Your BBF 2021 Guide to Fiction and Poetry Sessions
Hello readers! It’s Jessica from Team BBF, here to guide you through our schedule for the 2021 Boston Book Festival.
As you’ve probably experienced from past Boston Book Festivals, the sheer number of sessions is like a literary feast set out for hungry readers (the last in-person Festival we hosted had over 150 sessions!). But you’ve also probably felt that panic of “What do I choose?” when you open up that two-page multi-colored spread of sessions in the program guide. (I know I have!)
Because that schedule can be a bit daunting, even in a virtual year, we’re here to help you find the sessions you want to attend so you can see a favorite author, learn something new, think about the world around you in different ways, or discover some new reads for your TBR pile. And because the majority of our sessions will be virtual this year, you don’t need to worry about sprinting down Boylston Street or Washington Street to get to the next session (being sure to grab a grilled cheese on the way). Let’s get started!
Fiction and Poetry Sessions for 2021
Longtime attendees of the Boston Book Festival know that we are committed not only to featuring mainstream or literary fiction, but also to welcoming authors working in genre, or new narrative forms, or in translation—and that commitment continues this year. The week will be bookended with poetry (Poetry Keynote and Poems & Pints), but in between there’s something for every kind of fiction reader out there: mystery lovers (Every Story Is a Mystery), romance readers (Contemporary Romance Roundtable), spec fiction fans (Speculative Fiction), novels reflecting current day issues (Beyond the Page: The Happiest Girl in the World; Work and Identity), short fiction (One City One Story), and historical fiction that’s also in translation (Ada’s Realm, The Radio Operator). There also a session for readers in book clubs (The Care and Feeding of Book Clubs).
Here’s your guide to our fiction and poetry sessions.
Poetry Keynote
Tracy K. Smith, with host Danielle Legros Georges
Saturday, October 16 at 10:30am | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Hearing a former Poet Laureate of the US and Pulitzer Prize winner talk about her career and her work.
What you’ll find in this session: Tracy K. Smith will not only discuss her forthcoming career-spanning collection Such Color, but will be in conversation with former Boston Poet Laureate Danielle Legros George about the role of poetry in everyday lives, and specifically about its role in recovery and resistance.
What you’ll take away from it: Inspiration in how words, imagery, and verse can address the deeper concerns and considerations of humanity.
Session is sponsored by Mass Poetry, with media sponsorship by TLS.
The Care and Feeding of Book Clubs
Callie Crossley, Cynthia Haynes, and Woods Seney, with host Akunna Eneh
Sunday, October 17 at 3:30pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Starting their own book club, or who need fresh ideas for one they’ve been in—a book club meeting about book clubs, if you will!
What you’ll find in this session: Longtime book club members and organizers Callie Crossley, Cynthia Haynes, and Woods Seney will share their experiences in fostering good conversation, how to pick the right books, and how to keep things interesting, in conversation with BPL librarian Akunna Eneh. They’ll also offer the audience a chance to share their own book club advice and tactics.
What you’ll take away from it: Actionable steps to inject some literary life into your book club, and maybe some new recommendations for reading, too.
Every Story Is a Mystery
Dale Phillips, Joanna Schaffhausen, and Sarah Smith, with host Steve Rogers
Sunday, October 17 at 4:45pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: How mystery novels, suspense stories, and compelling creative nonfiction are crafted.
What you’ll find in this session: A robust discussion of craft—creating tension, crafting plot twists, maneuvering through POV, and more—between veteran mystery and suspense writers Dale Phillips, Joanna Schaffhausen, and Sarah Smith, hosted by Steve Rogers.
What you’ll take away from it: A behind-the-scenes look into how your favorite mystery writers leave you hanging until the last twist.
Session is sponsored by Mystery Writers of America–New England.
Ada’s Realm
Sharon Dodua Otoo, with host Jon Cho-Polizzi
Tuesday, October 19 at 12:00pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: An author in translation with a debut novel exploring the role of women across centuries through a non-traditional narrative.
What you’ll find in this session: Short story and novella writer Sharon Dodua Otoo will discuss her debut novel Ada’s Realm, a sweeping narrative that follows various protagonists named Ada throughout the centuries. She’ll be in conversation with translator Jon Cho-Polizzi.
What you’ll take away from it: Not just how a masterful storyteller can use voice and imagery to craft a striking and unique narrative, but how translators work to convey that narrative to new audiences.
Session is hosted and sponsored by Goethe-Institut Boston.
The Radio Operator
Ulla Lenze, with host Marshall Yarbrough
Wednesday, October 20 at 12:00pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Historical fiction in translation, as well as a narrative exploration of immigrant life in early 20th c. America.
What you’ll find in this session: Ulla Lenze will discuss her first novel available in English, The Radio Operator, whose protagonist works for a Nazi spy ring yet uses his wireless to also connect to others around the world. Lenze will be in conversation with the novel’s translator Marshall Yarbrough.
What you’ll take away from it: How novelists craft historical fiction and how translators work to tell those stories to new audiences, as well as a slice of WWII history.
Session is hosted and sponsored by Goethe-Institut Boston.
Contemporary Romance Roundtable
Alyssa Cole, Lana Harper, KM Jackson, and Farrah Rochon, with host Andrea Martucci
Wednesday, October 20 at 6:00pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Hearing from celebrated contemporary romance writers, and those who are curious to learn more about the skyrocketing genre.
What you’ll find in this session: Romance authors Alyssa Cole, Lana Harper, KM Jackson, and Farrah Rochon discuss not just their work, but the variety of contemporary romance today, the importance of the genre for readers, and its growing impact on the industry, in conversation with Shelf Love podcast’s Andrea Martucci.
What you’ll take away from it: A glimpse into romance novel creation, and why romance is—and should be—gaining more space in the reading world.
Session is sponsored by Emerson College Graduate Admission.
One City One Story
Chandreyee Lahiri, with host Alicia Anstead
Thursday, October 21 at 6:00pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Discussing this year’s One City One Story selection, and hearing from the author on its creation.
What you’ll find in this session: Local author Chandreyee Lahiri will be in conversation with facilitator Alicia Anstead and the virtual audience about the One City One Story selection “Dumba Chora,” distributed throughout the city in the weeks leading up to the BBF.
What you’ll take away from it: Getting to hear how an author crafts a place-based short story, and getting to connect with others in the community.
Session is sponsored by Plymouth Rock Assurance Foundation.
Beyond the Page: The Happiest Girl in the World
Alena Dillon, with host Craig LeMoult
Thursday, October 21 at 7:00pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Hearing a novelist discuss their very timely work, as well as for those who follow GBH’s Beyond the Page series.
What you’ll find in this session: A very relevant discussion around Alena Dillon’s new novel The Happiest Girl in the World, about an Olympic gymnast pushing herself to the brink for gold, and how authors can explore dark truths and current headlines in fiction. Dillon will be in conversation with GBH News reporter Craig LeMoult.
What you’ll take away from it: How fiction writers can use created characters and plot to comment on and explore pressing real-world issues.
Session is presented by GBH.
Work and Identity
Mateo Askaripour, Eric Giroux, Zakiya Dalila Harris, and Elizabeth Gonzalez James, with host Lanelle Sneed
Saturday, October 23 at 1:00pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Seeing four debut novelists talk about their portrayal and commentary on the work world in new literary fiction.
What you’ll find in this session: Mateo Askaripour, Eric Giroux, Zakiya Dalila Harris, and Elizabeth Gonzalez James discussing novels that follow protagonists navigating the oddities, frustrations, inequalities, and hilarities of working life in America, in conversation with Books on the Rox’s Lanelle Sneed.
What you’ll take away from it: The ability to see yourself and your work life plights represented in fiction—and maybe the ability to laugh a bit at shared workplace antics, too.
Session is sponsored by Greenough Brand Storytellers.
Speculative Fiction
Djèlí Clark, Anita Kopacz, and Lucinda Roy, with host Quentin Lucas
Saturday, October 23 at 3:45pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: What Black authors are doing in the speculative fiction space.
What you’ll find in this session: P. Djèlí Clark, Anita Kopacz, and Lucinda Roy will discuss their novels whose settings are alternate realities or near futures—a magic-filled 1912 Egypt, a mystical antebellum past, and a second Civil War—and how these alternate realities can shed light on our own. They’ll be in conversation with host Quentin Lucas.
What you’ll take away from it: How imagined worlds in fiction can comment on society and history, in addition to telling a fascinating and imaginative story.
Poems & Pints
Sam Cha, Anthony Febo, Rebecca Morgan Frank, Danielle Legros Georges, and Bianca Stone, with host Danielle Jones
Saturday, October 23 at 6:30pm | Virtual
This session is for readers interested in…: Listening to poetry while having a drink to celebrate the culmination of the Boston Book Festival.
What you’ll find in this session: Poets Sam Cha, Anthony Febo, Rebecca Morgan Frank, Danielle Legros Georges, and Bianca Stone will read from their latest collections, and have some fun doing it in our annual BBF capstone. You’ll also get to meet Mass Poetry’s newest program director, Danielle Jones, who will be hosting.
What you’ll take away from it: The power of words to inspire and provoke, and a big sigh and “Cheers!” after a full week of BBF events.
Session is sponsored by Mass Poetry.
I hope this guide has helped you get a glimpse into the vast array of writers and what they’re working on who will join us for the 2021 Boston Book Festival. Head to the main schedule to browse all sessions and for registration links, and we’ll see you there!
