Author alum Cynthia Yoder to present Goshen College book reading Feb. 24

 

GOSHEN, Ind. -- Author and 1989 Goshen College graduate Cynthia Yoder will read from and discuss the writing of her newly published memoir, "Crazy Quilt: Pieces of a Mennonite Life" Feb. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Rieth Recital Hall. The event is free and open to the public.

"Crazy Quilt: Pieces of a Mennonite Life" depicts the author's spiritual journey back to her Pennsylvania Dutch Mennonite roots. At age 26 and grappling with depression, Yoder leaves her husband of two years and their life in New York City to embark on a search for meaning that will take her to a rural hill in Eastern Pennsylvania. As she collects stories from her aging grandparents, Henry and Betts Yoder, and hears how they've grappled with their own losses, the young author begins to understand what she needs to do to save herself -- and her marriage. "Crazy Quilt: Pieces of a Mennonite Life," with its stories, diary entries, old photographs and recipes is as much about heritage as it is about the power of love that transcends human limits.

Yoder studied literature at Columbia University and earned a master's degree in fiction writing from Sarah Lawrence College in 1999. Yoder has created communities around writing, most notably the "All Night Reading of Dante's Inferno by New York Poets and Writers," which she started at New York's Cathedral of St. John the Divine in 1993. The reading, held annually, has included such luminaries as Susan Sontag and Robert Pinsky.

 

Yoder's creative nonfiction and poetry have appeared in literary publications such as "Parabola," "The Cortland Review" and "Lumina," and she has given poetry readings in New York City and in Princeton, N.J. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, Jonathan Shenk, and their son Gabriel.

A reception and book signing will follow the book reading. The event is co-sponsored by the Goshen College English, communication and history departments.

Goshen College, established in 1894, is a four-year residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college's Christ-centered core values -- passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership -- prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron's Best Buys in Education, Kaplan's "Most Interesting Colleges" guide and U.S.News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" edition, which named Goshen a "least debt college." Visit https://www.goshen.edu/.

Editors: For more information, contact Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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