Thursday, February 23, 2017

Author Kristen Green speaks at Reynolds



It was practically standing room only last Thursday evening when local award-winning author Kristen Green discussed her book, Something Must be Done about Prince Edward County.   



Her book tells the story of a Virginia community that defied the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling.  When ordered by a Federal Court to desegregate the public schools in 1959, white leaders in Prince Edward County instead chose to close them.  The public schools would remain shut for five years, depriving hundreds of black children – and some white children – of an education.

The author, who grew up in Prince Edward County, shared how she explored her own past while researching her book.  Attendees at the book event reported feeling inspired by Ms. Green’s talk, learning something about a painful side of Virginia’s past as she mixed history and current events.  At the conclusion of the program, a long line formed in the lobby to get copies of the book autographed.



Prior to her talk in Lipman Auditorium, selected students from the Advance College Academy and their teachers, along with students from a variety of Reynolds’ classes, had a chance to dine with the author and ask questions that they had prepared based on their reading of Green’s book.