Join White Plains Librarian and Fulbright Scholar Barbara Wenglin via Zoom to explore compelling selections from the rich anthology, Stories of Fatherhood, edited by Diana Secker Tesdell (Everyman’s Pocket Classics, c2014).  In varied settings and cultures, the collection gathers more than a century of timeless stories about having, becoming, loving and losing fathers.

A copy of the book is on hold at the Hub/Reference Desk for reading in the Library
with circulating copies available to borrow through the catalog.
Zoom Register Here for full series and attend when you can!

Thursdays from 2:00 – 4:15 p.m.

June 15
Zoom Film Discussion – On Golden Pond (1981-1hr. 45 min.)
~ Acclaimed family drama with 10 Academy Award nominations ~

Aging couple Ethel & Norman return to their summer lake cottage as daughter Chelsea, estranged from her curmudgeon father, visits with her fiancé, leaving his 13-year-old son with her parents for the month.  An unexpected relationship blooms with family dynamics explored and questioned. Starring Oscar winners Katharine Hepburn and Henry Fonda
(in his final film), with Jane Fonda, Dabney Coleman, and Doug McKeon.
Directed by Mark Rydell from Best Adapted Screenplay by Ernest Thompson.

To view before meeting: borrow as DVD or BluRay through the catalog;
also on Kanopy, the Library’s free streaming service, and Amazon Prime Video.

Zoom Meeting ID for all sessions: 880 4100 9482 – Phone in: 1-929-205-6099, no password.
Zoom Register Here or at Hub/Ref Desk in person or by phone – 914-422-1480.
Program made possible with support of the Friends of the Library.
Questions? Contact Barbara –  bwenglin@whiteplainslibrary.org

Past Sessions:

February 16
“My Father’s Tears” by John Updike (2009 – p.327)
When he returns to his working-class hometown for his 55^th high school reunion, Jimmy recalls
his Dad’s emotional and tender reaction to his leaving home years before on the train to Harvard.

March 2
“Bicycles, Muscles, Cigarets” by Raymond Carver (1973 – p.53)
School-boy pranks escalate with fathers behaving badly – and violently – in defense of their sons.

March 23
“A Little Cloud” by James Joyce (p.197)
from his story collection Dubliners (1914) ~ in honor of St. Patrick’s Day
After eight years, “Little Chandler’s” bachelor friend Gallaher returns to Dublin following his
great success as a London journalist, making Chandler examine his own mundane domestic life.

April 20
“The Judgment” by Franz Kafka (1912 – p.219)
Widely read and studied, this dark and complex father-son tale with
a shocking ending is said to have launched the author’s “Kafkaesque” style.
“The Man Who Lost His Father” by William Maxwell (1965 – p.347)
“In his father’s end was his own beginning” thinks the
middle-aged son, warmed by his memories and his father’s overcoat.

May 4
“The Daughters of the Late Colonel” by Katherine Mansfield (1920 – p.235)
Following the death of their strict, controlling father, two aging British spinsters
are unable to agree on decisions about their estate and future plans.

May 18
“The Christening” by D. H. Lawrence (1911 – p.273)
Tensions mount as family members in an English mining town gather for the arrival
of the local minister to baptize the baby of their unwed sister and daughter.
“Anxiety” by Grace Paley (1985 – p.213)
From her window view of a bustling NYC street, an elderly woman yells down
to two dads, disturbed by her perspective of their interaction with their young children.

June 8
“My Oedipus Complex” by Frank O’Connor (1950 – p.37)
With his father away at war, little Larry enjoys the full attention
of his loving Mother — until Dad returns and the new baby arrives.