The Need to Disrupt the Financial Sector to Support Equity and Inclusion
What is CDC Small Business Finance Reading? 10 Bestsellers to Put on Your Reading List
Ellis Carr
Chief Executive Officer
I Came As A Shadow
Author: John Thompson
Why I loved it: As someone who grew up in the Washington DC area, Georgetown basketball was a dynasty during the 80’s and I was a huge fan. The book, however, focused on John Thompson as a player, coach, mentor and advocate. I appreciated learning about how he utilized his political and social capital to break barriers and advance the opportunities for so many people.
What to expect: The long-awaited autobiography from Georgetown University’s legendary coach, whose life on and off the basketball court threw America’s unresolved struggle with racial justice into sharp relief. This is a great American story, and John Thompson’s experience sheds light on many of the issues roiling our nation. In these pages, he proves himself to be the elder statesman whose final words college basketball and the country need to hear.
Hannah Kudla
Product and Innovation Specialist
The Art of Hearing Heartbeats
Author: Jan-Philipp Sendker
What to expect: When a successful New York lawyer disappears without a trace, neither his wife nor his daughter Julia has any idea where he might be…until they find a love letter he wrote many years ago, to a Burmese woman they have never heard of. Intent on solving the mystery and coming to terms with her father’s past, Julia decides to travel to the village where the woman lived. There she uncovers a tale of unimaginable hardship, resilience, and passion that will reaffirm the reader’s belief in the power of love to move mountains.
Why I loved it: This was hands down one of my favorite novels I have ever read. It is such a captivating story that hits on so many different relationship dynamics, cultural ideologies, and social themes throughout major historical time periods. The character development is so perfectly executed. Definitely a page-turner that will keep you laughing, crying, and forgetting about the millions of other things you need to be doing!
Jon Pinon
File Manager
The Color of Law
Author: Richard Rothstein
What to expect: In this groundbreaking history of the modern American metropolis, Richard Rothstein, a leading authority on housing policy, incontrovertibly makes clear that it was de jure segregation―the laws and policy decisions passed by local, state, and federal governments―that actually promoted the discriminatory patterns that continue to this day.
Why I loved it: A fascinating and infuriating history of housing policies in cities and communities across the United States in the 20th century. This book is an expansive and timely dive into the growth and development of urban and suburban localities from World War II through the Civil Rights Era.
Penina Goodman
Senior Vice President, Brand Marketing
The Last Flight
Author: Julie Clark
What to expect: This is the thrilling story of two women—both alone, both scared—and one agonizing decision that will change the trajectory of both of their lives. The Last Flight is everything you want in a book: a gripping story of suspense; haunting, vulnerable characters; and a chilling and surprising ending that stays with you long after the last page.
Why I loved it: My top escape read this year. An absorbing, poignant, original and well crafted thriller! The story was compelling right from the start and was hard to put down. Get ready to enter the lives of two women and join them on an unpredictable roller coaster that will keep you guessing. An amazing read filled with surprises and intrigue.
Rich Kraus
Senior Business Advisor
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Author: Rebecca Skoot
What to expect: Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine: The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, which are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. As Rebecca Skloot so brilliantly shows, the story of the Lacks family—past and present—is inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of.
Why I loved it: The fascinating true story of one woman’s unique cancer cells that became the cornerstone for virtually all medical advances over the last 70 years. It deals with ethical issues relating to class, race and transparency in medical research.
LaKisha Gant
Senior Vice President, Commercial Real Estate Lending
Bridgerton Series – Books 1-9
Author: Julia Quinn
What to expect: This romance novel series based in the early 1800s, tells the story of the close-knit Bridgerton family, a group of eight siblings in England who are just trying to find love and get married (or not) while dealing with the pressure and expectations of London high society. You may have seen the new Netflix show, Bridgerton which is based off the first book in this series!
Why I loved it: I just finished the entire series! It took 2 months for me to read all 9 books. I was initially introduced to the books because of the NetFlix series – Bridgerton. The Bridgertons are a family – Violet Bridgerton is the mother and she has 8 children. Each book is about one of her children and tells their love story. One cannot help but to fall in love with this family and to be entertained as you walk through each of their journeys on the path to find their true loves!
David Dobreski
Multimedia Marketing Specialist
Like Streams to The Ocean: Notes on Ego, Love, and the Things That Make Us Who We Are
Author: Jedidiah Jenkins
What to expect: You can travel the world looking for yourself, but if you don’t know what you’re looking for, how can you find it? Like Streams To The Ocean is about examining the things that make us who we are and getting to know ourselves, our stories, and the decisions that shape our one and only life.
Why I loved it: A philosophical compilation of different nuggets reflecting on life, the ego, and love – all beautifully wrapped up in a succinct and beautiful collection of prose. The book starts with one of my favorite quotes, from John Muir: ‘When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.’
Pam Green
Applications Coordinator
The Magic
Author: Rhonda Byrne
What to expect: For more than twenty centuries, words within a sacred text have mystified, confused, and been misunderstood by almost all who read them. Only a very few people through history have realized that the words are a riddle, and that once you solve the riddle—once you uncover the mystery—a new world will appear before your eyes. In The Magic, Rhonda Byrne reveals this life-changing knowledge to the world. Then, on an incredible 28-day journey, she teaches you how to apply this knowledge in your everyday life.
Why I loved it: This is from the same author/producer of The Secret – In this book there are 28 Chapters to express the attitude of gratitude for 28 days
April Vercammen
Executive Assistant
The Keeper of the Bees
Author: Gene Stratton-Porter
What to expect: The very last novel that Gene Stratton-Porter wrote before her death. The tale of a wounded World War I veteran, a beekeeper and an impish tomboy all helped by each other. A book that examines the healing power that nature and kindness can have upon someone’s life.
Why I loved it: It is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read, hard to know what to compare it to. I think it’s really about resurrection and salvation, and what grace is via unexpected love and friendship. And you learn fascinating details about bees. I typically fall in love with a book based on its characters, and this has so many to love and watch grow. It’s one of the longest fictional books I’ve read, yet none of it’s fluff. But it’s delightful and necessarily abundant and full of many truths – a beautiful, one-of-a-kind story.
Capree Waters
Marketing Coordinator
Small Great Things
Author: Jodi Picoult
What to expect: The novel is based on the true story of a labor and delivery nurse who was prohibited from caring for a newborn because the father requested that no African-American nurses tend to his baby. In the fictional version, Ruth, the African-American nurse in question, finds herself on trial for events related to the same request made by a white supremacist father. Using the narratives of Ruth, the baby’s father, and the female public defender who takes Ruth’s case, Picoult examines multiple facets of racism. Small Great Things is an important and thought-provoking novel about power and prejudice that deserves to be read, digested, and shared with others.
Why I loved it: A truly powerful novel that challenges readers and makes them examine race and prejudice. I couldn’t put this book down when I started it! It is filled with empathy and hope and helps start uncomfortable conversations.
