The Big Read
Berkeley is reading Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
What is The Big Read?
The Big Read gives Berkeley an opportunity to read Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston. The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to encourage reading for pleasure.
How do you join The Big Read?
- Read the book.
- See the movie.
- Use these questions to jump start your bookclub discussion.
- Come to a Big Read event. Download a copy of the the events calendar.
About Their Eyes Were Watching God
"The wind came back with triple fury, and put out the light for the last time....They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God."
- Read a plot summary and learn the historical context of the book.
About Zora Neale Hurston
- African American Literature Book Club
- Alice Walker talks about Zora Neale Hurston - at Barnard College
- Library of Congress American Memory
- The Official Zora Neale Hurston Website
- Zora Neale Hurston Digital Archive
- Zora Neale Hurston Festival
Resources available from the Berkeley Public Library
- Check our catalog for books about Hurston
- Check our catalog for books by Hurston
- Search our catalog for Jazz Age and the Harlem Renaissance
- Oxford African American Studies Center [requires library card]
- Black Thought and Culture [requires library card]
The Harlem Renaissance
- Guide to Harlem Renaissance Materials at the Library of Congress
- Rhapsodies in Black: Art of the Harlem Renaissance
- Perspectives in American Literature: Chapter 9: the Harlem Renaissance
- Harlem: Mecca of the New Negro - a hypermedia Edition of the March 1925 Survey Graphic Harlem Number
- Harlem 1900-1940 An African-American Community
- Harlem Renaissance Core Collection of Books - a bibliography from District of Columbia Pubilc Library
The Big Read Frequently Asked Questions
This event is part of The Big Read, an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest.