Author to speak about Sept. 11
By Crystal Forester
Staff Reporter

America is part of the world of horror, and it is not separated from anyplace else by oceans, author Gail Sheehy said Monday.

“There is a ‘new normal’ for Americans after the post 9/11 world,” Sheehy said. “After the worst happens, people have to put their lives back together to find hope again.”

Sheehy will be the guest speaker at the Fogelson Honors Forum at 8 p.m. Wednesday in Ed Landreth Hall, said Peggy Watson, Honors Program director. The lecture is free, but space will be limited.

Sheehy’s book, “Middletown, America: One Town’s Passage from Trauma to Hope,” is about the journey people made through life after Sept. 11. She said she lived with, observed and interviewed over 900 people in Middletown, N. J., for her book.

Heath Coffman, Fogelson Honors Forum coordinator, said the Honors Program wanted students to understand the aftermath of Sept. 11.

“Through a small town, we can find out how 9/11 affected the whole country,” Coffman said.

It was a good time to bring Sheehy to campus because Sept. 11 recently had its two-year anniversary, Coffman said.

“(Sept. 11) translates into all our lives because it affected all of us whether we’re in Fort Worth or Middletown, N. J.,” he said.

Sheehy’s publicity agent told the Honors Program she would have a book coming out this year and would be a good speaker, said Alison Trinkle, assistant to the Honors Program director.

“We’re excited she is taking the time out of her schedule to come to our campus,” Coffman said. “We’ve had her booked to come talk for almost a year.”

Sheehy made history with “Passages,” because it remained on The New York Times Bests Seller List for more than three years and appeared in 28 languages. “Passages” was also named one of the 10 most influential books of our time by a Library of Congress survey.

Sheehy has won the New York Newswomen’s Club Front Page Award for distinguished journalism seven times and also received awards, including the National Magazine Award, the Penny-Missouri Journalism Award and the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award in Race Relations.

She helped found the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children and also directs the Sheehy Writing Scholars Community for nontraditional students at the University of California, Berkeley.