In Person
March 11, 2009
Context is everything: Lit City in Toronto 3
by Andrew Saikali
Millions readers in the Toronto area should check out the Lit City exhibit at the Market Gallery (second floor of the St. Lawrence Market, on now through the spring, free). As part of the ongoing festivities marking Toronto’s 175th birthday, the Market Gallery, occupying a room that served as council chambers in the mid-late 1800s, [...]
November 25, 2008
The Immigrant Factor: Junot Díaz and Rawi Hage in conversation 0
by Andrew Saikali
Their personalities couldn’t be more different. Junot Díaz: casually amiable, chatty; Rawi Hage: quietly reflective, a bit reserved. Actually, not a bad double-act, as they seem to complement each other. And in addition to each desperately trying to catch his breath after a whirlwind year – Díaz fresh from countless accolades for his novel The [...]
November 10, 2008
Sarah Vowell’s Arcane Americana Road-Show 3
by Andrew Saikali
When Sarah Vowell comes to town, she brings with her the oddest bunch of Puritans you’ve ever met. Sometimes cruel, often endearing, highly literate (for a pre-Enlightenment society), occasionally confounding in their contradictions, the Puritans who settled the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s come to life in Vowell’s latest historical slice of arcane Americana. [...]
October 20, 2008
Speakers and the Spoken-To 0
by Andrew Saikali
A streetcar along the lake brings you to a low-rise white building where artists and artisans further their craft. It’s evening, somewhat deserted, but turn down one hallway and the tools of their trade remain in public view. Turn another corner and photographic art lines the walls. In a secluded room: a sea of café [...]
October 16, 2008
Umberto Eco vs. Junot Díaz 1
by Laurie Anderson
This Guest post comes from Laurie Anderson. Laurie is a publicity assistant for a large Southern university. A Performance Comparison, Not a Literary Critique Umberto Eco gave three free lectures at Emory University in Atlanta October 5 through 7, and also did a reading and signing. All three lectures will be released in print form [...]
October 14, 2008
Haruki Murakami in Berkeley 4
by Ben Dooley
This past weekend, Haruki Murakami appeared at U.C. Berkeley’s Zellerbach Auditorium for a reading of his short stories and a wide-ranging conversation about his work and life. Despite my disappointment with his recent work, Murakami ranks as one of my favorite writers, and it was a pleasure to finally see the notoriously shy writer in [...]
