Check out all the authors scheduled to speak at various Brooklyn Public Libraries through the month. The author talk series is free of charge and open to the public.
Kaveh Akbar Discusses Martyr! With Arian Moayed
Tuesday, January 23, 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Brooklyn Heights Library, 286 Cadman Plaza West
RSVP here.
A newly sober, orphaned son of Iranian immigrants, guided by the voices of artists, poets, and kings, embarks on a remarkable search for a family secret that leads him to a terminally ill painter living out her final days in the Brooklyn Museum. Kaveh Akbar is an award-winning poet and scholar whose poems appear in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Paris Review, The Best American Poetry, and elsewhere. He is the author of a chapbook and two poetry collections and is the poetry editor for the Nation. In conversation with Tony-nominated actor Arian Moayed.
Andrew Garn Discusses Brooklyn Arcadia with Allison C. Meir
Tuesday January 23, 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Park Slope Library, 431 6th Avenue
RSVP here.
In collaboration with the Municipal Art Society of New York and Green-Wood Cemetery. Brooklyn Arcadia is a new book featuring Garn’s photographs of the historic cemetery. Garn is a New York based photographer with experience in editorial and fine arts projects. He is the author of 10 photography books. In conversation with Brooklyn-based writer Allison C. Meier, author of Grave.
Ha Jin Discusses The Woman Back From Moscow with Ken Chen
Thursday, January 25, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Central Library, 10 Grand Army Plaza
RSVP here.
Through the life of a remarkable woman—based on pioneering stage director Sun Weishi (1921-1968) —this epic novel immerses the reader in the multifaceted history of China’s Communist Party. Jin is a National Book Award winner (Waiting) and the author of several novels and books of poetry. In conversation with Ken Chen, the associate director of Creative Writing at Barnard College of Columbia University and the author of the forthcoming book tentatively titled Death Star.
Patrick Bringley on All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum and Me
Thursday January 25, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Sunset Park Library, 5108 Fourth Avenue
RSVP here.
Drawing on his decade working as a guard at New York City’s largest museum, Bringley delves into the Met’s encyclopedic collection of art, how the museum operates, the 500 colleagues in the security department, and more in his award-winning book. Presented with Culture Pass.
Cezary Łazarewicz on The Case of Stanislaw Pyjas
Sunday, January 28, 3 to 5 p.m. Via Zoom In Polish.
Please RSVP for the link.
On May 7, 1977, the body of Stanisław Pyjas was found in a tenement house in Krakow. Since then, myths, conspiracy theories, hypotheses, and hundreds of interpretations have been posed about the death of the student who was also a KOR (Workers Defense Committee) collaborator. Writer Cezary Łazarewicz meticulously reconstructed the course and background of the investigation—both the one conducted during the communist era and the one resumed in 1991—in Na Szewskiej. The Case of Stanisław Pyjas. The book is also a story of a great friendship and an incomprehensible betrayal.
Ayesha Rascoe Discusses HBCU Made with Astead Herndon
Tuesday, January 30, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Central Library, 10 Grand Army Plaza
RSVP here.
This joyous and moving collection of essays shines alight on the significant contributions that HBCUs have made to American culture. With testimonials from Oprah Winfrey, Roy Wood, Jr., Stacey Abrams, and Branford Marsalis, the book was edited by Ayesha Rascoe, host of NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday. In conversation with Astead W. Herndon. Herndon is the national politics reporter for The New York Times, a political analyst for CNN and host and reporter for The Run Up, a New York Times podcast about the 2024 election.
Adam Shatz Discusses The Rebel’s Clinic with Lydia Polgren
Wednesday, January 31, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Central Library, 10 Grand Army Plaza
RSVP here.
In the era of Black Lives Matter and the war in Gaza, Frantz Fanon’s shadow looms larger than ever. He was the intellectual activist of the postcolonial era, and his writings about race, revolution, and the psychology of power continue to shape radical movements across the world. In this searching biography, Adam Shatz tells the story of Fanon’s stunning journey, which has all the twists of a Cold War-era thriller. Shatz is the US editor of The London Review of Books and a contributor to The New York Times Magazine, The New York Review of Books, The New Yorker, and other publications. He is the host of the podcast Myself with Others. In conversation with New York Times columnist Lydia Polgreen. With Unnameable Books.
