St. Bonaventure University has selected “Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen” by Jose Antonio Vargas as its All Bonaventure Reads (ABR) book for 2019-2020.
“Dear America” tells the story of Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas and his journey through life as an undocumented immigrant in the United States. With passion and ambition, Vargas expresses what it means to be an illegal citizen in a time where fear for being deported is at its highest.
The book also allows readers to stand in Vargas’ shoes and understand life’s biggest difficulties when becoming a legal citizen is no longer an option.
As part of the All Bonaventure Reads initiative, first-year students at St. Bonaventure will receive a copy of “Dear America” during Orientation and be asked to read the book and write an essay reflecting on it as their first college assignment. Students will be engaged in conversations about the book’s themes in their first-year seminar course, SBU 101, and various campuswide events during the upcoming academic year.
Previous ABR Selections
2018: "Educated" by Tara Westover
2017: “Nobody” by Marc Lamont Hill
2016: “The Boys in the Bunkhouse” by Dan Barry
2015: “Just Mercy” by Bryan Stevenson
2014: “The Promise of a Pencil” by Adam Braun
2013: “Full Body Burden” by Kristen Iversen
2012: “In the Sanctuary of Outcasts” by Neil White
2011: “Little Princes” by Conor Grennan
2010: “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skloot
2009: “Listening is an Act of Love” edited by David Isay
2008: “Left to Tell” by Immaculee Ilibagiza
2007: “Fast Food Nation” by Eric Schlosser
2006: “A Hope in the Unseen” by Ron Suskind