Cuesta CollegeCuesta College’s Book of the Year program for 2016 is set to kick off in November. This year’s book is bestselling novel The Barbarian Nurseries, which explores the theme of being an immigrant in the U.S. today. Pulitzer Prize winning L.A. Times journalist and author Héctor Tobar will discuss the novel on Cuesta College’s San Luis Obispo Campus on March 15, 2016. Nurseries tells the story of a live-in Hispanic maid in Southern California who encounters a bizarre chain of events involving her mixed race employers that stirs up painful social, racial and class conflicts.

The 2016 program begins on November 13, with a reception and fundraiser at HumanKind Fair Trade, located at 982 Monterey Street in San Luis Obispo, from 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. HumanKind is a non-profit retail store providing fair income to artisans in the developing world by selling their fair trade products locally.

“We are excited for the community to come out and learn about this year’s Book of the Year program and novel, meet some great local organizations working on the issues of immigration and citizenship, enjoy wine and cheese, and do some holiday shopping at the same time,” said Book of the Year Program Committee Chair and Cuesta College Librarian Carina Love. Proceeds of the event will benefit the Book of the Year Program.

Now in its eighth year, the annual Book of the Year Program includes workshops, book discussions, and other activities leading up to the author talk event and book signing with Tobar in March 2016. A calendar will be released in January 2016 detailing the program events.

This year, the program will also benefit Edúcate- Sí, Se Puede, the college’s annual conference held to support local Latino/a youth. This year’s conference will take place on March 18; interested participating students will read The Barbarian Nurseries and have the opportunity to meet Tobar.

Tobar’s presentation in March 2016 will be open to the public and held in Cuesta College’s Cultural and Performing Arts Center (CPAC). Tickets will go on sale February 1, 2016, and be available for purchase online at www.cpactickets.cuesta.edu or by calling (805) 546-3198. General admission is $5.00; students and veterans are free with reservation by calling (805) 546-3190.

The Book of the Year Program is a project of Cuesta College’s Academic Senate in partnership with San Luis Obispo County Public Library SLO Reads. For more information, please visit library.cuesta.edu/book/, follow the Book of the Year program on Facebook and Twitter or contact Carina Love at clove@cuesta.edu.