rhyne’s P.E. Monroe Auditorium at 8 p.m. Nov. 16.

Neuville is a longtime supporter of the Visiting Writers Series and Business Council who has previously led Great Books discussion groups. He is retired as president and chairman of Neuville Industries. Neuville holds a bachelor’s degree from Bucknell University in commerce and finance. After graduation, he joined his family’s company and spent more than 30 years in the hosiery industry. His company, known as an innovator in employee benefits, was cited several times as one of the Top 100 employers of working mothers by Working Mother magazine.

“I think the Writers Series Book Club is an important link between the college and the community,” Neuville said. “It will give the students and the public the opportunity to read and discuss the books before the readings.”

The book club meetings, like the Visiting Writer appearances, are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served at the book club meetings.

Dr. Rand Brandes, Martin Luther Stevens Professor of English, said he sees the Visiting Writers Book Club as an extension of the Visiting Writers Series. “We want to broaden and deepen the reading experiences of local readers,” he said.

Anyone may attend any of the book club meetings. There is no obligation to attend all three. For details about the Visiting Writers Series and the Visiting Writers Series Book Club, contact Brandes at 828-328-7207 or brandes@lrc.edu.