Ever feel that by the time you finish reading an article your knowledge of current affairs is already out of date? We’re bombarded with more conflicting views about conflicts than ever before. These events offer an original, thoughtful perspective on our evolving world.
The Return (Tuesday, October 18 at 6:00pm)
Multi-award winning author Hisham Matar has battled with mystery and demons since his father went missing in Egypt, kidnapped by Libyan security forces and taken to the notorious Abu Salim prison under the reign of Gaddafi. The date of his death is still unknown. In The Return, Matar revisits Libya in search of answers. The result is a moving on-the-ground exploration of life under authoritarianism in North Africa, the trauma felt after escape, and an astonishing portrait of a country in the throes of revolution that you can’t help but be changed by.
Dystopian Dreams (Tuesday, October 18 at 8:30pm)
As some of the greatest novels written can attest to, sometimes it’s only by magnifying the absurd in our own culture that we can truly critique it. Four of the finest dystopian fiction writers in the world today share a stage to discuss grand ideas and political transformation. From a camp that punishes women who report sexual assault, to a city where leaders quash long-term memory, to pharmaceutical companies abusing their power, Dystopian Dreams offers worlds that hold a mirror to our own.
Chimes of Freedom (Thursday, October 20 at 8:30pm)
The memory of slavery is burned into the American psyche – and its brutal aftermath is still felt socially and politically today, as recent protests and headlines attest to. International sensations Yaa Gyasi and Colson Whitehead discuss the impact of slavery across generations. Homegoing, Gyasi’s novel, which earned a seven-figure advance, begins with the diverging lives of two half-sisters in 18th century Ghana. Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad follows a young slave’s desperate bid for freedom. Few conversations promise to illuminate with such power.
Aftershocks (Saturday, October 22 at 10:30am)
Can it be that the most long-lasting scars of war are those invisible to the eye? Kevin Patterson, who served as a Canadian military medical officer for 9 years, says, “What was seen, continues to be seen.” Lynn Kutsukake likely agrees, as shown in her novel, born from her family’s internment in Canada. Robert Olen Butler focuses on the disintegration of a marriage in the face of anti-war protesting and conflict. The people behind the headlines; the lives behind the rubble: be captivated by discovering both.
A Disappearance in Damascus (Saturday, October 22 at 8:00pm)
Deborah Campbell may just be your new favourite role model. The award-winning journalist has reported from Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Colombia and Russia – to name just a few countries – for world-class newspapers across the globe. In A Disappearance in Damascus she offers a on-the-ground perspective of the conflict in Syria, told through the page-turning and harrowing story of her ‘fixer’ being kidnapped. Mesmerizing.
For further information, or to book tickets to these events, visit writersfest.bc.ca. Tickets start at $17 pp. Visit the Vancouver Writers Fest website for details.
