Part of the fun of reading a book is talking about it afterwards. There are many ways to do this– you can discuss the book with friends, join the comment section of a social media account that is talking about it, or join an in-person book club in your community. Long Island Reads is an organization that gives people this opportunity.

Long Island Reads, an initiative that started in 2002, focuses on bringing readers from Nassau and Suffolk County together to discuss a book and participate in library-sponsored activities and events associated with it. Long Island Reads aims to choose titles that have direct connections to Long Island that will then lend itself to related programs. They also aim to meet the needs of the libraries and their readers.

This year’s selection is Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World by Christian Cooper. Cooper in 2020, was involved with an argument with a white woman that made headlines around the country. Mrs. Cooper, not related to the author, was letting her dog roam free and Cooper asked her to leash her dog. As the situation escalated, Mrs. Cooper called 9-1-1 accusing Cooper of recording her and her dog. He uses his book to tell his story of his life that helped him show “how a life spent looking up at the birds prepared him, in the most uncanny of ways, to be a gay, Black man in America today.” His lifelong hobby has helped him navigate the world as a gay, Black man. 

If you read the book and want to learn more about the author, Long Island Reads will be honoring him at a ceremony at the Plainview-Old Bethpage Public Library on April 21, 2024, at 2 pm. Tickets are free and available beginning April 1. You can choose to attend in person, or via Zoom.

This book is available in the Central Islip Public Library (Mon-Wed: 9:30am – 9:00pm; Friday and Saturday: 9:30am-5pm, and Sunday 1pm-5pm). Click here for more information.