Real Lit[erature] — UW Tacoma’s fiction based book club co-created by the UW Tacoma Library and the Center for Equity and Inclusion — is back for Spring 2019, and you won’t want to miss it.  The book we’re going to be reading is about clinical depression, being the child of immigrants, finding a sense of belonging, and negotiating your identity and feelings.

To sign up, please click here!

As always, all are welcome: staff, students, faculty.  Students will receive a free copy of the book on a first come, first serve basis.

Darius the Great is Not Okay is winning all sorts of awards, and is a gentle, beautiful, and honest book. Here’s a bit about our selection.

Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He’s a Fractional Persian—half, his mom’s side—and his first-ever trip to Iran is about to change his life.

Darius has never really fit in at home in Portland, and he just knows things are going to be the same in Iran. His clinical depression doesn’t exactly help matters, and trying to explain his medication to his grandparents only makes things harder. Then Darius meets Sohrab, the boy next door, and everything changes. Sohrab introduces Darius to all of his favorite things—mint syrup and the soccer field and a secret rooftop overlooking the city’s skyline. He gets Darius an Iranian National Football Team jersey that makes him feel like a True Persian for the first time. And he understands that sometimes, friends don’t have to talk. Sohrab calls him Darioush–the original Persian version of his name—and Darius has never felt more like himself than he does now that he’s Darioush to Sohrab.

We will be bringing in folks from the Student Counseling Center to help frame our discussion around mental health , as well as finding ways to overcome the stigma attached to mental illness.

And stay tuned about skyping with the author, as we have in the past!

To sign up for the Real Lit Book Club, please click here!

Please know that we have resources on campus if you are experiencing depression or anxiety.

It is common for students to experience times when they feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities of college, work, family, and relationships. The Student Counseling Center is here to help students cope with stresses and personal issues that can interfere with their ability to perform in school.