In 2012 the Author! Author! literary series began with a very lofty goal: Bring some of the brightest literary minds to Central Oregon four times a year to share their booksand engage audiences in discussionsand thought-provoking ideas regarding their work. Now, five years laterand entering its sixth season, Author! Author! has successfully lived up to its goal. The extraordinary line-up for the 2017/18 season features four nationally recognized, award-winning authors who have all spent time on best-seller lists:
• MARY ROACH| Saturday, January 27 | 7pm | Bend High School Auditorium
Mary Roach is the author of seven books, including Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at Warand Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void. Her writing has appeared in numerous magazines, including Outside, Wired, National Geographicand the New York Times Magazine. Her article How to Win at Germ Warfare was a National Magazine Award finalist,and her book Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers made numerous “Best of” lists. Roach lives in Oakland, California.
• COLSON WHITEHEAD| Friday, February 16 | 7pm | Bend High School Auditorium
Colson Whitehead is the author of six novels, including The Underground Railroad, for which he won the 2016 National Book Award for Fictionand the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He is also the author of two works of non-fictionand was a recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship (the Genius Grant) in 2002. His essaysand non-fiction work have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Grantaand Harper’s. Whitehead lives in New York City.
• ELIZABETH STROUT| Friday, March 16 | 7pm | Bend High School Auditorium
Elizabeth Strout is the author of six books, including her 2009 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Olive Kitteridge. Her debut novel, Amyand Isabelle, won the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fictionand the Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize. Her short stories have appeared in numerous publications, including The New Yorker. Her most recent novel, Anything is Possible, was called “…a shimmering masterpiece of a book” in a review from The Guardian. Strout lives in New York City.
The Author! Author! series began in 2012 as a way to expand the literary landscape in Central Oregon while raising funds for the Deschutes Public Library Foundation. With four best-selling writers visiting with each annual series, Central Oregon played host to numerous authors who have won Pulitzer Prizes, National Book Awards,and Edgar Awards, among other literary prizes. And now, with Colson Whitehead’s appearance, the series can add a MacArthur Fellow (or “Genius Grant” recipient) to the list.
“The community response to Author! Author! has been amazing,” says the program’s project director, Chantal Strobel. “Ticket sales have increased with each season, which speaks volumes about Central Oregon’s engagement inand commitment to the literary arts. Being able to bring such a high caliber of authors to the region—year after year—is really a testament to our communityand the value they place on books, learningand conversation.”
General admission tickets are $25 per event.
In an effort to increase exposure to literatureand engage teens in civic dialogue, the Library Foundation provides free tickets for up to 200 regional high school students—including the Oregon Youth Challenge Program—to attend the four author presentationsand to receive copies of the authors’ books.