"Book Club in a Box" at NEHMA Focuses on Sensitive Topic of Teen Suicide with Book "Dear Evan Hansen"

PBS Utah’s “Book Club in a Box” at NEHMA Focuses on Sensitive Topic of Teen Suicide with Book “Dear Evan Hansen”

The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art (NEHMA) at Utah State University presents a second series of “Book Club in a Box” in partnership with PBS Utah. “Book Club in a Box” pairs a novel with a PBS or KUED documentary on different topics each month. Every second Thursday of the month, NEHMA hosts a discussion of the book and film with local scholars and faculty, also including a discussion of related artwork from the museum’s collection. 

January’s “Book Club in a Box” takes place Thursday, Jan. 9, from 5 to 7 p.m., and focuses on the sensitive, yet pressing issue of teen suicide — both contributing factors and hope for prevention. The selected book is Dear Evan Hansen, the bestselling young adult novel based on the hit Broadway show. The featured documentary is Hope Lives: Preventing Teen Suicide, a look at the impact of students supporting one another. To stream the full 60-minute film in advance, visit kued.org/hopelives.

The event is free and open to all — no sign-up required. Light refreshments will be served. Read the book and come ready to share your thoughts, or watch the documentary at NEHMA and enjoy the book later. Although certainly helpful, reading the book isn’t required to participate in “Book Club in a Box” events.

Psychologist Jan Linsonbee will be present to facilitate the book discussion. Davey Davis, film program manager at the Utah Film Center, will lead the film discussion. And Bolton Colburn, NEHMA curator of collections and exhibitions, will lead the art discussion.

“Book Club in a Box” will continue monthly through April 2020. The following is a list of information about future book clubs:

February 13
Book: Coming of Age in Mississippi by Anne Moody; KUED Documentary: Utah’s Freedom Riders
Book discussion led by: Scott Bushman, program coordinator and past-president of the Cache Valley Historical Society 
Documentary discussion led by: Nancy Green, KUED producer
Art discussion led by: Paul Crumbly, English professor, USU College of Humanities and Social Sciences 

March 12
Book: Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat; PBS Documentary: Inside Animal Minds
Book and documentary discussion led by: Rob Carney, PBS Utah “Book Club in a Box” contributor, author, and professor of English and literature at Utah Valley University
Art discussion led by: Bolton Colburn, NEHMA curator of collections and exhibitions 

April 9
Book: Cheyenne Again by Eve Bunting; KUED Documentary: Unspoken  
Book discussion led by: Alina Begay, program coordinator, Multicultural Students — USU Inclusion Center 
Documentary discussion led by: John Cole, KUED filmmaker, producer
Art discussion led by: Katie Lee-Koven, NEHMA executive director and chief curator 

For more information about “Book Club in a Box,” contact Teri Guy at NEHMA at teri.guy@usu.edu or 435-797-7239. Visit artmuseum.usu.edu to stay up to date on future museum events.