Five Things to Do at the Texas Book Festival: Online and in-person picks, from Pinocchio to plagues to portals to Hell – Arts
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Harlem Shuffle on Monday”/>
Colson Whitehead is bringing his Harlem Shuffle on Monday
Here comes the 26th annual Texas Book Festival, all of you, deep in the literary heart of Austin, celebrating the advent of printed matter more than 500 years after Gutenberg surrendered his dance card. And yes, the festival is mostly a virtual affair this year as this damn pandemic is still going on. But there are personal components too – a series of children’s programs in Symphony Square (1117 Red River) on Sat, Oct. 30, and a righteous handful of adult presentations at the Austin Central Library (710 W. Cesar Chavez) on Sun, Oct. 31. – and of course it’s also worth talking about the huge virtual part of this bookworm. And we have recommendations for you – for both aspects – right here …
Harlem Shuffle: Interview with Pulitzer Prize winner Colson Whitehead
The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer of Nickel Boys and The Underground Railroad returns to the Texas Book Festival to discuss his new book – “Part mugger novel, part family saga … a love letter to early 1960s Harlem”. Of course we recommend this one. Because Pulitzer? Because HBO series? Yeah, no, we’re not even that caught up yet – but our minds still sway from soaking up the weird brilliance of Whitehead’s earlier The Intuitionist and Zone One. On-line. Mon., October 25, 12:45 p.m.
Pinocchio, feverish dreams and babies born with gills: fabulistic and absurd fiction that explores family fear
If the title of this film attracted you at all, you’ll be amazed to learn it’s a discussion with Austin writer Edward Carey (The Swallowed Man) and Ethan Rutherford (Farthest South & Other Stories). And if that’s not compelling enough, as Halloween draws nearer, note that this talk will be hosted by Deb Olin Unferth – whose own barn 8 involves two US egg industry accountants who go rogue and plan to make a million in the middle of the year Chickens steal the night. On-line. Mon., October 25, 7 p.m.
The year of the plague: an interview with Pulitzer Prize winner Lawrence Wright
New York Times bestselling author Lawrence Wright discusses The Plague Year: America in the Time of Covid with Texas Tribune Co-Founder Evan Smith – an exploration of the medical, economic, political, and social origins and effects of the COVID pandemic . Would you like comprehensive, well-researched coverage on the subject, co-survivor of the pandemic? Wright will provide them as he does for so many subjects. On-line. Thursday, October 28th, 10 a.m.
Beer out of fog, millennia-old egg ovens, food in heaven and more: a conversation with Cecily Wong. from Gastro Obscura
Gastro Obscura: A Food Adventurer’s Guide by Cecily Wong and Dylan Thuras of Atlas Obscura is a detailed, beautifully illustrated exploration of food “as a gateway to a better understanding of history, science, art and tradition”. In an interview with Nadia Chaudhury from Eater Austin, author Wong will show how people on all seven continents prepare, eat, drink and come together at the table. Do you find your habit of adding cold cranberry jelly to hot miso soup is strange, citizen? Do you think a Chex Mix party bowl with sautéed crickets is the wildest thing you can imagine? There’s a whole big world of cuisine out there. On-line. Sat, October 30, 2:45 p.m.
The Devil’s Treasure: A Conversation with Mary Gaitskill
Safe bet: if you’ve ever read Gaitskill’s Bad Behavior short story collection from 1998, the stories are still on your mind. And by the time you’ve read any of those stories, you’ve probably devoured what it has produced since then – the stories, the novels, the essays. Listen: Gaitskill’s latest work presents excerpts from her earlier novels – including Veronica from 2005 and Die Stute from 2015 – all together with author’s comments and all connected by the story of a girl named Ginger who discovers a portal to hell in her own backyard. In person at the Austin Central Library and online. Sun., October 31, 4 p.m.
The Texas Book Festival runs October 23-31. Register for online events at texasbookfestival.org.
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