ONE BOOK • MANY VOICES • STRENGTHENING A COMMUNITY
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ONE BOOK • MANY VOICES • A SHARED EXPERIENCE
WHAT IS THE NEA BIG READ? The National Endowment for the Arts: BIG READ
With the Big Read, we’re bringing Clarion County together to honor veterans and share the stories we carry.
EVENTS YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS
October 8 · Documentary Screening & Live Virtual Q&A
• Watch The War and Peace of Tim O’Brien, with a meaningful conversation with Tim O’Brien and filmmaker Aaron Matthews to follow.
• At Clarion Jr. Sr. Highschool
Doors open at 5:30
October 22 · Building Community: One Story at a Time
• Join a writing workshop and discover what can happen when we share our stories.
• Hosted by Jake Jacobson at Clarion Free Library
Doors open at 5:30
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WHY THE THINGS THEY CARRIED?
MUCH MORE THAN A WAR STORY
MUCH MORE THAN A WAR STORY
MUCH MORE THAN A WAR STORY
The Things They Carried follows a platoon of American soldiers through Vietnam and into the memories that remain long after they return home.
The soldiers carry life-sustaining essentials: food, equipment and weapons—but also grief, fear, love, secrets and memories. Blending fiction with lived experience, Tim O’Brien asks readers to consi
The Things They Carried follows a platoon of American soldiers through Vietnam and into the memories that remain long after they return home.
The soldiers carry life-sustaining essentials: food, equipment and weapons—but also grief, fear, love, secrets and memories. Blending fiction with lived experience, Tim O’Brien asks readers to consider how stories are remembered, retold and used to search for truth.
WHAT DO WE CARRY FORWARD?
MUCH MORE THAN A WAR STORY
MUCH MORE THAN A WAR STORY
We carry stories of service, sacrifice, and homecoming. We carry memories preserved in letters, photographs, and family conversations—and stories that may never have been told aloud.
Through The Things They Carried, we’re taking time to honor our veterans and recognize the many things they may carry long after their service ends. As we ex
We carry stories of service, sacrifice, and homecoming. We carry memories preserved in letters, photographs, and family conversations—and stories that may never have been told aloud.
Through The Things They Carried, we’re taking time to honor our veterans and recognize the many things they may carry long after their service ends. As we explore Clarion County’s history and share stories of our own, we can reflect on what has shaped us and what we choose to carry forward together.
ASK TIM YOUR QUESTIONS ABOU THE BOOK — THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8TH
Join us for a live virtual conversation with Tim O’Brien and filmmaker Aaron Matthews.
Vietnam veteran and National Book Award–winning author Tim O’Brien is one of America’s most influential literary voices. His landmark work, The Things They Carried, blends fiction and lived experience to explore war, memory, truth and the lasting emotional burdens carried by soldiers and their families.
After stepping away from writing for nearly two decades to raise his two sons, O’Brien returns to writing—confronting his own experiences in Vietnam and reflecting on a nation still engaged in war.
The War and Peace of Tim O’Brien follows this deeply personal journey, revealing the connections among duty, art, fatherhood and the trauma of war. Along the way, the documentary asks enduring questions: What makes a war worth fighting? What responsibilities do citizens carry? How do we tell the truth about war—and what do individuals, families and communities carry forward?
WATCH THE TRAILER
Then join us on THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8 for a FREE COMMUNITY SCREENING followed by a LIVE VIRTUAL CONVERSATION with Tim O’Brien and director Aaron Matthews.
BUILDING COMMUNITY: ONE STORY AT A TIME
Join Jake Jacobson, story-telling consultant, for a welcoming, interactive writing workshop about the stories that shape us and connect our community.
REFLECT ON THE BOOK
Explore the memories and emotions The Things They Carried brings to mind. You’re welcome even if you haven’t read it.
FIND YOUR STORY
Discover an experience, memory, or moment you’d like to put into words.
CONNECT THROUGH STORIES
See how the stories that shape each of us can bring our community closer.