Local author Tiffany Midge’s memoir makes Spokane Is Reading list

In place of its usual community book events, Spokane Is Reading has released “Diverse Voices,” a list of reading suggestions for 2020, “which reflects the rich tapestry of the American experience. Read one. Read several. Or read them all,” the organization’s website reads.

In addition to nationally renowned works by Ta-Nehasi Coates, James Baldwin, Tommy Orange and Roxane Gay, the list also includes local author Tiffany Midge’s memoir, “Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese’s.” The work covers Midge’s life, politics and her identity as a Native woman in America. Midge is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.

Midge said that she was especially grateful to be included on the list because it is a list compiled by librarians.

“Librarians mean the world to me. Their opinions count,” Midge said. “I couldn’t be more thrilled.”

In addition to her delight in the diversity of authors on the list, Midge also highlighted the “compelling and entertaining stories.”

“I read to have a window into other lives different from my own, apart from my own experience, and while I’m interested in being educated, probably the main reason that I read is to get lost in stories, carried away,” Midge said.

The Spokane Is Reading committee, chaired by representatives from the Spokane County Library District, Spokane Public Library and Auntie’s Bookstore, had a series of long discussions about what 2020 would look like and what kinds of books readers would be motivated to read in present circumstances.

“Based on the demand we were having at Auntie’s and the libraries, we knew readers were eager for a list like the one we’ve curated,” Andrea Swanson, the Auntie’s representative on the Spokane Is Reading committee, said.

The committee passes author and book request surveys out every year during literary events. And, every year, there are a number of requests to feature local authors.

“We are lucky to have so many amazing writers in our region, and ‘Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese’s’ is loved by so many between the Auntie’s staff and the Spokane Is Reading committee,” Swanson said. “Including ( Midge) on our list was a no-brainer.”

For information on Tiffany Midge’s “Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese’s” and Spokane Is Reading’s other recommendations, visit spokaneisreading.org.