 Common Reading Convocation
Keynote Speaker
Tracy Kidder,
Pulitzer Prize-winning author of
Mountains Beyond Mountains
September 14, 2009, 7:00 p.m.,
Brubaker Auditorium, Eisenhower Campus Center
Tracy Kidder will deliver the first keynote lecture of the Centennial year, sharing his
experience researching and writing Mountains Beyond Mountains, the common reading
book for Messiah’s first-year students. Over his long career, which includes a Pulitzer
Prize and a National Book Club Award, Kidder’s writing has been prolific and outstanding.
His enormously influential book, Mountains Beyond Mountains, captures two global
health crises, tuberculosis and AIDS, through the eyes of a single-minded physician
bent on improving the health of some of the poorest people on the planet. The story of
Dr. Paul Farmer, a major force in revolutionizing international health, is a gripping and
inspiring account of one man’s efforts to establish clinics and hospitals — his compassion
for the poor, his inner circle of true believers and, ultimately, his success in helping stem
the tide of new HIV and TB infections in Haiti.
“I’m a little suspicious of the great, overarching view. It always leaves something out.
What interests me is trying to catch the reflection of the human being on the page.
I’m interested in how ordinary people live their lives.”— Tracy Kidder
Immediately following the lecture, audience members are invited to attend a reception and
book signing by Mr. Kidder in the Larsen Student Union.
This event is open to the public. Seating is by ticket only; no charge. Tickets available beginning August 17 through the Messiah College Ticket
Office, (717) 691-6036.
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