Event Date: June 13, 2019

Summer Read Launches Conversation on Mental Health with A Mother’s Reckoning

Now in its seventh year, The Transforming Health Summer Read project is proud to announce 2019’s selection–A Mother’s Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold, mother of Dylan Klebold, who was one of the two Columbine High School shooters. The book was chosen to raise awareness about mental health and the need for increased access to care and resources. Klebold uses the Columbine Tragedy as a launch point to directly address mental health issues head on. Proceeds from the sale of her book are donated to mental health organizations. She herself has struggled with what she refers to as “brain health”. Mental health touches us all and the book gets right to the heart of many mental health issues and challenges our society is grappling with today.

We invite you join this very important community conversation.

All summer long readers throughout Central Pennsylvania are encouraged to check the book out from their local library and talk about it with friends, family, coworkers, book discussion groups and beyond. We have over ten participating library systems in nine counties. This year, 650 copies of A Mother’s Reckoning will be made available in the community. The Summer Read project is a unique community partnership of WITF’s Transforming Health, Aligning Forces for Quality- South Central PA and Central PA library systems with additional support from WellSpan Health and Capital BlueCross.

This year’s selection is an extension of Transforming Health’s Through the Cracks series– an exploration of mental health services in the commonwealth. Both data-driven and deeply personal, the series aims to spark conversations, question policymakers and health care leaders, and result in measurable improvements for those who need help. This series is a collaboration between Transforming Health and PA Post.

In A Mother’s Reckoning, Sue Klebold chronicles with unflinching honesty her journey as a mother trying to come to terms with the incomprehensible. In the hope that the insights and understanding she gained may help other families recognize when a child is in distress, she tells her story in full, drawing upon her personal journals, the videos and writings that Dylan left behind, and on countless interviews with mental health experts. Filled with hard-won wisdom and compassion, A Mother’s Reckoning is a powerful and haunting book that sheds light on one of the most pressing issues of our time.

After reading the book, use this discussion guide to continue the conversation with other readers, and complete the survey to enter for a chance to win a copy of the book, a private signing with Sue Klebold and the opportunity to hear her speak on Monday, September 16, 2019. Entries must be submitted online or to your participating library by August 31, 2019.

Visit any of the following libraries to borrow the book and complete the survey. Surveys are also available online.

The Summer Read project partners respect and welcome the views of all community stakeholders in these important issues. Read our FAQ on how and why this book was chosen.

Summer Read Launches Conversation on Mental Health with A Mother’s Reckoning

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