Skip to content

Library News

2026 Reading Challenge: March Recap and April Preview

Congratulations to everyone who completed the third month of the 2026 Reading Challenge! Our March winner is Sandy Chi, who wins a pen and notebook set in honor of the month’s theme: a book written in letters or diary entries. Here are a few of the books you read this month. (Reader comments may be edited for length and clarity.)

Cover of 84, Charing Cross Road84, Charing Cross Road, Helen Hanff
Find it at Snell Library | Find it at F.W. Olin Library

“This book had been on my list for a few years and I’m so glad the epistolary prompt for March finally put it at the top of my list! It’s a calm and very pleasant post-war period correspondence between a New York woman and English booksellers, all of whom are chock full of personality. The people in this book will stay with me. This is a very quick read but it gave me an enormous reading list to follow Helene’s explorations of English literature.” — Alaina

Cover of The Murder of Roger AckroydThe Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Agatha Christie
Find it at F.W. Olin Library | Read the e-book

“I’m a huge Christie fan, so this book hit all the sweet spots for me! One of her most famous endings and deservedly so. Everything about this book is cleverly constructed, and the diary formatting works to structure the mystery in a super interesting way. Plus, lots of great Poirot moments!” — Nobel

“I picked up this book thinking it would be a normal mystery, but Agatha Christie really fooled me in the cleanest way. The story feels simple at first, but every person in that village is acting a little weird, so you keep guessing and second-guessing yourself. And then the ending…bro, I literally closed the book and sat there like WHAT. HOW. HOWWW. I even re-read the last pages because my brain refused to accept it. Honestly, after finishing it, I kept thinking back to early chapters and realizing she hinted so many times and I still missed it.” — Sonali

Cover of The Perks of Being a WallflowerThe Perks of Being a Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky
Find it at Snell Library | Find it at F.W. Olin Library | Read the e-book | Listen to the audiobook

“The Perks of Being a Wallflower has moments that genuinely hit. Charlie’s loneliness feels real and the tenderness is hard to shake. But somewhere along the way, it started feeling more like a mood than a story, and I never quite fully connected with it the way I wanted to.” — Sandy

“This was another great read. It touches on a lot of sensitive topics in a very natural way that makes me use my brain to put it together.” — Masha

Cover of The Diary of a Young GirlThe Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank
Find it at Snell Library | Find it at F.W. Olin Library

“What makes it remarkable isn’t just the historical context. It’s the interior life on display. A teenager rigorously interrogating her own identity, relationships, and sense of self under conditions of extreme external constraint. It’s one of the most intimate documents we have of consciousness trying to remain intact when the outside world is systematically trying to erase it.” — Fresnel

“Reading Anne Frank’s diary felt different than any other book I’ve read. It’s so honest and so normal in some parts that you forget she’s writing all this while hiding for her life. And then suddenly it hits you again, and the whole thing becomes heavy in your chest. By the time I finished it, I felt this strange mix of sadness and respect. She writes with so much hope, and knowing what happens to her later makes every line feel heavier. I closed the book feeling quiet, like I needed a minute to just sit with it. It stays with you in a way that’s not dramatic, just painfully real.” — Sonali

What to Read in April

In celebration of National Library Week (April 6-12), we’re challenging you to read a book recommended by a librarian in April. You can find a few recommended reads below, and we’ve assembled a big list of recommendations from the Northeastern Library staff, all of which are available in print, e-book, or audiobook format from the library.

Make sure to stop by the Snell Library lobby on Wednesday, April 15, and Thursday, April 16, to browse recommended books from the print collection. It’s also your last chance to pick up Reading Challenge swag this semester. Remember: whatever you read, make sure to tell us about it to enter the prize drawing!

Cover of Atmosphere Atmosphere: A Love Story, Taylor Jenkins Reid
Find it at Snell Library | Find it at F.W. Olin Library | Listen to the audiobook

Recommended by: Bahare Sanaie-Movahed, Geospatial & GIS Specialist
Bahare says: “A compelling and emotional read that blends personal journeys with broader themes, making it both engaging and thought-provoking.”

Cover of Born a CrimeBorn a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, Trevor Noah
Find it at Snell Library | Find it at F.W. Olin Library | Read the e-book

Recommended by: Karen Merguerian, Head of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities
Karen says: “Trevor Noah’s story of growing up in South Africa describes apartheid from a child’s perspective, but at the same time, Noah brings his adult sensibility and his appreciation for humor and absurdity.”

Cover of With a VengeanceWith a Vengeance, Riley Sager
Read the e-book | Listen to the audiobook

Recommended by: Tamara Uhaze, First Year Experience Librarian
Tamara says: “This is a quick mystery/thriller set on an antique passenger train in post-WWII America. As Anna, the protagonist, looks for answers about the downfall of her family, she realizes she is trapped on the train with a murderer. You spend time getting to know each of the suspects and their role in Anna’s life, building toward the reveal of a grand conspiracy. This was an enjoyable read without too much time commitment.”

Cover of Shuggie BainShuggie Bain, Douglas Stuart
Find it at Snell Library | Find it at F.W. Olin Library | Read the e-book

Recommended by: Irene Gates, Processing Archivist
Irene says: “A beautifully compassionate portrait of alcoholism, queer adolescence, and working class life amidst high unemployment in 1980s Scotland. A deeply moving book that will make your heart ache.”

Cover of The ReformatoryThe Reformatory: A Novel, Tananarive Due
Read the e-book

Recommended by: Kerri Vautour, Marketing and Communications Manager
Kerri says: “In 1950, a 12-year-old Black boy is sent to a segregated reform school after hitting a white boy who was harassing his sister. Robbie experiences the violence of the reformatory himself, but his ability to see ghosts shows him just how horrifying the history of the place is. The true monsters aren’t the ghosts of the dead; it’s the violence and racism perpetrated by the living.”

Cover of The Thursday Murder ClubThe Thursday Murder Club: A Novel, Richard Osman
Find it at Snell Library | Listen to the audiobook

Recommended by: Amanda Calabrese, Integrated Systems Librarian
Amanda says: “This is the funniest cozy murder mystery I’ve ever read (no surprise — author Richard Osman is a British comedian). A group of true crime fans in a retirement community gets involved in solving actual cases, and the characters are so lovable. Ibrahim is my favorite. If you like this one, there are currently four more in the series. They also made a Netflix movie, but if you didn’t like that, the book is way better.”

Happy reading!

Boston History on Display in Snell Library

The lower level of Snell Library now hosts a semi-permanent exhibit orienting visitors to the stories of Boston’s neighborhoods, activist organizations, and organizers available to them in the Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

Wall exhibit in the Snell Library lower level labeled East Boston and Chinatown, with images and descriptions
Molly Brown/Northeastern University Library

Installed in March, the exhibit features highlights of historic events, notable leaders, and impactful organizations from the Mission Hill, Roxbury, South End, Chinatown, and East Boston neighborhoods who are represented in the special collections.

Visitors to the lower level are greeted with images of Boston leaders and luminaries such as Elma Lewis, Melnea Cass, Mel King, Mary Ellen Welch, and Carmen Pola, as well as organizations who are still working in Boston today, like Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción, the Boston Living Center, Freedom House, and La Alianza Hispana.

Wall exhibit in the Snell Library lower level with several images and captions
Molly Brown/Northeastern University Library

 

Wall exhibit in the Snell Library lower level featuring images and captions
Molly Brown/Northeastern University Library

 

The first iteration of the exhibit was selected and written by Reference and Outreach Archivist Molly Brown and has room to highlight future new organizations and individuals who donate records to NUASC or are celebrating significant milestones. It was designed in collaboration with Christopher Raia from MGA Partners.

Box by Box: Inventorying the Bob Terrell Papers

A man stands outside holding papers
Bob Terrell at the MBTA Silver Line opening protest, July 2002. Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE) records.

Throughout his life, Bob Terrell played an active role in advancing environmental, housing, and transportation justice in the City of Boston, and advocated for his neighborhood of Roxbury. He was involved in multiple organizations and held several municipal government positions, as well. So when his papers were donated to the Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections upon his passing in 2025, they provided a unique look into the city’s history.

The most prevalent organizations represented in Terrell’s papers are the Roxbury Neighborhood Council (RNC), Greater Roxbury Neighborhood Authority (GRNA), and Washington Street Corridor Coalition (WSCC). The RNC and GRNA sought to increase community control of their neighborhoods through the development of housing, education, and economic opportunities. Meanwhile, the WSCC focused on advocating for adequate public transportation, needed after the loss of the El (the Boston Elevated Railway), which had traveled down Washington Street.

Other records in the collection document the MBTA Rider Oversight Committee, Black Political Task Force, On the Move, and the Massachusetts Community and Banking Council, among other organizations. Terrell often held leadership positions within these organizations such as board member, committee member, director, and executive director.

An open file showing letters, newspaper clippings, reports, and photos of the MBTA
Records documenting community concerns about Washington Street and adequate transportation, 1990s. Bob Terrell papers.

The attention Terrell paid to local and world news related to environmental, housing, and transportation issues is evident in the number of reports, studies, newsletters, and other records that he accumulated over time. As I went through these items, I wondered to what extent global developments and initiatives informed the work he was doing in Boston. I often became engrossed with the interconnectedness of local and larger world matters, especially when news from Boston grew to become world news.

Additional materials in the collection helped me appreciate even more how committee and active Terrell was in his advocacy. Initially, this realization occurred as I went through his educational materials. Terrell received his BA in Government and Sociology from Bowdoin College in 1974. Later in life, he returned to school and received his Master’s in Public Policy from Tufts University in 2012. Terrell kept his notebooks, readings, and other resources from both undergraduate and graduate school. To me, this conveys that Terrell valued the information he learned from his professors and carried it throughout his life, which then impacted the advocacy work he did in his community.

A calendar page for the month of February. Every weekday has a series of entries scribbled
One of the calendars used throughout Bob Terrell’s life. Bob Terrell papers.

Occasionally, I would also stumble upon his personal calendars. These, too, helped me understand how busy and active he was. In addition to attending conferences relevant to his work, there were organizational meetings to attend. Sometimes the entry in his calendar would even have a location for the event or meeting, which shows how much effort it takes to be so involved, but this was his life’s work and he was committed. It was more surprising to see a free day in his calendar than not. I found the calendars quite inspiring, in seeing how much one person can do. If a person were to only commit to one cause or organization they could still create an impact. This makes me feel a little less intimidated to get involved myself.

If you are interested in local Boston advocacy work, especially in relation to transportation, environmental, and housing justice, Bob Terrell’s papers are a must-see.

Contact the Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections by emailing us at archives@northeastern.edu to find out more about Bob Terrell’s papers.

Former Processing Assistant Aries Peralta (he/him) graduated from Simmons University with an MS in Library and Information Science with a concentration in archives management. He received his BA in art history from the University of Connecticut.

“There is always something you can do”: Voices from Northeastern’s Holocaust and Genocide Awareness Committee Archive

Since 1977, Northeastern University has hosted events dedicated to remembering and learning the lessons of the Holocaust. Since 1991, the Holocaust and Genocide Awareness Committee (HGAC) has organized these programs, with this year’s events running the week of March 16.

The records of the HGAC live in the Archives and Special Collections, and the Digital Production Services staff have been creating captions for videos available in the Digital Repository Service. We’re currently focusing on videos of Holocaust lectures and survivors.

Captioning survivor testimonies has been an emotional experience as I’ve heard people’s stories of trauma, often repeatedly as the same survivors have spoken at Northeastern multiple times. However, their stories also offer hope and advice for how to make a difference, no matter the circumstances.

Rena Finder, a Schindler survivor, says:

“Because of Oskar and Emilie Schindler, I was given a chance to grow up, to get married, to have children and to have grandchildren. And because I am an eyewitness to some of the most horrific crimes committee against innocent people, I’m also an eyewitness to what morality and humanity and goodness can do, because Oskar Schindler had proven to the world that they did not have to stand by and do nothing, that there is always something that could have been done. Oskar Schindler and Emilie Schindler could not stand by, avert their eyes to the slaughter of innocent people. They acted on their faith, on their beliefs, [regarding] their safety, because they felt that was the only thing they could do, because to be a bystander is a bigger sin than to be a perpetrator.” (2002)

An older woman with short brown hair and glasses speaks at a podium
Rena Finder speaking in 2010.

She discusses the moral impact of small acts from ordinary people:

“And this is a moral for everyone, that each and every one of you has the power to make a difference, because each and every one of you can make a decision. Not to stand by when you see injustice done, but to make changes. You have to participate…There is always something you can do. You don’t have to stand by when you see someone beating up on somebody else. You don’t have to listen when somebody makes an ethnic joke. You have the power to walk away. You have the power to say, ‘I don’t want to hear it. You can’t say that in front of me.’ You have the power to extend a hand to your friend, to your neighbor, regardless of their race or religion.” (2002)

A man with short brown hair and glasses speaks at a podium
Raymond Fridmann speaking in 1994.

Survivor Raymond Fridmann focuses on how to have a larger influence on the world:

“If there’s one thing you should do and I say that every year here, register to vote because this is the only expression you have to make sure that you got the government of the people you choose. Do not take it for granted that your vote does not count. Your vote counts. Get educated. Get educated, for you to have jobs. Get educated and read history because if we don’t read history, we will go back into the same holes.” (2002)

Finder ends with a call to action:

“It’s really up to you. You have the power to write to the president, to the congress, to the senator. Don’t ever believe that a small group of committed citizens can’t change things, because those are the only ones that can. And you are going to become just that group that will change.” (2002)

I’m excited to make these materials more accessible, and hope these moving testimonies continue to inspire their listeners to take action.

Ready to Research: Charles L. Glenn Papers

The Dr. Charles L. Glenn papers are now fully processed and ready for research at the Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

These papers are from Glenn’s career as Director of Urban Education and Equity under the Massachusetts Department of Education, spanning from 1963 to 2000 and centering on the desegregation process of Massachusetts public schools. As director, Glenn (who served as a minister in Roxbury during the 1960s) was charged with developing the procedures for racial integration and administering these and other equal opportunity plans in the state.

Black and white image of a white man wearing traditional clergy clothes (black clothes and a white collar). His hands are clasped together. Behind him are several people of various raches
Rev. Charles Glenn singing at St. John’s, Roxbury, ca. 1964. Photograph by Edward Jenner, courtesy of the Boston Globe Library collection, M214. Northeastern University Archives and Special Collections.

The collection provides a fascinating look into the administrative side of school desegregation. Reports, newsletters, periodicals, correspondence, notes, and memoranda document the long and sometimes difficult process of achieving equitable access to education.

These papers also show a broad history of desegregation, with some of the earliest documents including materials from the “Freedom Stayout Day” boycott. In June 1964, Glenn and other community leaders hosted public school students at alternate locations dubbed “Freedom Schools,” that were held in churches, community centers, and other locations across the city during the Freedom School Stayouts. They reflect on the meanings of equality, racial injustice, and the goal of desegregation with their peers, exercising their civil right to protest.

Later collection materials highlight the legal and administrative work undertaken to achieve educational equity. A bird’s-eye view of the decades-long integration process can be discovered in files on individual school districts, correspondence between departments, notes and statistical data, and reports generated by various offices and involved parties.

This collection is of great use to those researching school desegregation history, the administrative background of school integration, bilingual education programs, magnet school programs, and the application of these processes in Boston and Massachusetts specifically.

The finding aid provides more contextual information on Glenn and the collection, including series arrangement and container inventories. Email archives@northeastern.edu with any questions or to schedule a visit.

Aleks Renerts (he/him) has dual master’s degrees in history and library and information science, with a concentration in archives management, from Simmons University. He received his BA in history from McGill University.