Susie Anderson
Staff Writer
In a week themed “Past Informs Present: How to Harness History,” young readers will explore history to learn about their present and future in a story about life during an epidemic and a celebration of a young girl’s heritage.
The CLSC Young Readers program will feature Mindy Nichols Wendell’s Light and Air and Cynthia Leitich Smith’s Jingle Dancer at 12:15 p.m. today on the porch of the Literary Arts Center at Alumni Hall.
Community members Amber Sipior and Margaret Edwards will lead the discussion.
Light and Air situates young readers in 1935 at the height of the tuberculosis epidemic as Halle and her mother are sent to the J.N. Adam Tuberculosis Hospital. Tucked away in the woods of upstate New York, they are far from home and the rest of the world.
However, it is not a prison. Halle finds that, freed from her difficult father, she discovers the healing power of the children’s ward. When her mother suffers a hemorrhage, the future comes into question. In a tender glimpse into life during an epidemic, the book can situate the COVID-19 pandemic in broader terms for young readers.
“It provides context for the tuberculosis epidemic and can help kids, young readers, understand or explore their own experiences of the (COVID-19) pandemic in different ways,” said Stephine Hunt, managing director of literary arts.
Because Wendell is a local author, the setting of her story feels natural to Chautauqua readers as it grounds itself in a familiar landscape. Beyond local familiarity and a well-researched story, Light and Air introduces the tensions of disparate treatment for people with illnesses.
“Its a really imperative look at how we deal with illness in our communities and how we can demonize humans that have particular illnesses and how overcoming that is important,” Hunt said.
Early Readers will turn to a familiar favorite in Week Nine with author Cynthia Leitich Smith’s Jingle Dancer. Smith was featured in the Kwame Alexander’s Writers’ Lab & Conference in Chautauqua in 2024.
Jingle Dancer, written by Smith and illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu, follows Jenna, a young Muscogee girl daydreaming of joining her grandmother’s tradition of jingle dancing. She seeks jingles from her family in a story of community and culture to join in the powwow.
“It’s a beautiful look at how these historical ceremonies and traditions get carried forward in Native American communities today,” Hunt said.
In a recognition and celebration of the ceremony, the story connects readers to sound, music and culture through Jenna’s eyes.
“It’s a family and larger community narrative because the jingle dress — as a tradition — connects generations of women and dancers and narratives of hope in hard times,” Hunt said.
Following the discussion of Light and Air and Jingle Dancer, young readers are welcome to join in a Play CHQ event on the lawn of Alumni Hall.
