Book a Trip Abroad, no passport required! Travel the world through books. Join us on the fourth Tuesday of every month as we read books from different countries across the globe. January's selection is The Great Divide by Cristina Henríquez. Read below for a brief summary:

A powerful novel about the construction of the Panama Canal, casting light on the unsung people who lived, loved, and labored there. It is said that the canal will be the greatest feat of engineering in history. But first, it must be built. For Francisco, a local fisherman who resents the foreign powers clamoring for a slice of his country, nothing is more upsetting than the decision of his son, Omar, to work as a digger in the excavation zone. But for Omar, whose upbringing was quiet and lonely, this job offers a chance to finally find connection. Ada Bunting is a bold sixteen-year-old from Barbados who arrives in Panama as a stowaway alongside thousands of other West Indians seeking work. Alone and with no resources, she is determined to find a job that will earn enough money for her ailing sister’s surgery. Searing and empathetic, The Great Divide explores the intersecting lives of activists, fishmongers, laborers, journalists, neighbors, doctors, and soothsayers—those rarely acknowledged by history even as they carved out its course.

Copies of the book will be available for pickup at the Beech Street Center (266 Beech Street Belmont). Questions? Email Logan at lmanchester@minlib.net.