Chrysler Building, New York City, 1930

Let’s Talk About It: Picturing America

“Let’s Talk About It: Picturing America” seeks to inspire scholar-led reading and discussion programs that explore themes in the Picturing America collection through classic and contemporary literature. The “Let’s Talk About It” program model was pioneered nationally by ALA in 1982, and has since been adopted and adapted by hundreds of libraries.

When planning a “Let’s Talk About It: Picturing America” program, please consult the Planner’s Guide (PDF) for complete information on program format, as well as tips for establishing goals and objectives, selecting and working with a scholar, targeting your audience, promoting your series, and evaluating the program. The Planner’s Guide has all the information you’ll need to conduct a successful “Let’s Talk About It” series.

To apply for funding to support book purchases, scholar honoraria, and more, consider contacting your state humanities council.

You may use the “Let’s Talk About It” Promotional Materials Generator to help promote your program.

“Let’s Talk About It: Picturing America” reading and discussion programs have been developed for each of the following themes:

• Places in the Heart, which highlights human experience shaped by place;
• Land of Opportunity, which explores the concept and pursuit of the American dream;
• Making Tracks, which focuses on railroads in America;
• The Work of Freedom: Individual and Communal, which explores African American history through literature; and
• Objects of Art, which examines image in American Indian literature.

A thematic description, a central reading list for a five-part discussion series as well as a list of additional recommended reads, a list of related Picturing America images, a thematic essay by the project scholar, and information about the national project scholar has been included for each theme.