PEN World Voices Festival: A Night of Prayer and Meditation
The desired effect—of evoking a religious service—was, by my accounting, achieved. As I sat, I felt my pulse slow. The setting, and the task at hand—giving ourselves over to… More
The Tubman Sisterhood
Not only was Donya about to become Egypt’s first woman president, she was also openly bisexual and a poet, the perfect antidote to decades of hypermasculine Egyptian politics. More
PEN World Voices Festival: The “Proustian Orgasm” of Memoir and Memory
Michael Ondaatje, Luc Sante, and Tracy K.Smith discussed the memoirs that most influenced their own writing and the prickly task of turning family stories into compelling literature. More
The PEN World Voices Festival As It Happened: “Divine Punishment”
There were moments on the panel when Ramirez and Caistor spoke like old friends. They talked about meeting for the first time at the Managua Book Festival in 1986.… More
The PEN World Voices Festival As It Happened: “Armenian Genocide: A Dark Paradigm”
The event was not a bleak centennial memorial but rather an inspiring commemoration of Armenian authors who continue to endure through the cultural lives of their work. More
Africa in Two Acts (audio)
Africa steps into the spotlight for this two-part event, designed to reveal hidden literary and political realities. Act I: Distinguished author and philosopher Achille Mbembe delivers remarks on the… More
Queer Futures (audio)
The burgeoning African gay rights movement is filled with brave artists and activists. Informative and inspirational, this conversation with prominent African writers will survey today's landscape, challenging preconceived ideas… More
Quelque part dans le monde
Somewhere in the world / There will always be a candle to light / A fire to put out / A flood to stem / A drought to fight… More
Support for the freedom to read with exclusive designs by Todd Parr, Mike Curato, Art Spiegelman, and more!
