Joyce Carol Oates, multi-award winning author of more than 40 novels as well as novellas, short stories and nonfiction, will be in conversation with author and artist Jonathan Santlofer about her body of work and her latest works, Hazards of Time Travel and Beautiful Days.
Oates and Santlofer will also talk about their respective memoirs of love, loss, and self-discovery: A Widow’s Story and The Widower’s Notebook. Santlofer is the author of 19 books and, as a well-known artist, his artwork has been exhibited in more than 200 exhibitions worldwide.
Also on the preliminary list of confirmed authors is 2018 National Book Award winner Sigrid Nunez, discussing her winning book, The Friend, with editor Sarah McGrath, and short story writer and novelist Nathan Englander, who will talk about his new novel kaddish.com., a comic story about a son’s failure to say Kaddish for his father. Best-selling author of four memoirs and five novels, Dani Shapiro, will also be in conversation about her new memoir, Inheritance, and author and journalist Craig Unger will discuss his latest book, House of Putin, House of Trump. In addition, author and professor Tressie McMillan-Cottom will discuss her second book Thick: And Other Essays with Well-Read Black Girl book club founder and author, Glory Edim.
There will also be a full day of events for children and young adults, including Gayle Forman, author of the popular If I Stay series, in conversation with Down and Across author Arvin Ahmadi. Other YA authors include Gae Polisner, Sara Farizan, Mark Oshiro, and Mark Aronson, and events for younger readers will feature Julia Sarcone-Roach, Geoff Rodkey, Daniel Kirk, Adriana Brad Schanen, Artie Bennett and many others.
The main festival day is Saturday March 23, with a full program of book talks, panel discussions, and author signings at Montclair Public Library, First Congregational Church, and Montclair Art Museum. Events on the preceding days will include A Night of Words and Music with readings and performance by Zara Phillips, Richard Thompson, and Warren Zanes on Wednesday, March 20; the ever-popular Montclair Poetry Slam for Middle and High School students; and a Poetry Cafe featuring poets Alicia Cooke, Amanda Lovelace, Gretchen Gomez, Chris Beckett, and others, both on Friday March 22, 2019.
Past festival highlights included Trevor Noah, Patti Smith, Paul Auster, Anna Quindlen, Meg Wolitzer, Tom Perrotta, Thomas Friedman and Min Jin Lee.
The 2019 Festival Pass, which gives VIP entry to all ticketed festival events in 2019 (at least 4 events) and a chance to meet authors at the festival party, is currently on sale for $195. The pass also includes a book for each book talk event, VIP venue access, and preferential seating. Buy the pass at http://succeed2gether.org/2019-festival-pass/.
The festival is seeking sponsors to assist with the running costs of the event. All funds raised at the festival will support Succeed2gether’s free tutoring, after-school and summer enrichment programs for children in need in Essex County.
More details about the festival, the current author line-up, and sponsorship opportunities can be found on the festival’s website succeed2gether.org/montclair-literary-festival/.