Happy September! The Boston Book Festival’s annual Shelf Help program, which brings brand-new donated books to Boston-area schools, is in full swing—but, this year there’s something new. Through a competitive application process, we’ve chosen not one but two schools for our program: Orchard Gardens Pilot School in Roxbury for grades K–8 and TechBoston Academy in Dorchester for grades 6–12. As in years past, we’re teaming up with the nonprofit organization Wondermore to bring BBF presenters (Charlotte Nicole Davis and another author TBD) for school visits before BBF’s annual festival on October 19th and 20th. You can learn more about Orchard Gardens Pilot School here and about TechBoston Academy here.
Participating publishers have started to fill the shelves but there’s still a long way to go, and that’s where you come in! We’re asking friends and fans of the BBF to join us in donating brand-new books and funds to stock library shelves at Orchard Gardens and TechBoston. Focusing primarily on a diverse collection of award-winning books, these schools’ online wish lists will make thousands of young readers very happy.
Here are some ways you can get involved:
Peruse each school’s wish list online (for Orchard Garden’s go HERE and for TechBoston’s go HERE). Then, donate a book directly to the school library (click the blue “Donate Now” button and then choose “Donate books”).
Contribute funds directly to the Shelf Help project by visiting each school’s donations page and selecting a dollar amount. Or, stop by the merchandise booth at BBF 2019 on October 19th (in Copley Square) and October 20th(in Roxbury) and donate on-site!
Spread the word about Orchard Garden’s library, TechBoston’s library, and Shelf Help by sharing this post on social media, using the hashtag #ShelfHelp and tagging @bostonbookfest. Please tag Orchard Gardens—@BPSOGPSK8—and TechBoston—@TBAboston—as well!
Books bring hope to young readers—so we’d like to thank YOU for bringing much-needed hope to the youth of Boston!
Last week, we were pleased to announce that this year’s One City One Story is “Yvonne” by Emerson MFA student Ciera Burch. You’ll be able to find your copy of Ciera’s story around Greater Boston starting in early September, but in the meantime, we’ve asked Ciera to write a guest post for our blog about the origins of her story and what led her to submit it for consideration as a 1C1S selection. Enjoy!
For me, writing “Yvonne” was an attempt to explore not only my own relationship with my grandmother, who passed away suddenly three years ago, but also the relationship between a grandparent and grandchild without the existence of the ‘3rd party’ of the parent.
Parental-child relationships are something that have fascinated me for most of my life—since my mom was a teenager when she had me, we got to grow up with each other, which allowed me to always see her as a person in her own right first and as my mother second. After my grandmother passed, I realized that there had always been a difference between her relationship with my mom and her relationship with me. She was more closed off when it came to my mom, more easily prone to anger, whereas with me she was constantly bubbly, always cooking me something or teaching me to cook for myself.
I don’t plan out my short stories, I usually just start writing, and “Yvonne” came together for me all at once: with the smells of a nursing home and an odd, anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach reserved for meeting new people. As I wrote, Celeste and Yvonne led me to the paths they needed to go down while showing me the paths that had led them to where we meet them on the first page. The connection between the two women is immensely important to me because there’s so much complexity to their feelings for one another. They’re family but they’re still figuring out what that means to them, now and going forward.
I chose this story to submit to the Boston Book Festival because in pop culture portrayals of Boston people of color are often excluded. Despite the existence of New Edition (Roxbury natives), little attention is paid to, and often little credit is given to, Boston’s nonwhite residents. With this story, my hope was that I could put black, and in Celeste’s case queer, people at the center of a narrative with universal appeal. In some way or another, I hope that people are able not only to empathize with but also relate to Yvonne and Celeste, because regardless of the different facets of their identities, they’re human with human problems and they love and hurt and worry just as deeply as anyone else.
There might be a zillion summer reading lists out there, but there’s only one brought to you by Team BBF! We spend all day, every day surrounded by books (more so every day, as copies of books by BBF 2019 authors start rolling in), so you’d better believe our staff’s TBR pile is never depleted. Whether your upcoming travels take you to the mountains, the beach, or just the local park or pool, we’ve compiled some of our favorite reading recommendations to round out your summer adventures—happy summer, and happy reading!
Norah Piehl, Executive Director
Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is a gift that keeps on giving, especially lately, as several recent novels have transformed and updated Austen’s classic as a way to comment on present-day issues of race, class, and religion. Ayesha at Last, by Uzma Jalaluddin, sets the classic romance in Toronto’s Muslim community, offering a thoroughly twenty-first century take on the novel of manners.
I’ve long admired Taffy Brodesser-Akner‘s journalistic profiles of people like Gwyneth Paltrow and Justin Bieber, so I was excited to read her debut novel, Fleishman Is in Trouble. Suffice it to say that this funny, achingly wise novel does not disappoint–and if you start reading it and think you know what to expect, keep turning pages, because you almost certainly won’t anticipate Brodesser-Akner’s thoroughly surprising storytelling twists.
Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell‘s YA graphic novel Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me is a sympathetic portrait of a sensitive young woman who falls in love with the wrong girl–over and over again.
Finally, I haven’t read it yet, but I am eager to crack open my copy of Colson Whitehead‘s The Nickel Boys. I’ve been a huge fan of his work even before he was the BBF’s 2016 fiction keynote, and I can’t wait to read his latest, about growing up black in the segregated South.
Jennifer Jean, Community Engagement Manager
I’m reading a ton of poetry, notably:
Jennifer Martelli‘s My Tarantella is raw, intense, fantastic poetry about the perils of womanhood. Several poems revisit the murder of Kitty Genovese and Martelli’s Italian American childhood in Revere, Massachusetts.
The English translation of Dunya Mikhail‘s Diary of a Wave Outside the Sea, by Elizabeth Winslow and Dunya Mikhail–is amazing! Mikhail’s genre-bending, long prose-poem explores her experiences in and around war in Iraq.
As for fiction:
Folks should be reading Emily Pease‘s short story collection Let Me Out Here, which was the 2018 winner of the C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize. Pease’s writing is darkly funny and proves she is a razor-sharp observer of human foibles.
A must-read, totally absorbing novella is Olivia Cerrone‘s excellent The Hunger Saint, which is historical fiction about post–WWII Italian miners.
Katelynn Jasper, Lit Crawl Intern
Mrs. Caliban by Rachel Ingalls–A lonely housewife, a monster on the loose, and avocados…lots of avocados come together to create the perfect recipe for a great summer read. If you like dry, cynical humor and meaningful connections that remind us it’s what within us that counts then this book is for you! Bonus: Rachel Ingalls was a local author!
Say Her Name by Francisco Goldman–Put down that romance novel for a moment and pick up this one. Goldman gives the reader a rare glimpse into his beautiful life of grief, true love, secrets, laughter, family drama, and his wife Aura that will leave you holding your loved ones even closer. This moving and poetic book will have you saying its name to everyone once you are done.
Otherwood by Pete Hautman–Hautman masterfully weaves a tale of time travel, friendship, change, and accepting other’s differences as beautiful things. This is definitely one of my favorite coming-of-age novels and I flew through it quickly thanks to such a captivating plot and characters. I know that that both kids and adults will enjoy reading it, especially together!
Ximena Delgado, BBF 2019 Intern
One Hundred Years of Solitude/Cien Años de Soledad by Gabriel García Márquez (originally written in Spanish): I’ve had this book on my reading list for a while now. Last month I finally went out and got it and I am so excited to start reading it. Not only is Gabriel García Márquez an important figure of Latin American literature, he is also the type of writer I aspire to be. I have previously read some of his short stories and his writing has never disappointed me. This novel is a multi-generational story that follows the Buendia family in the town of Macondo. One Hundred Years of Solitude helped originate the magical realism genre and won García Márquez the 1982 Nobel Prize for Literature. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong: Released on June 4th, 2019! With the release of his first novel, poet Ocean Vuong brings his beautiful writing to life. I first began reading Vuong after a friend’s recommendation and now I am extremely excited to see how he will encompass a full storyline with his words. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous unravels the history and secrets of a family through the use of letters. I cannot wait to start reading and see how this novel turns out.
Kyle Labe, BBF 2019 Intern
If you’re as much a geek for Greek mythology as I am, then Madeline Miller‘s latest novel is more than a treat. A modern epic in every sense of the word, Circe is a moving rumination on family, history, and womanhood, and lives up to the hype created by Miller’s brilliant debut, The Song of Achilles. It’s peculiar that, since this story follows the timeline of Homer’s Odyssey, we know everything that will happen in the book, but somehow this novel can’t be put down once opened.
When the star daughter of the Lee family’s body is found at the bottom of a lake, the entire family crumbles apart. Celeste Ng‘s debut novel, Everything I Never Told You, is both a portrait of the modern American family experience and an intriguing analysis of race, gender, and immigration, all the while remaining an intensely fascinating read. I hope to get around to Ng’s latest novel, Little Fires Everywhere, soon, but this is a great book for a road trip, beach day, or stay-cation.
Megan Michaud, BBF 2019 Intern
Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
I have heard so many great things about this book over the years, and even more since Amazon released their show for it (which I refuse to watch until I’ve read the book!). A combination of angels, demons, and a misplaced Antichrist all coming together for the end of the world? What could be better?
Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas
I absolutely adore Sarah J. Maas! Kingdom of Ash, the conclusion to the Throne of Glass series, was released last fall and I’ve been dying to read it. If you love young adult fantasy that is filled with assassins, magic, and lots of twists and turns, I highly recommend it.
A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin
If you, like me, have been mourning the loss of Game of Thrones, it’s time to read the series that started it all. Even if you haven’t seen the show on HBO (which is probably better), the books are intricately detailed and beautifully written. It’s the perfect fantasy read for those who like political intrigue, swordfights, and magic. Best part is that since the books are still being (slowly) finished, there will be plenty more to come!
Kyle: My favorite book is actually a series of four, the Neapolitan Novels by Elena Ferrante. Ferrante is incredible in everything she does, and I think the series encapsulates everything her work sets out to do, which is to combine the personal and the political in a fiery narrative. Other than that, I’d reckon some of my other favorites are Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook, Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude, and Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. That being said, my favorite genre is probably literary fiction, but I’m also a sucker for a good YA novel.
Megan: I’m always torn when asked what my favorite book is. I usually pick three from different categories. My favorite book that I read for school is The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger, for Young Adult it’s currently the Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas (though the Harry Potter series will always have a special place in my heart), and in general I adore A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. I’m currently reading the Song of Ice and Fire series by George RR Martin (the books that Game of Thrones was based on) and I can already tell it’s going to be in my top five favorites once I’m caught up. Growing up I couldn’t get enough of the Warrior Cats series by Erin Hunter as they were the books that made me actually like reading in the first place. As for genre, Young Adult Fantasy will always have my heart. Give me a story with some magic and romance and I’m all yours!
Katelynn: My favorite book is Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It is one of those books that I’m still thinking of years after reading it. They say to never judge a book by its cover, but let me tell you! Anyone looking at the mangled cover of my copy of Herland can tell it is extremely loved and constantly read. My favorite genres are Sci-Fi and Dystopian. I appreciate the freedom these genres allow writers to play with plot and themes. Plus I always finish a Sci-Fi or Dystopian novel with a new perspective of my own reality and self, which I think is especially important for the present time.
If you could meet any writer, dead or alive, who would it be?
Kyle: It’s a weird choice, but I’d want to meet William Shakespeare. I’m studying to be a Shakespeare scholar later in my career, so my whole life is basically already devoted to him. There are so many mysteries surrounding his identity, work, and biography that’d I love to be able to sit down with him for a talk, just to hear what he has to say about art and life. Sure, his tragedies and histories and comedies have a life of their own, but if I had one wish it’d be to see the man behind this facade of greatness.
Megan: I would have to say JK Rowling. As much as I disagree with her on a lot of things that she has said about Harry Potter after it first came out, at the end of the day when I read those books it feels like I’m coming home. Her words have always found a way to make me feel at peace no matter what. I really would like to talk with her about a lot of the questions and theories that I have, as well as her experience as a writer in general. She really did a lot in the realm of literature, and culture in general, and I would love to get the chance to have a cup of tea with her and chat.
Katelynn: I think I would like to have a late evening dinner in the warm months of summer with Anne Frank, Mary Shelley, the authors of Curious George,H. A. Rey and Margret Rey, and Oscar Wilde. An interesting group I know, but I just want to sit down with each of them to express how much their words have meant to me and so many around the world. Then after dinner I’d like round out the night by going stargazing with Kurt Vonnegut and talk about the universe and the human experience with him.
Favorite adaptation of a piece of literature?
Kyle: I’m a complete geek for HBO’s Game of Thrones and can ramble on about it for days if you get me started. (Targaryen forever!) But I also adore Keira Knightley’s Pride and Prejudice, which I think captures the Austen vibe perfect, through all her quirky plot points and complex, yet fascinating character portraits. Also, Knightley perfect depicts the Elizabeth Bennet spirit.
Megan: I absolutely adore Sleep No More, an immersive theater adaptation of Macbeth by Shakespeare and Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. I’ve been to see it a few times now in NYC. Each experience is completely unique and I come away with a greater appreciation for the production as a whole, especially how they were able to take two pieces of literature and blend them together to form something new. The fact that I can interact with these characters and the set as part of the immersive experience has given me a better understanding of the original texts as well. I’ll never forget Lady Macbeth whispering her “out, damned spot” monologue in my ear while comparing my hand to hers and leading me up a flight of stairs!
Katelynn: I will always love Baz Luhrmann’s adaptations of Romeo and Juliet and The Great Gatsby. Both of those movies are so visually stunning and evoked the same emotion in me (aka I cried the moment the movie began) as the books did. Any adaptation of a children’s book also makes me extremely emotional because my biggest passion is making sure the next generation has great stories that will impact their lives for the better. I thought the most recent adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time was brilliant, and I couldn’t help but think of all the kids who had either read the book or would be begging their parents for it after watching the movie. Storytelling is so important so I am basically here for any book being adapted and therefore able to reach a larger audience.
Hobby outside of reading?
Kyle: Truthfully I don’t really do much outside of reading! But jokes aside, I love to write: fiction, essays, poems, you name it. There’s no feeling better than seeing my name in a byline or within a magazine, and I actually had a collection of short stories published in 2017 by my college’s press! Other than that, I’m a huge fan of history and study it constantly on the side (see above: Shakespeare), plus philosophy and psychology. But I’m not always so serious: I spend hours watching YouTube Let’s Plays and mukbangs—don’t judge me!
Megan: I love to spend hours playing video games. It’s a whole different form of storytelling that I can’t get enough of. I love being able to be at the center and control the narrative. My favorites are usually story-based as a result, such as the Dragon Age series by Bioware (especially Inquisition). I actually wrote an entire paper analyzing the representation of elves in that series for my Research Writing class when I was a freshman! I also love Overwatch and have sunk in hundreds of hours playing as Mercy. On top of video games, I’m really into Dungeons and Dragons as well as it gives me time with friends and is another immersive outlet for storytelling. I typically play as an elf and rogue is my favorite class!
Katelynn: Ever since moving to Boston I have become a huge plant fanatic. I love watering my little plants and making sure they are happy. There is just something about coming home to a room full of plants. My favorite plant right now is my Royal Hustler Ivy because I love watching the vines grow longer. As a graduate student I have put effort into finding hobbies that really allow me to escape from the stresses of school. Cooking, singing, and dancing seem to always boost my mood and clear my mind. I’m big into soups and have gotten pretty good at making a wicked creamy tomato soup.
What are you most excited for at the BBF?
Kyle: I may be cheating on this, since I’m its project manager, but I can’t wait for One City One Story! I can’t reveal too much, but I can say this year’s story is beyond immersive, touching, and heartfelt, revealing bits of humanity that are both intimate and private. One aspect I love most about 1C1S is the fact that we distribute free copies, and providing this citywide access to all is something that is very close to my heart. I’m so excited for everyone to see what we have been working on for so long.
Megan: I really can’t wait to meet and see the authors that I’ve been emailing! As the Author and Publisher Liaison intern, I’ve had a lot of communication with a wide variety of authors, publicists, and the like. Some of the authors I’m familiar with (I’m especially excited about the Young Adult authors that are coming) and others are new to me. I’ve really enjoyed being exposed to so many authors and I’m excited to meet them (and read their books in my free time). I wish I could be at every panel and event!
Katelynn: I’m a bit biased because I am the sole intern, but I am most excited for Lit Crawl Boston. I have poured my heart and soul into this event, and I am eager to see it all come together. I adore being a part of an event that helps to bring the community together while also helping to support local businesses and writers/performers. I have had the privilege of getting to correspond and work with some really inspirational people. It has been a lot of fun (and hard work) being so involved in planning Lit Crawl. I am most looking forward to seeing how attendees react to the different venues and their excitement for the different sessions as they “crawl” through Back Bay.
What’s more fun than mixing drinks? Mixing genres. Alden E. Jones’s session Writers Talk About Writing About Writers will have attendees fanning over interesting authors and inspired to explore the lives of their own favorite authors. Head to our Lit Crawl Boston event page to mark this session on your schedule and check out our previous blog posts to discover more about our other great sessions.
Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Alden: Fiction Advocate launched the Afterwords series in 2018, and its editors asked a number of literary critics to choose a major, recent work of fiction or memoir that had made an impact on them. We were given instructions to use 25,000 or so words to combine literary criticism with whatever other style of nonfiction we would like. We four Afterwords authors thought it would be fascinating to talk about how we each engaged with a text in different creative ways. Also, when you accumulate as many facts about certain writers as we have—our books are on Ben Lerner, Cormac McCarthy, Jonathan Letham, and Cheryl Strayed—we thought creating a trivia game from that knowledge would be fun for us and other fans of these writers.
What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Alden: The genre combining literary/cultural criticism and memoir is in bloom. We hope attendees of our session will feel inspired to consider the books and writers that have impacted them the most, and that our session invites them to consider creative ways to write about other writers and their writing. Also—trivia prizes!
In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
Alden: Fusion cuisine, of course. This session as a drink list would be quite eclectic: fancy vodka martinis for Stacie Williams’s book on gentrification; Snapple lemonade to acknowledge Cheryl Strayed’s fixation with it in Wild; and, to honor Cormac McCarthy, homemade whiskey with a touch of rattlesnake venom.
Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historic figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Alden: I think Oscar Wilde would get a kick out of this session. In his own critical writing on art and culture, he loved to go rogue, get personal, and invent his own style. I’d like to ask him what text he’d chose for his own Afterwords volume!
Thank you Alden for the wonderful interview. Now let’s get ready to “Lit Crawl!”
We all have an author or character that has inspired us. Here at the Boston Book Fest we are inspired by Manasa Davuluri who has brought with her from the West Coast the great session Silent Book Club. This club was born from friendship and from it attendees may garner not only some great book recommendations, but some new friends too! The best part about this session? You can join the Silent Book Club and continue to have a great time long after Lit Crawl Boston. Continue reading to find out more and if you like what you read click on our previous blog posts to get an inside look at our many other great sessions happening at this year’s Lit Crawl Boston.
Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Manasa: I remember seeing an article last year on Silent Book Club that talked about how it got started by two friends in San Francisco before spreading to many other cities. At the time, I was living in Sacramento and decided to start a chapter there with my friend, just to see how it went. We were thrilled with the positive response and the strong turnout from the beginning. It’s a unique idea and it seemed like people were waiting for something like this to join. When I moved to Boston last summer, I started a chapter here as a way to meet new people. Hosting these events at Trident has been lovely and making guilt-free time to read in the middle of a busy week has been an act of self-care.
What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Manasa: I hope they gain a relaxing space to enjoy one of their hobbies/passions and a sense of community by meeting new people. Silent Book Club is not a complicated concept but it almost seems revolutionary in its simplicity. The fact that you can take yourself out for a night while you’ve got all these other obligations going on (gasp!). Or that you can go to a book club that doesn’t bring you back to high school with assigned reading and discussion questions. It seems like people always say they wish they could read more but just don’t have the time. I hope some of them could walk away from SBC feeling like it’s possible, and that it’s something they can continue to do for themselves and/or with their friends.
In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
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Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historic figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Manasa: This is a really hard question and I definitely need more time to consider! But off the top of my head, Jane Austen springs to mind. Not only is she likely a beloved author of many of our attendees, I just feel her personality would be a great fit for SBC: bookish, lighthearted, witty, curious, and fantastically observant!
Thank you Manasa for a fantastic interview! Now let’s get ready to “Lit Crawl!”
After interviewing Sara Siegel about her session The Great American Poetry Challenge it is clear to see the biggest challenge is having to wait for June 6 to attend it! The Great American Poetry Challenge will have everyone exploring the poet within themselves while bonding with fellow Bostonians over laughs, language, and great drinks and food. Continue reading below to find out more and once you are done check out our previous posts on the other sessions involved in this year’s Lit Crawl Boston.
1. Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Sara: There are so many different challenges around—from American Gladiator to the Ice Bucket Challenge. We liked the idea of grouping together friends or strangers for a literary challenge—creating an original poem based on a specific set of guidelines that will be secret until the evening-of. It will make for an interesting assortment of pieces—since no one will have the luxury of agonizing over theme, word choice, meter, etc. beforehand, because no one will know the guidelines!
2. What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Sara: We hope that attendees will come away with the assurance that poetry is accessible and realize that it can also be silly, fun, and modern. We also hope that having working poets as team cheerleaders will give attendees confidence in their own writing.
3. In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
Sara: I think the Great American Poetry Challenge would be a jambalaya—a mix of a little bit of everything. Who knows what’s going to come out of each team’s creations?
4. Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historic figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Sara: I’m leaning towards Dorothy Parker—she had such a quick wit. I think she’d be fine creating a masterpiece on the spot.
Thank you Sara for such a wonderful interview! Now let’s get ready to “Lit Crawl!”
Like a table filled with different dishes from all over, there is a beauty in what makes all of us unique. Jennifer and Julia’s interview is a great reminder as to how important it is to reach out and listen with love to the stories of those we may think are different from ourselves. Immigrants in Conversation is sure to bring people together to absorb the inspirational experiences and art of the immigrant community here in Boston. Read more about this event below and after you are done check out the schedule for Lit Crawl Boston posted on our website.
1. Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Jennifer: This was Julia’s idea. She had been hosting the Italian American Writers Association Reading Series at I AM Books for about a year when she asked if I’d co-curate/host with her. I AM Books has become the heart of Italian American writing in the city. In this day of scant independent bookstores, Nicola and the staff have created something special. And of course, the North End has always been a haven for immigrants to America—the Eastern Europeans, the Irish, the Italians. We wanted to explore, via conversation with recent immigrants, this deeply American history—especially in these fraught times. We’re trying to establish this conversation with literary works.
2. What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Jennifer and Julia: We hope people will stop by, listen to some beautiful writing, and simply appreciate the conversation. And of course, we want Boston to discover this little bookstore!
3. In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
Jennifer and Julia: Oooooh. This is tough! For a drink, we’d have to choose a nice Chianti, or a deep espresso. How about a sweet limoncello? Food? How about octopus (polpo) simmered in a red sauce (gravy???)? I’m thinking those long arms, reaching!
Actually, octopus is Jenn’s idea; Julia is embarrassed to admit as an Italian that octopus freaks her out. She prefers the circles of calamari grilled. Either way hands reaching out, circles of love!
4. Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historical figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Jennifer and Julia: We chose Margaret Fuller, who was our first full-time female journalist and critic and would have come to our event if she lived today. She reported on Italy’s unification struggles, married an Italian, and if their boat had not gone down off the shore of Fire Island, would have raised one of Boston’s earliest Italian Americans.
Thank you Jennifer and Julia, it was a pleasure getting to interview you. Now let’s get ready to “lit crawl!”
2018’s BBF Unbound series of community-curated sessions offered a bounty of creative sessions and workshops proposed by members of our community. BBF Unbound sessions at last year’s festival included a primer on self-publishing, a workshop on telling politically relevant personal stories, a celebration of feminist romance, and a roundtable discussion on writing and publishing while queer. We love hearing your ideas for sessions and working with you to develop successful BBF presentations and workshops. Click here for a sample of last year’s selected “Queering the Canon” proposal (whose session participants are pictured above, toasting their success at the BBF afterparty).
We’re now accepting proposals for 2019 BBF Unbound sessions, to be presented at the Boston Book Festival on October 19 (in Copley Square) and October 20 (in Dudley Square/Roxbury).
We are looking for outside groups/individuals who can introduce fresh voices and new ideas to the BBF. Be creative! The session can involve a debate, demo, workshop, literary improv, dramatic readings, panel discussion, literary games, etc. We are not looking for product promotions, plugs for businesses, or sessions featuring a single author publicizing his or her book. We are especially interested in program proposals from organizations and individuals based in Roxbury, as well as by curators who represent communities historically underrepresented in publishing and literary programming.
You will be responsible for running your session, i.e., gathering participants, beginning and ending on time, and covering any expenses (beyond room rental and basic A/V). We will publicize your session on our website and in our Program Guide, and we will expect you to publicize it via your networks as well. Presenters who come to us via BBF Unbound receive all the same benefits as any invited presenters: a presenter badge that guarantees priority seating at sessions, a headshot and bio on the BBF website, and invitations to the kickoff cocktail reception and afterparty.
We will evaluate proposals based on: 1. Will the content appeal to the BBF audience? 2. Does the content offer something different from standard BBF fare? 3. Is the individual/group offering a plausible plan for implementing the session?
We all know literature pairs well with laughter like a Cabernet Sauvignon with a juicy steak! Steven Beeber’s interview will have you giggling and eager to have even more fun at their session, Four Stories, during Lit Crawl Boston on June 6. Read on to find out more–and between the laughter, creative thoughts, and excitement make sure to check out this session on the Lit Crawl Boston schedule.
Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Steven: Four Stories was originally the baby of Tracy Slater, but when she moved to Japan and had a real baby, we three (myself, Sari Boren, and Steve Brykman) took over. Regarding our event at Lit Crawl, it’s a specialized version of Four Stories in which both the readings and the questions for the readers are shorter. It’s like Insta-Four-Stories. Just add water (well, alcohol actually) and you have our regular event at The Burren in Somerville.
What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Steven: As with writing in general, we hope not just to entertain but to move those who come. Or rather, we hope that our readers do so. We have a great lineup and I’m sure that there will be laughter, provocative ideas and maybe even a few wet eyes during the course of the night. Of course after the readers do their thing, they answer questions from the audience, and these are by definition funny. No “What do you use to write, a pencil or a pen?” — more, “How does your mother feel knowing she gave birth to someone who could imagine something so sick?” (though asked in a tongue in cheek manner, of course.)
In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
Steven: We actually offer food and drink at our regular events, so in a sense we’re only involved in Lit Crawl because it’s copasetic! But if we were to be a beverage or food item? Perhaps a very dry martini accompanied by a bowl of hot chili. Or a beer with vichyssoise. Or a shot of rubbing alcohol with a communion wafer. All of these pair well.
Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historical figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Steven: I personally have always felt guilty by association for Edgar Allan Poe being run out of the city, so he would definitely be on my short list. And to provide the appropriate beverage for the audience member who asked him the best question, we’d offer a “Rogue Dead Guy.”
Thank you Steven for such a fantastic interview! Now let’s get ready to “lit crawl!”
Join Us in Celebrating and Supporting our 2019 Shelf Help Partner Schools
Happy September! The Boston Book Festival’s annual Shelf Help program, which brings brand-new donated books to Boston-area schools, is in full swing—but, this year there’s something new. Through a competitive application process, we’ve chosen not one but two schools for our program: Orchard Gardens Pilot School in Roxbury for grades K–8 and TechBoston Academy in Dorchester for grades 6–12. As in years past, we’re teaming up with the nonprofit organization Wondermore to bring BBF presenters (Charlotte Nicole Davis and another author TBD) for school visits before BBF’s annual festival on October 19th and 20th. You can learn more about Orchard Gardens Pilot School here and about TechBoston Academy here.
Participating publishers have started to fill the shelves but there’s still a long way to go, and that’s where you come in! We’re asking friends and fans of the BBF to join us in donating brand-new books and funds to stock library shelves at Orchard Gardens and TechBoston. Focusing primarily on a diverse collection of award-winning books, these schools’ online wish lists will make thousands of young readers very happy.
Here are some ways you can get involved:
Books bring hope to young readers—so we’d like to thank YOU for bringing much-needed hope to the youth of Boston!
Guest Post by 1C1S Author Ciera Burch
Last week, we were pleased to announce that this year’s One City One Story is “Yvonne” by Emerson MFA student Ciera Burch. You’ll be able to find your copy of Ciera’s story around Greater Boston starting in early September, but in the meantime, we’ve asked Ciera to write a guest post for our blog about the origins of her story and what led her to submit it for consideration as a 1C1S selection. Enjoy!
For me, writing “Yvonne” was an attempt to explore not only my own relationship with my grandmother, who passed away suddenly three years ago, but also the relationship between a grandparent and grandchild without the existence of the ‘3rd party’ of the parent.
Parental-child relationships are something that have fascinated me for most of my life—since my mom was a teenager when she had me, we got to grow up with each other, which allowed me to always see her as a person in her own right first and as my mother second. After my grandmother passed, I realized that there had always been a difference between her relationship with my mom and her relationship with me. She was more closed off when it came to my mom, more easily prone to anger, whereas with me she was constantly bubbly, always cooking me something or teaching me to cook for myself.
I don’t plan out my short stories, I usually just start writing, and “Yvonne” came together for me all at once: with the smells of a nursing home and an odd, anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach reserved for meeting new people. As I wrote, Celeste and Yvonne led me to the paths they needed to go down while showing me the paths that had led them to where we meet them on the first page. The connection between the two women is immensely important to me because there’s so much complexity to their feelings for one another. They’re family but they’re still figuring out what that means to them, now and going forward.
I chose this story to submit to the Boston Book Festival because in pop culture portrayals of Boston people of color are often excluded. Despite the existence of New Edition (Roxbury natives), little attention is paid to, and often little credit is given to, Boston’s nonwhite residents. With this story, my hope was that I could put black, and in Celeste’s case queer, people at the center of a narrative with universal appeal. In some way or another, I hope that people are able not only to empathize with but also relate to Yvonne and Celeste, because regardless of the different facets of their identities, they’re human with human problems and they love and hurt and worry just as deeply as anyone else.
Summer Reading 2019
There might be a zillion summer reading lists out there, but there’s only one brought to you by Team BBF! We spend all day, every day surrounded by books (more so every day, as copies of books by BBF 2019 authors start rolling in), so you’d better believe our staff’s TBR pile is never depleted. Whether your upcoming travels take you to the mountains, the beach, or just the local park or pool, we’ve compiled some of our favorite reading recommendations to round out your summer adventures—happy summer, and happy reading!
Norah Piehl, Executive Director
Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is a gift that keeps on giving, especially lately, as several recent novels have transformed and updated Austen’s classic as a way to comment on present-day issues of race, class, and religion. Ayesha at Last, by Uzma Jalaluddin, sets the classic romance in Toronto’s Muslim community, offering a thoroughly twenty-first century take on the novel of manners.
I’ve long admired Taffy Brodesser-Akner‘s journalistic profiles of people like Gwyneth Paltrow and Justin Bieber, so I was excited to read her debut novel, Fleishman Is in Trouble. Suffice it to say that this funny, achingly wise novel does not disappoint–and if you start reading it and think you know what to expect, keep turning pages, because you almost certainly won’t anticipate Brodesser-Akner’s thoroughly surprising storytelling twists.
Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O’Connell‘s YA graphic novel Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me is a sympathetic portrait of a sensitive young woman who falls in love with the wrong girl–over and over again.
Finally, I haven’t read it yet, but I am eager to crack open my copy of Colson Whitehead‘s The Nickel Boys. I’ve been a huge fan of his work even before he was the BBF’s 2016 fiction keynote, and I can’t wait to read his latest, about growing up black in the segregated South.
Jennifer Jean, Community Engagement Manager
The English translation of Dunya Mikhail‘s Diary of a Wave Outside the Sea, by Elizabeth Winslow and Dunya Mikhail–is amazing! Mikhail’s genre-bending, long prose-poem explores her experiences in and around war in Iraq.
As for fiction:
Folks should be reading Emily Pease‘s short story collection Let Me Out Here, which was the 2018 winner of the C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize. Pease’s writing is darkly funny and proves she is a razor-sharp observer of human foibles.
A must-read, totally absorbing novella is Olivia Cerrone‘s excellent The Hunger Saint, which is historical fiction about post–WWII Italian miners.
Katelynn Jasper, Lit Crawl Intern
Mrs. Caliban by Rachel Ingalls–A lonely housewife, a monster on the loose, and avocados…lots of avocados come together to create the perfect recipe for a great summer read. If you like dry, cynical humor and meaningful connections that remind us it’s what within us that counts then this book is for you! Bonus: Rachel Ingalls was a local author!
Say Her Name by Francisco Goldman–Put down that romance novel for a moment and pick up this one. Goldman gives the reader a rare glimpse into his beautiful life of grief, true love, secrets, laughter, family drama, and his wife Aura that will leave you holding your loved ones even closer. This moving and poetic book will have you saying its name to everyone once you are done.
Otherwood by Pete Hautman–Hautman masterfully weaves a tale of time travel, friendship, change, and accepting other’s differences as beautiful things. This is definitely one of my favorite coming-of-age novels and I flew through it quickly thanks to such a captivating plot and characters. I know that that both kids and adults will enjoy reading it, especially together!
Ximena Delgado, BBF 2019 Intern
One Hundred Years of Solitude/Cien Años de Soledad by Gabriel García Márquez (originally written in Spanish): I’ve had this book on my reading list for a while now. Last month I finally went out and got it and I am so excited to start reading it. Not only is Gabriel García Márquez an important figure of Latin American literature, he is also the type of writer I aspire to be. I have previously read some of his short stories and his writing has never disappointed me. This novel is a multi-generational story that follows the Buendia family in the town of Macondo. One Hundred Years of Solitude helped originate the magical realism genre and won García Márquez the 1982 Nobel Prize for Literature.
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong: Released on June 4th, 2019! With the release of his first novel, poet Ocean Vuong brings his beautiful writing to life. I first began reading Vuong after a friend’s recommendation and now I am extremely excited to see how he will encompass a full storyline with his words. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous unravels the history and secrets of a family through the use of letters. I cannot wait to start reading and see how this novel turns out.
Kyle Labe, BBF 2019 Intern
If you’re as much a geek for Greek mythology as I am, then Madeline Miller‘s latest novel is more than a treat. A modern epic in every sense of the word, Circe is a moving rumination on family, history, and womanhood, and lives up to the hype created by Miller’s brilliant debut, The Song of Achilles. It’s peculiar that, since this story follows the timeline of Homer’s Odyssey, we know everything that will happen in the book, but somehow this novel can’t be put down once opened.
When the star daughter of the Lee family’s body is found at the bottom of a lake, the entire family crumbles apart. Celeste Ng‘s debut novel, Everything I Never Told You, is both a portrait of the modern American family experience and an intriguing analysis of race, gender, and immigration, all the while remaining an intensely fascinating read. I hope to get around to Ng’s latest novel, Little Fires Everywhere, soon, but this is a great book for a road trip, beach day, or stay-cation.
Megan Michaud, BBF 2019 Intern
Meet the Interns
What is your favorite book and genre?
Kyle: My favorite book is actually a series of four, the Neapolitan Novels by Elena Ferrante. Ferrante is incredible in everything she does, and I think the series encapsulates everything her work sets out to do, which is to combine the personal and the political in a fiery narrative. Other than that, I’d reckon some of my other favorites are Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook, Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude, and Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. That being said, my favorite genre is probably literary fiction, but I’m also a sucker for a good YA novel.
Megan: I’m always torn when asked what my favorite book is. I usually pick three from different categories. My favorite book that I read for school is The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger, for Young Adult it’s currently the Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas (though the Harry Potter series will always have a special place in my heart), and in general I adore A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. I’m currently reading the Song of Ice and Fire series by George RR Martin (the books that Game of Thrones was based on) and I can already tell it’s going to be in my top five favorites once I’m caught up. Growing up I couldn’t get enough of the Warrior Cats series by Erin Hunter as they were the books that made me actually like reading in the first place. As for genre, Young Adult Fantasy will always have my heart. Give me a story with some magic and romance and I’m all yours!
Katelynn: My favorite book is Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It is one of those books that I’m still thinking of years after reading it. They say to never judge a book by its cover, but let me tell you! Anyone looking at the mangled cover of my copy of Herland can tell it is extremely loved and constantly read. My favorite genres are Sci-Fi and Dystopian. I appreciate the freedom these genres allow writers to play with plot and themes. Plus I always finish a Sci-Fi or Dystopian novel with a new perspective of my own reality and self, which I think is especially important for the present time.
If you could meet any writer, dead or alive, who would it be?
Kyle: It’s a weird choice, but I’d want to meet William Shakespeare. I’m studying to be a Shakespeare scholar later in my career, so my whole life is basically already devoted to him. There are so many mysteries surrounding his identity, work, and biography that’d I love to be able to sit down with him for a talk, just to hear what he has to say about art and life. Sure, his tragedies and histories and comedies have a life of their own, but if I had one wish it’d be to see the man behind this facade of greatness.
Megan: I would have to say JK Rowling. As much as I disagree with her on a lot of things that she has said about Harry Potter after it first came out, at the end of the day when I read those books it feels like I’m coming home. Her words have always found a way to make me feel at peace no matter what. I really would like to talk with her about a lot of the questions and theories that I have, as well as her experience as a writer in general. She really did a lot in the realm of literature, and culture in general, and I would love to get the chance to have a cup of tea with her and chat.
Katelynn: I think I would like to have a late evening dinner in the warm months of summer with Anne Frank, Mary Shelley, the authors of Curious George,H. A. Rey and Margret Rey, and Oscar Wilde. An interesting group I know, but I just want to sit down with each of them to express how much their words have meant to me and so many around the world. Then after dinner I’d like round out the night by going stargazing with Kurt Vonnegut and talk about the universe and the human experience with him.
Favorite adaptation of a piece of literature?
Kyle: I’m a complete geek for HBO’s Game of Thrones and can ramble on about it for days if you get me started. (Targaryen forever!) But I also adore Keira Knightley’s Pride and Prejudice, which I think captures the Austen vibe perfect, through all her quirky plot points and complex, yet fascinating character portraits. Also, Knightley perfect depicts the Elizabeth Bennet spirit.
Megan: I absolutely adore Sleep No More, an immersive theater adaptation of Macbeth by Shakespeare and Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. I’ve been to see it a few times now in NYC. Each experience is completely unique and I come away with a greater appreciation for the production as a whole, especially how they were able to take two pieces of literature and blend them together to form something new. The fact that I can interact with these characters and the set as part of the immersive experience has given me a better understanding of the original texts as well. I’ll never forget Lady Macbeth whispering her “out, damned spot” monologue in my ear while comparing my hand to hers and leading me up a flight of stairs!
Katelynn: I will always love Baz Luhrmann’s adaptations of Romeo and Juliet and The Great Gatsby. Both of those movies are so visually stunning and evoked the same emotion in me (aka I cried the moment the movie began) as the books did. Any adaptation of a children’s book also makes me extremely emotional because my biggest passion is making sure the next generation has great stories that will impact their lives for the better. I thought the most recent adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time was brilliant, and I couldn’t help but think of all the kids who had either read the book or would be begging their parents for it after watching the movie. Storytelling is so important so I am basically here for any book being adapted and therefore able to reach a larger audience.
Hobby outside of reading?
Kyle: Truthfully I don’t really do much outside of reading! But jokes aside, I love to write: fiction, essays, poems, you name it. There’s no feeling better than seeing my name in a byline or within a magazine, and I actually had a collection of short stories published in 2017 by my college’s press! Other than that, I’m a huge fan of history and study it constantly on the side (see above: Shakespeare), plus philosophy and psychology. But I’m not always so serious: I spend hours watching YouTube Let’s Plays and mukbangs—don’t judge me!
Megan: I love to spend hours playing video games. It’s a whole different form of storytelling that I can’t get enough of. I love being able to be at the center and control the narrative. My favorites are usually story-based as a result, such as the Dragon Age series by Bioware (especially Inquisition). I actually wrote an entire paper analyzing the representation of elves in that series for my Research Writing class when I was a freshman! I also love Overwatch and have sunk in hundreds of hours playing as Mercy. On top of video games, I’m really into Dungeons and Dragons as well as it gives me time with friends and is another immersive outlet for storytelling. I typically play as an elf and rogue is my favorite class!
Katelynn: Ever since moving to Boston I have become a huge plant fanatic. I love watering my little plants and making sure they are happy. There is just something about coming home to a room full of plants. My favorite plant right now is my Royal Hustler Ivy because I love watching the vines grow longer. As a graduate student I have put effort into finding hobbies that really allow me to escape from the stresses of school. Cooking, singing, and dancing seem to always boost my mood and clear my mind. I’m big into soups and have gotten pretty good at making a wicked creamy tomato soup.
What are you most excited for at the BBF?
Kyle: I may be cheating on this, since I’m its project manager, but I can’t wait for One City One Story! I can’t reveal too much, but I can say this year’s story is beyond immersive, touching, and heartfelt, revealing bits of humanity that are both intimate and private. One aspect I love most about 1C1S is the fact that we distribute free copies, and providing this citywide access to all is something that is very close to my heart. I’m so excited for everyone to see what we have been working on for so long.
Megan: I really can’t wait to meet and see the authors that I’ve been emailing! As the Author and Publisher Liaison intern, I’ve had a lot of communication with a wide variety of authors, publicists, and the like. Some of the authors I’m familiar with (I’m especially excited about the Young Adult authors that are coming) and others are new to me. I’ve really enjoyed being exposed to so many authors and I’m excited to meet them (and read their books in my free time). I wish I could be at every panel and event!
Katelynn: I’m a bit biased because I am the sole intern, but I am most excited for Lit Crawl Boston. I have poured my heart and soul into this event, and I am eager to see it all come together. I adore being a part of an event that helps to bring the community together while also helping to support local businesses and writers/performers. I have had the privilege of getting to correspond and work with some really inspirational people. It has been a lot of fun (and hard work) being so involved in planning Lit Crawl. I am most looking forward to seeing how attendees react to the different venues and their excitement for the different sessions as they “crawl” through Back Bay.
“All Lit Up!”: Lit Crawl Boston’s Writers Talk About Writing About Writers
What’s more fun than mixing drinks? Mixing genres. Alden E. Jones’s session Writers Talk About Writing About Writers will have attendees fanning over interesting authors and inspired to explore the lives of their own favorite authors. Head to our Lit Crawl Boston event page to mark this session on your schedule and check out our previous blog posts to discover more about our other great sessions.
Alden: Fiction Advocate launched the Afterwords series in 2018, and its editors asked a number of literary critics to choose a major, recent work of fiction or memoir that had made an impact on them. We were given instructions to use 25,000 or so words to combine literary criticism with whatever other style of nonfiction we would like. We four Afterwords authors thought it would be fascinating to talk about how we each engaged with a text in different creative ways. Also, when you accumulate as many facts about certain writers as we have—our books are on Ben Lerner, Cormac McCarthy, Jonathan Letham, and Cheryl Strayed—we thought creating a trivia game from that knowledge would be fun for us and other fans of these writers.
Alden: The genre combining literary/cultural criticism and memoir is in bloom. We hope attendees of our session will feel inspired to consider the books and writers that have impacted them the most, and that our session invites them to consider creative ways to write about other writers and their writing. Also—trivia prizes!
Alden: Fusion cuisine, of course. This session as a drink list would be quite eclectic: fancy vodka martinis for Stacie Williams’s book on gentrification; Snapple lemonade to acknowledge Cheryl Strayed’s fixation with it in Wild; and, to honor Cormac McCarthy, homemade whiskey with a touch of rattlesnake venom.
Alden: I think Oscar Wilde would get a kick out of this session. In his own critical writing on art and culture, he loved to go rogue, get personal, and invent his own style. I’d like to ask him what text he’d chose for his own Afterwords volume!
Thank you Alden for the wonderful interview. Now let’s get ready to “Lit Crawl!”
“All Lit Up!”: Lit Crawl Boston’s Silent Book Club
We all have an author or character that has inspired us. Here at the Boston Book Fest we are inspired by Manasa Davuluri who has brought with her from the West Coast the great session Silent Book Club. This club was born from friendship and from it attendees may garner not only some great book recommendations, but some new friends too! The best part about this session? You can join the Silent Book Club and continue to have a great time long after Lit Crawl Boston. Continue reading to find out more and if you like what you read click on our previous blog posts to get an inside look at our many other great sessions happening at this year’s Lit Crawl Boston.
Manasa: I remember seeing an article last year on Silent Book Club that talked about how it got started by two friends in San Francisco before spreading to many other cities. At the time, I was living in Sacramento and decided to start a chapter there with my friend, just to see how it went. We were thrilled with the positive response and the strong turnout from the beginning. It’s a unique idea and it seemed like people were waiting for something like this to join. When I moved to Boston last summer, I started a chapter here as a way to meet new people. Hosting these events at Trident has been lovely and making guilt-free time to read in the middle of a busy week has been an act of self-care.
Manasa: I hope they gain a relaxing space to enjoy one of their hobbies/passions and a sense of community by meeting new people. Silent Book Club is not a complicated concept but it almost seems revolutionary in its simplicity. The fact that you can take yourself out for a night while you’ve got all these other obligations going on (gasp!). Or that you can go to a book club that doesn’t bring you back to high school with assigned reading and discussion questions. It seems like people always say they wish they could read more but just don’t have the time. I hope some of them could walk away from SBC feeling like it’s possible, and that it’s something they can continue to do for themselves and/or with their friends.
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Manasa: This is a really hard question and I definitely need more time to consider! But off the top of my head, Jane Austen springs to mind. Not only is she likely a beloved author of many of our attendees, I just feel her personality would be a great fit for SBC: bookish, lighthearted, witty, curious, and fantastically observant!
Thank you Manasa for a fantastic interview! Now let’s get ready to “Lit Crawl!”
“All Lit Up!”: Lit Crawl Boston’s The Great American Poetry Challenge
After interviewing Sara Siegel about her session The Great American Poetry Challenge it is clear to see the biggest challenge is having to wait for June 6 to attend it! The Great American Poetry Challenge will have everyone exploring the poet within themselves while bonding with fellow Bostonians over laughs, language, and great drinks and food. Continue reading below to find out more and once you are done check out our previous posts on the other sessions involved in this year’s Lit Crawl Boston.
1. Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Sara: There are so many different challenges around—from American Gladiator to the Ice Bucket Challenge. We liked the idea of grouping together friends or strangers for a literary challenge—creating an original poem based on a specific set of guidelines that will be secret until the evening-of. It will make for an interesting assortment of pieces—since no one will have the luxury of agonizing over theme, word choice, meter, etc. beforehand, because no one will know the guidelines!
2. What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Sara: We hope that attendees will come away with the assurance that poetry is accessible and realize that it can also be silly, fun, and modern. We also hope that having working poets as team cheerleaders will give attendees confidence in their own writing.
3. In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
Sara: I think the Great American Poetry Challenge would be a jambalaya—a mix of a little bit of everything. Who knows what’s going to come out of each team’s creations?
4. Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historic figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Sara: I’m leaning towards Dorothy Parker—she had such a quick wit. I think she’d be fine creating a masterpiece on the spot.
Thank you Sara for such a wonderful interview! Now let’s get ready to “Lit Crawl!”
“All Lit Up!”: Lit Crawl Boston’s Immigrants in Conversation
Like a table filled with different dishes from all over, there is a beauty in what makes all of us unique. Jennifer and Julia’s interview is a great reminder as to how important it is to reach out and listen with love to the stories of those we may think are different from ourselves. Immigrants in Conversation is sure to bring people together to absorb the inspirational experiences and art of the immigrant community here in Boston. Read more about this event below and after you are done check out the schedule for Lit Crawl Boston posted on our website.
1. Tell me a bit about how your session came to be? Was there something that inspired you to form your group?
Jennifer: This was Julia’s idea. She had been hosting the Italian American Writers Association Reading Series at I AM Books for about a year when she asked if I’d co-curate/host with her. I AM Books has become the heart of Italian American writing in the city. In this day of scant independent bookstores, Nicola and the staff have created something special. And of course, the North End has always been a haven for immigrants to America—the Eastern Europeans, the Irish, the Italians. We wanted to explore, via conversation with recent immigrants, this deeply American history—especially in these fraught times. We’re trying to establish this conversation with literary works.
2. What is one thing you hope those attending Lit Crawl Boston will gain from your session?
Jennifer and Julia: We hope people will stop by, listen to some beautiful writing, and simply appreciate the conversation. And of course, we want Boston to discover this little bookstore!
3. In honor of Lit Crawl including drinks or food, what would your session be if it could be any type of drink and or type of food item?
Jennifer and Julia: Oooooh. This is tough! For a drink, we’d have to choose a nice Chianti, or a deep espresso. How about a sweet limoncello? Food? How about octopus (polpo) simmered in a red sauce (gravy???)? I’m thinking those long arms, reaching!
Actually, octopus is Jenn’s idea; Julia is embarrassed to admit as an Italian that octopus freaks her out. She prefers the circles of calamari grilled. Either way hands reaching out, circles of love!
4. Boston is such a historic and literary city! If you could have any historical figure attend your session who would it be and why?
Jennifer and Julia: We chose Margaret Fuller, who was our first full-time female journalist and critic and would have come to our event if she lived today. She reported on Italy’s unification struggles, married an Italian, and if their boat had not gone down off the shore of Fire Island, would have raised one of Boston’s earliest Italian Americans.
Thank you Jennifer and Julia, it was a pleasure getting to interview you. Now let’s get ready to “lit crawl!”
BBF Unbound 2019: Seeking Submissions
2018’s BBF Unbound series of community-curated sessions offered a bounty of creative sessions and workshops proposed by members of our community. BBF Unbound sessions at last year’s festival included a primer on self-publishing, a workshop on telling politically relevant personal stories, a celebration of feminist romance, and a roundtable discussion on writing and publishing while queer. We love hearing your ideas for sessions and working with you to develop successful BBF presentations and workshops. Click here for a sample of last year’s selected “Queering the Canon” proposal (whose session participants are pictured above, toasting their success at the BBF afterparty).
We’re now accepting proposals for 2019 BBF Unbound sessions, to be presented at the Boston Book Festival on October 19 (in Copley Square) and October 20 (in Dudley Square/Roxbury).
We are looking for outside groups/individuals who can introduce fresh voices and new ideas to the BBF. Be creative! The session can involve a debate, demo, workshop, literary improv, dramatic readings, panel discussion, literary games, etc. We are not looking for product promotions, plugs for businesses, or sessions featuring a single author publicizing his or her book. We are especially interested in program proposals from organizations and individuals based in Roxbury, as well as by curators who represent communities historically underrepresented in publishing and literary programming.
You will be responsible for running your session, i.e., gathering participants, beginning and ending on time, and covering any expenses (beyond room rental and basic A/V). We will publicize your session on our website and in our Program Guide, and we will expect you to publicize it via your networks as well. Presenters who come to us via BBF Unbound receive all the same benefits as any invited presenters: a presenter badge that guarantees priority seating at sessions, a headshot and bio on the BBF website, and invitations to the kickoff cocktail reception and afterparty.
We will evaluate proposals based on: 1. Will the content appeal to the BBF audience? 2. Does the content offer something different from standard BBF fare? 3. Is the individual/group offering a plausible plan for implementing the session?
APPLY HERE
The deadline has been extended to July 5–applicants will be notified of their selection by mid-July.
Questions?: Contact Norah Piehl, norah@bostonbookfest.org
If you would like to submit a hard copy of your proposal, or if you would like to submit supporting materials, please send them to:
Norah Piehl, Executive Director
Boston Book Festival
32R Essex St. Cambridge, MA 02139
norah@bostonbookfest.org
We look forward to reviewing your submissions!
“All Lit Up!”: Lit Crawl Boston’s Four Stories
We all know literature pairs well with laughter like a Cabernet Sauvignon with a juicy steak! Steven Beeber’s interview will have you giggling and eager to have even more fun at their session, Four Stories, during Lit Crawl Boston on June 6. Read on to find out more–and between the laughter, creative thoughts, and excitement make sure to check out this session on the Lit Crawl Boston schedule.
Steven: Four Stories was originally the baby of Tracy Slater, but when she moved to Japan and had a real baby, we three (myself, Sari Boren, and Steve Brykman) took over. Regarding our event at Lit Crawl, it’s a specialized version of Four Stories in which both the readings and the questions for the readers are shorter. It’s like Insta-Four-Stories. Just add water (well, alcohol actually) and you have our regular event at The Burren in Somerville.
Steven: As with writing in general, we hope not just to entertain but to move those who come. Or rather, we hope that our readers do so. We have a great lineup and I’m sure that there will be laughter, provocative ideas and maybe even a few wet eyes during the course of the night. Of course after the readers do their thing, they answer questions from the audience, and these are by definition funny. No “What do you use to write, a pencil or a pen?” — more, “How does your mother feel knowing she gave birth to someone who could imagine something so sick?” (though asked in a tongue in cheek manner, of course.)
Steven: We actually offer food and drink at our regular events, so in a sense we’re only involved in Lit Crawl because it’s copasetic! But if we were to be a beverage or food item? Perhaps a very dry martini accompanied by a bowl of hot chili. Or a beer with vichyssoise. Or a shot of rubbing alcohol with a communion wafer. All of these pair well.
Steven: I personally have always felt guilty by association for Edgar Allan Poe being run out of the city, so he would definitely be on my short list. And to provide the appropriate beverage for the audience member who asked him the best question, we’d offer a “Rogue Dead Guy.”
Thank you Steven for such a fantastic interview! Now let’s get ready to “lit crawl!”