http://ozarkspub.vo.llnwd.net/o37/KSMU/audio/mp3/masterstor_5556.mp3
Gladys Caines Coggswell will share her new book on Sunday as a part of the 21st National African American Read-In Chain. Coggswell is a national touring master storyteller who has gathered her stories for the first time in her new book, Stories from the Heart: Missouri’s African American Heritage. KSMU’s Adam Murphy reports.
This presentation is a part of the 21st African American Read-In Chain which includes several events leading up to a two-day celebration in February. Dr. Grace Jackson-Brown of Missouri State University is chairperson of the Springfield committee that organizes the local events.
“The purpose is to promote reading, and especially to promote African American authors. In Springfield, as well, we want to promote a community of readers, promote community building, and promote the literature of African American authors,” she said.
Master storyteller Coggswell recently published her book, which is a collection of African American family stories and traditional tales compiled over the past two decades. On Sunday from 3-5pm at Meyer Library Auditorium on the MSU campus, Coggswell will present a talk on her new book, and will also be signing copies of her book.
Jackson-Brown believes that storytellers like Coggswell help the African American oral history and literary legacy live on and reach as many people as possible. She hopes participants will be able to draw from Cogswell’s wealth of knowledge and her writing. For KSMU News, I’m Adam Murphy.