On Biography: Charles J. Shields discusses Kurt Vonnegut with Rachel Syme
11/30/2011 7:00 pm
On Biography is a conversation and reading series devoted to the craft of biography. Host Rachel Syme will speak to leaders and emerging stars of the biography world, discussing the thrills and challenges of writing about a life. This series will explore the ethics of reading personal letters and diaries, the controversies that come with writing someone else's story, and the excitement of uncovering a treasure in the archives. Rachel will talk with Charles J. Shields about his new book, And So It Goes, the first authoratative biography of Kurt Vonnegut.
Charles J. Shields is the author of And So It Goes: Kurt Vonnegut: A Life, Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee, the highly acclaimed, bestselling biography of Harper Lee, and I Am Scout: The Biography of Harper Lee (Henry Holt Books for Young Readers)
Rachel Syme is the former Books Editor for National Public Radio and a current NPR contributor and contributing culture editor for TIME Magazine. She is currently writing a biography of the love affair between Hollywood gossip columnist Sheilah Graham and author F. Scott Fitzgerald for Random House. She has read so many biographies that she often feels like she is living a hundred other lives in addition to her own.
Location:
- Street:
- 52 Prince St
- City:
- New York ,
- Province:
- New York
- Postal Code:
- 10012-3309
- Country:
- United States
Storytimes
BABY STORYTIME: Baby Storytime with dynamic storyteller Stewart Dawes takes place every Friday at 4:00 p.m. Stewart sings interactive songs with kids, and reads entertaining stories to our youngest book lovers. Ages 0 to 2. Free.
SATURDAY STORYTIME: Author Yvonne Brooks leads a themed storytime with storytelling and original art projects every Saturday at 11:30 a.m. See our events calendar for more information about the current week's activities and guest authors. Ages 3 to 8. Free.
SPANISH STORYTIME: Spanish Storytime with Edda Martinez takes place every Thursday at 4:30 p.m., and includes stories in English and Spanish. Edda provides an upbeat and appealing introduction to Spanish for kids. Ages 0 to 4. Free.
PUPPET SHOW: Our next monthly puppet show is June 6th at 4:30 p.m., with an original shadow puppet production of "The Tortoise or the Hare." After the show, kids and adults can stay for our singalong and meet the puppet performers. This month's featured book is The Tortoise or the Hare by Toni Morrison and Slade Morrison, illustrated by Joe Cepeda. Hosted by Sarah Gerard. All ages welcome. Free.
A Note on Events
McNally Jackson hosts its events downstairs. Unfortunately, we do not have an elevator. If you are a person with a disability and would like to attend an event, we will--without hesitation--host it upstairs. Email events[at] mcnallyjackson.com to let us know, and if you have any questions.
Our Book Clubs
INTERNATIONAL LITERATURE: Led by Sarah McNally, this discussion group meets downstairs the first Monday of every month, at 7pm. On Monday, May 7th, the book club will be discussing Ngugi wa Thiong’o's Petals of Blood.
ESSAYS: Led by Sarah Gerard, our Essays Book Group meets in the travel section the first Monday of every month, at 7pm. On Monday, May 7th, the book club will be discussing Tom Bissell's Magic Hours.
DYSTOPIA BOOK GROUP (all ages): Led by Sarah Gerard, our Dystopia Book Group welcomes readers on the last Friday of every month, at 6:00pm in the travel section. On Friday, May 25th, they'll discuss The Ark Sakura by Kobo Abe.
SPANISH WORKSHOP: Led by Javier Molea, this group meets Saturdays downstairs at 1 pm. It's open to all who wish to practice their Spanish while discussing literature. See the Español page for more details.
SPANISH BOOKCLUB: Led by Javier Molea, this group meets once a month at 7 pm downstairs. On Friday, May 25th, the book club will be discussing Los Detectives Salvajes, de Roberto Bolaño (Chile). See the Events page for more details.
POETRY AND TRANSLATION BOOKCLUB: Led by Javier Molea e Isabel Cadenas Cañón, this is a bilingual bookclub that discuss mostly poetry, but also narrative, essay, theatre and the translations of the works discussed. On the first 2 sessions (April 28th and May 19th, 6pm) argentinean poet María Negroni it's going to cast light on Marosa di Giorgio erotic jungle.
(Bilingual)
Our Series
ASK ME ABOUT: Know that classic novel you absolutely should have read by this point in your life? It's time to alleviate your nagging guilt with Ask Me About..., a Time Out New York and McNally Jackson event that's part book club, part lecture series, part show and part social occasion.
CONVERSATIONS ON PRACTICE: Hosted by Glenn Kurtz, Conversations on Practice is an ongoing series devoted to the the daily work of artmaking: how artists, musicians, and authors hone their craft and understand their work.
NEWS FROM UNDERGROUND: Mark Crispin Miller, a professor at NYU and author of many books on politics and cultural history, hosts News from Underground, a monthly series. In these tense times, there are many topics of extreme importance that the corporate media tends to ignore or misreport; the panel discussions of News from Underground are here to deal honestly with these forbidden issues.
REAL CHARACTERS: Real Characters is a monthly storytelling and performance show that combines some of New York’s best storytellers with its funniest, most innovative comedians and writers. So, some of it’s true, some of it feels more than true, and most of it is mostly funny.