Ohio honoring Toni Morrison with series

FINDLAY — Ohio is coming together to celebrate literature, American history and Ohio itself in the yearlong event Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison. Born Feb. 18, 1931 in Lorain, Morrison was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993, five years after winning the Pulitzer Prize for her novel "Beloved." She was the author of 11 novels along with short fiction, essays, children's books, poetry and plays, as well as an acclaimed teacher and book editor. She died in 2019. Literary Cleveland has organized the yearlong celebration, along with Ohio Humanities, Ohioana Library Association and the Toni Morrison Society. The event's goals, according to its website, include building connections among literary, cultural and community organizations and encouraging Ohioans "to think, read, write and talk about the themes in Morrison's work: history and memory, race and racism, trauma and violence, motherhood and home, beauty and love." That's along with simply honoring "a legendary Ohioan." The website features a quote from Morrison: "In my work, no matter where it's set … the imaginative process always starts right here on the lip of Lake Erie." Her debut novel, "The Bluest Eye," is about Lorain, while her most acclaimed work, "Beloved," is set in Cincinnati. Another novel, "Sula," takes place in the fictional Medallion, Ohio. The celebration events include a yearlong virtual book club in which participants will discuss Morrison's novels in chronological order according to when they take place, from "A Mercy," set in the 1680s, through "God Help the Child," set in the 2000s. "This way we can follow Morrison's journey through time, learn about historical context along the way, and reflect on our struggle to become a more perfect union," states the website. Britt Lovett, project manager for Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison, said the idea is to tell America's history through Morrison's lens. "People say that reading Toni Morrison's challenging. I really want to say, reading Toni Morrison challenges you," Lovett said. It changes you, as well. Lovett has read six of Morrison's novels so far, "and I am not the same person. So what happens if all of us commit to one book?" Reading literature can also foster dialogue and encourage us to become better people, she said. During a difficult time for many Americans, "how can we start to build trust, have that dialogue?" Organizers had been planning the event prior to the November 2024 presidential election, Lovett said, and those plans initially looked a little different. Funding cuts have affected the humanities in Ohio, she said, among many other things that have changed. Lovett referenced one of Morrison's most famous quotes: "This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal." And so, Lovett said, Ohioans can together take a journey through literature, and think, "How can we use this experience to help us build what's next?" She added that some readers might find Morrison's work "intimidating" and "that's OK." A reader not ready to commit to the book club might start with some of Morrison's essays, or become familiar with interviews. The project organizers are creating reading guides for her work, and there are podcast discussions out there to listen to. Both Audible and Libro.fm offer audiobook editions of Morrison reading her own novels. The goal is "something for everybody," Lovett said. "It's community, from wherever you are," she said. Christine Denecker was named the University of Findlay's vice president of academic affairs in January, but has spent most of her career as a UF English professor. While not a scholar of Morrison specifically, she has taught the Morrison essay "The Site of Memory." The essay explores how, when you focus on a memory or image, "it helps you unlock a truth from your past," Denecker said. A certain image might take you back to a moment with your grandmother, for example. Part of what Morrison is saying in the essay is that "there is truth, or reality, in pieces of fiction," Denecker said. Morrison uses the image of the Mississippi River, exploring how memory overflows the "banks" and cannot be contained within them, Denecker said. "All water has a perfect memory and is forever trying to get back to where it was," Morrison wrote. "Writers are like that: remembering where we were, what valley we ran through, what the banks were like, the light that was there and the route back to our original place." Denecker pointed out that three individuals might have three differing memories of the same thing. "But there's some truth that weaves through all of it, right?" Denecker added that reading the Nobel laureate's exploration of what spurred her to write got her UF students thinking about their own writing process. "Literature is — it's a place to step into a world and examine ideas, maybe in a way we wouldn't feel comfortable doing in real life," Denecker said. She said Morrison's work explores racism, sexism and class exploitation in lyrical ways. "Her works have been described as both political and beautiful, like she merges the two," she said. Denecker noted that Lorain was a hub for abolitionism in the 19th century. "You can see how that had so much effect on her writing," she said. The virtual book club will take place from 7-8:30 p.m. on the last Sunday of each month on Zoom. While initially created as an Ohio celebration, it's open to participants from anywhere. "You also have to understand that it's centering the Black American experience," Lovett said. This means there may be cultural references not all readers will get immediately. Lovett recalled asking about a reference to a type of medicine in one of the books, which was new to her but immediately familiar to her grandmother. She added that anyone is welcome to listen to the book club discussion, even if they haven't read the book. Penguin Random House is releasing new editions of Morrison's books this year with updated forewords. Two of the Zoom book clubs will feature authors of these forewords as special guests: author Honorée Fanonne Jeffers on "Beloved" in April and author Tayari Jones on "Song of Solomon" in September. A wide range of in-person events are planned throughout the state. Among them is "After the War: Black Veterans and Morrison," a community discussion and writing workshop on April 4 in Columbus. It will explore war and the Black veteran experience in Morrison's novels. "Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison: Black Masculinity in Her Fiction" is a hybrid event in which Dr. Jocelyn L. Brown's students at Ohio University will examine Black male characters from Morrison's novels through literary analysis and peer-reviewed scholarship, focusing on masculinity, power, vulnerability and memory. Participants can attend via Microsoft Teams or in person in Athens on April 23. Lovett encouraged anyone interested in creating a new event to connect with her via email. "Don't plan in isolation," she said. "Reach out." A full schedule of events, along with contact information and background information, can be found at https://ohiocelebratestonimorrison.org.