Ask a Bookseller: ‘Read This When Things Fall Apart,’ edited by Kelly Hayes

About this episode

The episode features Makkah Abdur Salaam discussing the book 'Read This When Things Fall Apart' and its relevance to current social issues.

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. More than 10 weeks after the federal immigration enforcement surge began in Minnesota, Border Czar Tom Homan announced this week that federal agents would be drawing down and Operation Metro Surge was coming to an end, though he stressed that immigration enforcement would continue. In that environment, Minnesota’s indie bookstores remain a source of books for those seeking both to understand what’s happening in this country and to escape from it. For those who are leaning in, Makkah Abdur Salaam of Black Garnet Books in St. Paul recommends a collection of down-to-earth letters designed to meet you where you are. It’s called “Read This When Things Fall Apart: Letters to Activists in Crisis,” edited by Kelly Hayes. The letters come from contemporary activists and writers from all walks of life whose work focuses on a variety of issues. The letters are titled to help you find what you need in the moment. There are titles like “Read this if someone you loved has killed themselves or wants to, and maybe you want to, but you also…

People in this episode

Guest: Makkah Abdur Salaam

Topics covered

• immigration enforcement
• activism
• independent bookstores
• mental health
• sustainable activism

Keywords

• activism
• letters
• Minnesota
• independent bookstores
• mental health
• sustainable activism

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Black Garnet Books

Books & works: Read This When Things Fall Apart: Letters to Activists in Crisis

Places: Minnesota, St. Paul

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