| Hello Litquakers,
As we inch into Spring, the days are finally getting longer. Sure that means more sunshine, longer evening walks, and leaving the office when it’s actually bright outside, but most importantly, it means more time for celebrating literature alongside friends new and old. These next few months are going to be packed! We’ve selected a curator for our collaborative afternoons of poetry with Yerba Buena Gardens, the inaugural show of our Epicenter series gets announced next week, submissions are about to open for a very special weekend of June panels, and we’re partnering with KQED to host the launch of Kim Stanley Robinson’s latest book!
Find some of the details below, and keep your eyes on our social media for big reveals about the rest. |
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| Black Fire This Time
Thursday, February 23
6:30-8:00pm
Join us for live readings and a community dialogue with Tongo Eisen-Martin, Karla Brundage, devorah major, and 10 other poets featured in the critically-acclaimed anthology Black Fire This Time, Vol. 1. This event will also mark the premiere of the Black Fire This Time Touring Exhibition, a multimedia showcase that you can experience at MoAD.
Celebrating the history and legacy of the Black Arts Movement, this anthology contains the work of over 100 Black poets and writers and the last living legends of the movement, from Sonia Sanchez to Ishmael Reed, Judy Juanita, Eugene B. Redmond and Askia Touré. This intergenerational collection is a conversation bridging the founders of the movement with contemporary writers in the tradition.
This event is hosted by Aquarius Press and co-presented by the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library and Litquake, in honor of Black History Month. A book signing will follow the reading. |
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Kim Stanley Robinson is one of the world's greatest living science fiction writers and political novelists. A New York Times bestseller and winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus awards, he is the author of more than 20 books, including the Mars trilogy and The Ministry for the Future. Robinson, who lives in Davis, spends his summers backpacking in the Sierras and chronicles the geological and political changes he’s witnessed in the mountains over time in a new memoir. Join literary critic Oscar Villalon and climate reporter Laura Klivans in conversation with Robinson about his new book The High Sierra: A Love Story, a genre-shifting novel and atlas of the mountain range.
This event is hosted by KQED and co-presented by Litquake. |
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Meet Karla Brundage! Karla will be curating and hosting Litquake’s Poetic Tuesdays at Yerba Buena Gardens on May 9, June 13, July 11, and August 8. Stay tuned for lineups to come!
Karla is author of two books of poetry, including Swallowing Watermelons, and co-author of Mulatta–Not so Tragic. Her work as editor and publisher for Pacific Raven Press has included authors in the Bay Area, Hawaii, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya in the following anthologies: Sisters Across Oceans, Our Spirits Carry Our Voices, and Black Rootedness: 54 Poets from Africa to America. Media credits include Sister Power on ThinkTech Hawaii, C-SPAN, LitSeen, Wanda's Picks and Chills at Will Podcast. Her poetry, essays and short stories can be found in Konch, Literary Magazine, sPARKLE & bLINK, MiGoZine, Black Fire This Time, Essential Truths, and A Gathering of Tribes: Black Lives Matter Issue and her upcoming book Blood Lies: Race Trait(d)or (Finishing Line Press 2024). A graduate of Vassar College, Mills College MFA Program, and San Francisco State Clinical Schools Project, Karla is founder of West Oakland to West Africa Poetry Exchange. |
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Litquake Weekly Literary news, upcoming events, and whatever else we’re looking at... “As the year 2023 marks what’s widely accepted as the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip-hop, it’s time to give the Bay its shine. That’s why we’re spending the whole year telling the story of this culture, piece by piece.” Study up on the history of Bay Area hip-hop with this new column • KQED
“The hype, and the backlash to that hype, have helped to make BookTok into the most powerful word-of-mouth engine the book publishing industry has ever seen.” Creativity, joy, and a contagious enthusiasm for books is turning TikTok into the freshest space for book revues, and giving writers of all genres new opportunities to engage with fans • Literary Hub
“Stephenie Meyer has announced that two new Twilight books will be released.” Lovers of vampires, werewolves, glitter, and angst...rejoice! • Book Riot
“If the result of publishers seeking to capitalize on a trend for more diverse non-fiction is fresh books addressing topics that go beyond dinosaurs and astronauts, kids should be winners.” With children’s non-fiction selling more than ever, authors and publishers are figuring out how to broaden horizons for young people everywhere • Financial Times
“Grace Cathedral is warm and welcoming to all who visit. But did you know that it is also a vibrant cultural hub for our diverse Bay Area communities?” Catch readings, concerts, and so much more by becoming a Cultural Member today • Grace Cathedral |
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