Dolen Perkins Valdez's Happy Land (Reading Group) [Durham, NC]

from $25.00

**This course is in-person only. There is no virtual component. Participants must be age 21+

Full Tuition: $225 — Sliding-scale tuition options are available in the drop-down enrollment menu for you to self-select. To pay in installments, choose PayPal or Klarna at check out.

Have you ever read a book based on real events that tackles generational inheritances, trauma from anti-Blackness, the economic and cultural worth of land, and how much we love our families even when they piss us off and tell us the important things too late? Dolen Perkins-Valdez's Happy Land, published in 2025, does all of this. Told in a dual storyline, this historical novel is inspired by a community of formerly enslaved people who dared to strive for self-sufficiency in a place known as the Kingdom of the Happy Land in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina. Together, we’ll navigate this is a tour-de-force of a novel that offers a history of North Carolina from the perspective of a Black family fighting to keep their land.

From the publisher:

Nikki hasn’t seen her grandmother in years. So when the elder calls out of the blue with an urgent request for Nikki to visit her in the hills of western North Carolina, Nikki hesitates only for a moment. But instead of answers about the recent past, Mother Rita tells Nikki an incredible story of a kingdom on this very mountain, and of her great-great-great grandmother, Luella, who would become its queen.It sounds like the makings of a fairy tale—royalty among a community of freed people. But the more Nikki learns about the Kingdom of the Happy Land, and the lives of those who dwelled in the ruins she discovers in the woods, the more she realizes how much of her identity and her family’s secrets are wrapped up in these hills. Inspired by true events, Happy Land is a transporting multi-generational novel about the stories that shape us and the dazzling courage it takes to dream.

—

The Fine Print:

Gift certificates may only be redeemed at the full tuition tier.

SLIDING SCALE TUITION

Full tuition is the cost per-student of running the class. If you choose a tier below full tuition, you are receiving a discount. If you choose to make a donation in addition to full tuition, you are helping to cover the cost for students who are not able to pay the full amount.

The mid-level tier is a discounted rate for people whose household income is at or above living wage but who have limited discretionary income.

The low-level tier and the full-scholarship tier are for people whose household income is below living wage or who need extra assistance to meet their needs.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Through our fundraising efforts, we are able to offer three full scholarships per class. The full-scholarship tier is a nonrefundable offering. Each student may only take one full-scholarship class at a time. Because our scholarship funding is limited, if a student selects multiple overlapping classes at the full-scholarship level, they will be disenrolled from all classes.

All sliding-scale and scholarship needs are self-assessed, and we will never request or require proof of need.

Please see our FAQ for more information, including installment plans, refund policy, and sick and inclement weather policy.

Sliding-Scale Tuition:

**This course is in-person only. There is no virtual component. Participants must be age 21+

Full Tuition: $225 — Sliding-scale tuition options are available in the drop-down enrollment menu for you to self-select. To pay in installments, choose PayPal or Klarna at check out.

Have you ever read a book based on real events that tackles generational inheritances, trauma from anti-Blackness, the economic and cultural worth of land, and how much we love our families even when they piss us off and tell us the important things too late? Dolen Perkins-Valdez's Happy Land, published in 2025, does all of this. Told in a dual storyline, this historical novel is inspired by a community of formerly enslaved people who dared to strive for self-sufficiency in a place known as the Kingdom of the Happy Land in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina. Together, we’ll navigate this is a tour-de-force of a novel that offers a history of North Carolina from the perspective of a Black family fighting to keep their land.

From the publisher:

Nikki hasn’t seen her grandmother in years. So when the elder calls out of the blue with an urgent request for Nikki to visit her in the hills of western North Carolina, Nikki hesitates only for a moment. But instead of answers about the recent past, Mother Rita tells Nikki an incredible story of a kingdom on this very mountain, and of her great-great-great grandmother, Luella, who would become its queen.It sounds like the makings of a fairy tale—royalty among a community of freed people. But the more Nikki learns about the Kingdom of the Happy Land, and the lives of those who dwelled in the ruins she discovers in the woods, the more she realizes how much of her identity and her family’s secrets are wrapped up in these hills. Inspired by true events, Happy Land is a transporting multi-generational novel about the stories that shape us and the dazzling courage it takes to dream.

—

The Fine Print:

Gift certificates may only be redeemed at the full tuition tier.

SLIDING SCALE TUITION

Full tuition is the cost per-student of running the class. If you choose a tier below full tuition, you are receiving a discount. If you choose to make a donation in addition to full tuition, you are helping to cover the cost for students who are not able to pay the full amount.

The mid-level tier is a discounted rate for people whose household income is at or above living wage but who have limited discretionary income.

The low-level tier and the full-scholarship tier are for people whose household income is below living wage or who need extra assistance to meet their needs.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Through our fundraising efforts, we are able to offer three full scholarships per class. The full-scholarship tier is a nonrefundable offering. Each student may only take one full-scholarship class at a time. Because our scholarship funding is limited, if a student selects multiple overlapping classes at the full-scholarship level, they will be disenrolled from all classes.

All sliding-scale and scholarship needs are self-assessed, and we will never request or require proof of need.

Please see our FAQ for more information, including installment plans, refund policy, and sick and inclement weather policy.