About this Event
Join us for an inspiring conversation with peace-builder Betsy Small as she presents her book, Before Before: A Story of Discovery and Loss on Friday, April 11th at 6:00 PM at our Colfax location!
Registration includes the following options:
- A signed copy of the book … OR
- A $5 Gift Card to Tattered Cover Book Store
We will have additional books for guests to purchase in store!
If you are unable to attend the event after purchasing a ticket, you are required to pick up your copy of the book (with proof of purchase from your event registration) within 7 days after the event date. If the book is not picked up by that date, you relinquish your copy to Tattered Cover Book Store.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Sierra Leone is often sensationalized as a place of extreme violence and suffering—of blood diamonds, child soldiers, war amputations, and Ebola and now the highly addictive drug Kush. Before Before captures daily life in a different country, one Betsy Small first encountered as a Peace Corps worker between 1984-1987, and then rediscovered when she returned decades later with her daughter.
Living in Tokpombu, a remote community of forty rice-farming families, the author faced struggles that changed her forever and witnessed the growing tensions in this rainforest village—between the young and old, between the traditions of oral history and honoring the ancestors valued by the elders and the siren call of the illicit diamond mines faced by the youth.
Before Before offers a rare portrait of everyday people, with particular focus on the lives of women and girls, before the brutal war of 1991 tore the country apart. Through Small’s account of immersion in another world as she witnessed injustice and was welcomed as a friend, readers are invited to explore the shared ground of our humanity.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Betsy Small served in the Peace Corps in Sierra Leone (1984-1987). For over three decades, she has worked with divided communities in the U.S. and abroad, which inspired her to write Before Before: A Story of Discovery and Loss in Sierra Leone. Betsy holds masters degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University and North Carolina Central University. Throughout her career, she has been a teacher and counselor for families and youth in various settings. More recently, she has served as Executive Director for Creating Friendships for Peace collaborating with teams of peacebuilders in Israel, Palestine, Cyprus, and communities in Northern Ireland.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Tattered Cover Colfax, 2526 East Colfax Avenue, Denver, United States
USD 7.25 to USD 24.96
