Author Talk with Kevin Jennings on Tuesday, June 6 at 7pm in the Kingsley Room of the Southbury Public Library
Join us Southbury author Kevin Jennings discusses his memoir, Mama's Boy, Preacher's Son, which serves as both a riveting personal story and an inside account of a critical chapter in the LGBT movement. Mama's Boy, Preacher's Son addresses themes of religion, family, and sexuality and earned an A- in Entertainment Weekly, was featured in Salon and The Advocate, and was called "a great read" by People.
Light refreshments will be provided by the Friends of the Southbury Public Library. This program is free to attend. Please register by calling 203-262-0626 ext. 130.
About the book:
Growing up poor in the South, Kevin Jennings learned a lot of things, especially about how to be a real man. When his father, a fundamentalist preacher, dropped dead at Kevin's eighth birthday party, Kevin already knew he wasn't supposed to cry. He also knew there was no salvation for homosexuals, who weren't "real men"-or Christians, for that matter. Jennings found his salvation in school, inspired by his mother. He ultimately earned a scholarship to Harvard and there learned about history and literature and that it was possible to live openly as a gay man. When Jennings discovered his vocation as a teacher and returned to high school to teach, he was forced back into the closet. In seeing teachers and students struggling with their sexual orientation and desperately trying to hide their identity, Jennings was inspired to come out and ultimately work towards making schools safer for all students. After covering Jennings' childhood through teaching career, Mama's Boy, Preacher's Son addresses Jennings' role in helping students create the first GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) in the country and his founding of GLSEN- the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network). Kevin Jennings' poignant, razor-sharp memoir closes with a touching homage to his hard working, self-educated mother.