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Brattleboro Festival Features

Saul Bellow and Galway Kinnell Weekend of Oct. 4-6

(l-r) Saul Bellow and Galway Kinnell

AS autumn becomes boldly apparent in southern Vermont, the Brattleboro Literary Festival plays host to an equally colorful array of authors on the weekend of Oct. 4-6. The three-day celebration in downtown Brattleboro features more than two dozen authors, poets and illustrators in a variety of events, appealing to young and old, ranging from readings and panel discussions to demonstrations, talks and tours.

THE events will be presented in a half-dozen venues throughout downtown Brattleboro, VT. Among the participating authors this year are Saul Bellow, Galway Kinnell, Karen Hesse, Chris Bohjalian, Howard Frank Mosher, April Bernard, Elinor Lipman, Archer Mayor, Malachy McCourt, Kathryn Davis and Ruth Stone.

THE Festival opens Fri. evening at 6 p.m. in the River Garden with a presentation by the Golgonooza Letterfoundry and Press discussing Broadsides and Fine Printing, their classical craft of hand printing books. Some of their projects include “Vowels” by Rimbaud, with art by Henri Cartier-Bresson and “Our Grandmothers” by Maya Angelou with illustrations by John Biggers. An informal reception to meet a number of the authors participating in the weekend’s events follows at 7:30 p.m. at the same location.

SAT. events get off to an exciting start with a 10 a.m. reading by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Galway Kinnell at the Latchis Theater. At 11 a.m. the action moves next door to the New England Youth Theater, where novelist Elinor Lipman reads from her fiction. Noon marks the start of two events: the New England Youth Theater features novelists Suzanne Kingsbury and John Griesemer and memoirist Mindy Lewis participating in a panel on “Getting Published,” while at the Latchis Theater, Malachy McCourt holds forth and reads from Voices of Ireland, the new anthology he has edited.

AT 1 p.m., the Hooker-Dunham Theatre hosts a reading by 2002 New England Book Award-winning novelist Chris Bohjalian. The busiest stretch of events begins at 2 p.m.: Candle in the Night hosts eminent author Saul Bellow discussing his literary life and works. Bellow was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1976. His first book, Dangling Man, was published in 1944. In his distinguished career, Bellow has been honored with a Pulitzer Prize, three National Book Awards, and in 1990, the National Book Award Foundation Medal for lifetime achievement.

AT 2:30 p.m., “Conversations on Mystery” featuring the incorrigible Archer Mayor and the irrepressible Sarah Strohmeyer discussing murder and mayhem takes place at the Hooker-Dunham Theater & Gallery.

THE New England Youth Theater showcases a pair of writers at 3:30 p.m.: Mindy Lewis reading from her memoir and Art Corriveaux reading from his novel. And at 4 p.m., novelist Kathryn Davis, winner of the Kafka Award, gives a reading from her fiction at the Hooker-Dunham Theater & Gallery. At 5 p.m., the New England Youth Theater is the site for a reading by novelists John Griesemer and Suzanne Kingsbury.

SAT. evening, poetry is on the bill at the New England Youth Theater. Evening events begin at 6:30 when Wyn Cooper reads from recent and new work. At 7:30 April Bernard gives a reading from her recently published book, Swan Electric. The evening winds up with an open reading beginning at 8:30 hosted by Write Action, a group that provides support for the local writing community.

ALSO during the day on Saturday, the Festival will be offering a program of events for children and young readers. For children, readings and drawing demonstrations take place at the Brattleboro Museum & Arts Center beginning at 10 a.m. with John Steven Gurney, author of Dinosaur Train, and Wendy Watson, author of Holly’s Christmas Eve: and at 2 p.m. Dean Morrissey, author of The Ship of Dreams and D.B. Johnson, author of Henry Builds a Cabin.

YOUNG reader events will be held at the Brooks Memorial Library beginning at 2:30 p.m. with a Young Reader panel featuring Jessie Haas and Johanna Hurwitz, who have between the two of them published more than 75 titles for young readers. At 4 p.m., Newbery Award-award winning young adult author Karen Hesse reads from her book Stowaway.

ON Sun. morning The Festival’s “Light & Literary Brunch,” sponsored by Write Action, gets underway at 10:30 a.m. at the River Garden. Festival-goers can relax their way into the day’s schedule with a cup of coffee and pastry, and the not-too-serious literary entertainment of Michael Nethercott.

IN the New England Youth Theater at 1 p.m., Howard Frank Mosher discusses his books and his writing career with the audience. In anticipation of this event, and as a tribute to Mosher’s fictional work which explores the people and places of northern Vermont, the Festival encourages readers to familiarize themselves with at least one of Mosher’s books and to come and join in the discussion.

AT 3 p.m. the Festival offers a rare special event. Through the generosity of the Landmark Trust, Naulakha, Rudyard Kipling’s former home, will be open to a limited number of people until 5 p.m. As an added treat at Naulakha, Wild Root Arts presents actor Richard Aldis as Rudyard Kipling. The Festival then moves back downtown to a wonderful conclusion, with readings at The New England Youth Theater by three very fine poets, all of them award-winners, on Sunday evening.

AT 5:30, David Hinton, perhaps the foremost contemporary translator of Chinese poetry, ancient and modern, whose renditions have been honored by his peers, will read from his work, F.D. Reeve, novelist, poet, critic, and essayist, who will be reading from his recent poetry, follows him at 6:30. The final event of this year's Festival is a reading by one of the country’s notable poets and creative writing teachers, longtime VT resident Ruth Stone, winner of the 1999 National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry.

FESTIVAL headquarters will be located at Cooke’s Corner, 2 Elliot St., at the corner of Main and Elliot Sts. Festival information and programs are available there beginning Thurs., Oct. 3. All festival events are free of charge with the exception of the Kipling event, which has a $10 admission fee.

THE Brattleboro Literary Festival is sponsored by Brattleboro Savings & Loan, Marlboro College, the Thomas Thompson Trust, Building a Better Brattleboro, The Book Cellar and Collected Works.

DOWNTOWN Brattleboro is located off Interstate 91 at exit 2. For directions to the Festival or for a full schedule of events, author information, and photos, please visit http://www.grapevinecommunications.com/litfest.

ONE may also call The Book Cellar at 802-254-6026 or Collected Works, 802-258-4900, or email Building a Better Brattleboro at mailto: [email protected].