9th Annual Midwest Literary Walk
Saturday, April 29, 2017 | 1:00-5:00 pm
Event Alert (4/27/17) : Due to international flight complications, Kwame Alexander will not be appearing at this Saturday’s Midwest Literary Walk. However, the wonderfully talented Airea D. Matthews will be still be joining us for the 4pm session for a poetry reading and discussion of her creative process.
DOWNTOWN CHELSEA, MI
FREE ADMISSION
1:00 pm | Chelsea First Congregational Church
Join Peter Ho Davies & Derek Palacio in a panel moderated by Rich Fahle followed by Q&A.
Chelsea First Congregational Church, 121 E Middle St, Chelsea, MI 48118
Peter Ho Davies, The Fortunes
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2016, NPR BEST BOOKS OF 2016, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BEST BOOKS OF 2016, NEW YORK TIMES EDITOR’S CHOICE SELECTION
“Intense and dreamlike . . . filled with quiet resonances across time . . . The Fortunes is powerful as a chronicle of perpetual frustration, as each new generation grows aware of the arbitrary line between margin and mainstream . . . What makes The Fortunes so hopeful, the type of novel that could have only been written now, is its willingness to take liberties with that past—to rearrange its details and indulge in speculation, in order to help us imagine a different way forward.” —The New Yorker
Derek Palacio, The Mortifications
NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOK OF 2016, NEW YORK TIMES EDITOR’S CHOICE SELECTION
“Some books are storms. Others are weather. Derek Palacio’s debut novel, The Mortifications, is very much the latter. It is hot sun and cool rain, morning fog and the hum of a fan in the window. It ranges and roams, this book. When it settles onto a moment, it does so with the weight of ten butterflies.” —NPR
2:30 pm | Chelsea Depot
Join Heather Ann Thompson as she presents on her book Blood in the Water followed by Q&A.
Heather Ann Thompson, Blood in the Water
WINNER OF THE 2017 PULITZER PRIZE IN HISTORY, NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST, NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK FOR 2016, NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE BOSTON GLOBE, NEWSWEEK, KIRKUS, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, MORE
“The power of this superb work of history comes from its methodical mastery of interviews, transcripts, police reports and other documents, covering 35 years, many released only reluctantly by government agencies, and many of those “rendered nearly unreadable from all of the redactions.” –The New York Times
4:00 pm | Main Street Church in Clocktower Commons
Join Airea D. Matthews (Dee) for readings from her works and conversation about her artistic process.
Airea D. Matthews, simulacra
WINNER 2016 YALE SERIES OF YOUNGER POETS, WINNER 2016 RONA JAFFEE FOUNDATION WRITERS AWARD
“Rebellion is the first word that comes to mind, when reading simulacra, Airea Matthews’s rollicking, destabilizing, at once intellectually sly and piercing and finally poignant debut. — Yale Series judge Carle Phillips on simulacra
5:00 pm | Chelsea Alehouse Brewery
Keep the conversation going! Join fellow attendees and event organizers to talk about the day and enjoy some great food at the Chelsea Alehouse Brewery!
Our 2017 Partners
The Midwest Literary Walk is thrilled to again partner with Literati Bookstore as the official on-site bookseller for the event.