Events
Haunted Territory: The Weight of History -- Jenny Erpenbeck in Conversation with Louise Steinman
Jenny Erpenbeck’s childhood, she has commented, “belongs in a museum.” Born in the now- defunct GDR; she was twenty-two and in university when the Berlin Wall fell on November 9, 1989. In her most recent novel, Kairos, Erpenbeck narrates two breakups: one romantic, one political. An intense and formative relationship collapses, like the GDR, leaving behind a narrative ruin. In Go, Went, Gone (2015), she centers her novel on the moral question of asylum, through an encounter between a privileged German citizen and a small group of displaced African refugees. Erpenbeck, an epic storyteller and one of the most celebrated authors in Germany, discusses her work with writer, artist, and literary curator Louise Steinman.
This program is presented in partnership with Villa Aurora.
The Feminist Fight Forward: Lessons from 50 Years of Ms.
Examine the evolution and future of women's rights during this daylong event celebrating Ms. Magazine's enduring commitment to feminism with the release of its new anthology, 50 Years of Ms.
Sunday, October 29, 10:00 am–3:00 pm
10:00 am: doors and breakfast
11:00 am: first keynote
12:15 pm: breakout sessions
1:45 pm: closing keynote
2:30 pm: conference wrap-up
3:00 pm: Museum access
Anne Berest, author of THE POSTCARD, in conversation with Louise Steinman
Winner of the American Choix Goncourt Prize, the Prix Renaudot des lycéens, and the ELLE Readers Prize, Anne Berest’s The Postcard is among the most acclaimed and beloved French novels of recent years. Luminous and gripping to the very last page, it is an enthralling investigation into family secrets, a poignant tale of mothers and daughters, and a vivid portrait of twentieth-century Parisian intellectual and artistic life.
PEN World Voices Festival
The World Voices Festival, founded in 2004 by Salman Rushdie, is PEN America’s celebration of international literature and writers. Honoring our organization’s hundred-year history of uniting writers and readers to celebrate creative expression and the freedom to write for all, the Festival was founded in the wake of 9/11 to counter U.S. isolationism and broaden the channels of dialogue between the United States and the world.
Featuring more than 100 writers from 27 countries, the 2023 festival will celebrate great writing and the power of storytelling against the current headwinds of attacks by those who seek to censor and silence. This gathering of writers from every part of the globe is a potent reminder—in fact, an antidote in an era of censorship—that books drive culture and identity, while empowering and transforming our lives.