Bibliophiles’ Delight Ninth annual book festival promises to be a page-turner

Rita Mae Brown, John Grisham, Donald Westlake, Nikki Giovanni, William Hoffman, Letty Cottin Pogrebin Mouse over photo to see: Ann Beattie, Julian Bond, Rita Dove, George Garrett, Gregory Orr, Jahan Ramazani

By Anne Bromley

Winter storms aren’t the only reason to wrap yourself up with a good read. March brings spring to town, as well as the annual Virginia Festival of the Book, with a new season of authors and activities to brighten the hours March 19-23. Five days are devoted to a mix of genres from science fiction to nature, from storytelling to bookbinding, from literary criticism to poetry, from John Grisham to Lee Smith.

Booklovers can follow these and other genres and themes through the week: youth and family, Southern accents and African-American voices, suspense and mysteries — or taste them all, one event after another.

Science fiction enthusiasts can boldly go to planets far, far away at Friday and Saturday panels and talks by science fiction writers who publish books for series like “Star Trek,” “Star Wars,” “X-Files” and “Dune.”

For those in love with America’s national pastime, the NPR trio of Frank DeFord, Neal Conan and Scott Simon will talk baseball in person March 23. A special session March 22 on black baseball-playing in Virginia will spotlight Darrell Howard, author of “Sunday Coming: Black Baseball in Virginia,” and Mamie “Peanut” Johnson, a black woman who played in the Negro leagues.

No matter what kind of spiritual inspiration you might be looking for, whether you’re a Catholic, a centenarian or a New Age visionary, there are events planned with a range of perspectives.

Participants range from “Girl Meets God” author Lauren Winner to “Crack in the Cosmic Egg” author Joseph Chilton Pearce. Author and NPR personality Neenah Ellis will discuss her book of interviews with people who’ve lived for a century, “If I Live to Be 100.”

African-American viewpoints abound in book festival events. A March 22 presentation at the U.Va. Bookstore will feature poets from Cave Canem, a writing retreat for African-American writers. U.Va. history professor Julian Bond and others will talk about the early Civil Rights era days March 20 in the Alderman Library McGregor Room.

March 21, the editor of “Sitting in for Emmet Till,” Chris Metress, will talk about his work on a documentary narrative about the legacy of one of the most heinous racially motivated murders in American history, the 1955 murder of 14-year-old Emmet Till in Mississippi. The presentation will take place at 7 p.m. in the Dickinson Arts Building at Piedmont Virginia Community College.

Almost all book festival events are free.

Believe it or not, this is only a partial list, highlighting U.Va. participants and a few special events.

What’s in the Great American Novel?

The winners of the Great American Novel fiction contest will be honored March 22. Aided by the staff of U.Va.’s creative writing journal, Meridian, and the creative writing program, editor of Tupelo Press Jeffrey Levine has chosen three winners to receive an in-depth reading and editorial consultation of their novels or novellas, as well as final consideration for publication. The winners will read from their work at the event, which is one of many related to publishing scheduled that day.March 22, 4 p.m., Omni Hotel

Three generations of U.Va. fiction writers

Reading from their work are novelist and Virginia poet laureate George Garrett, U.Va. professor emeritus; novelist Michael Knight, a former student of Garrett’s who teaches at the University of Tennessee; and Sean McConnell, a former student of Knight’s now enrolled in the U.Va. graduate Creative Writing Program.
March 19, 8 p.m., U.Va. Bookstore

English Professors Works in Progress
Violence and the Imagination – panel discussion with Stephen Cushman, Susan Fraiman and Scott Saul
March 21, 10 a.m.-noon, Jefferson Hall

Time, Space and Literature: The Rhythms of Story and the Homes of Inspiration – panel discussion with Alison Booth, Michael Levenson, Lisa Russ Spaar and Christopher Tilghman
March 21, 2-4 p.m., Minor Hall Auditorium

Rita Dove will read her poetry, and literary scholar Jahan Ramazani will talk about his recent editing project on remaking “The Norton Anthology of Modern and Contemporary Poetry”
March 21, 4-5 p.m., Minor Hall Auditorium

Reception in Bryan Hall lounge
March 21, 5-7 p.m.

Violence and the Imagination: Poetry and prose readings by Mark Edmundson, Debra Nystrom and Gregory Orr
March 22, Noon-2 p.m., Minor Hall Auditorium

Reading Aloud: with poet Henry Taylor, playwright Teresa Dowell-Vest and novelist Eric Kraft.
March 22, Noon, New Dominion Bookshop
Fiction and poetry readings by Ann Beattie and Charles Wright
March 22, 2-3 p.m., U.Va. Bookstore

Women’s Center
Letty Cottin Pogrebin, author and feminist pioneer, is a founding editor of Ms. Magazine and writer of the column, “Working Woman.” She has written several books, including “Getting Over Getting Older” and “How To Make it in a Man’s World.” She will read from her latest work of fiction, “Three Daughters,” and answer questions about her work.
March 20, 4 p.m., U.Va. Bookstore Mezzanine

Remembering the Civil War
History professor Gary W. Gallagher, a leading authority on Civil War military history, will participate in two events exploring important aspects of the American Civil War. He will give a talk on "The President and the General: Abraham Lincoln, Stonewall Jackson, and the 1862 Valley Campaign" and join a panel discussion on "The Civil War: The Soldier's View - The General's View." The panel will focus on Robert E. Lee and his concerns about the impact of battle front activity on home front morale.
March 22, 10 a.m. and noon, Zehmer Hall

Celebrate Women Writers!
Join the Women’s Center for a celebration of women who have recently published books. Open to the public, the reception recognizes writers from the Virginia Festival of the Book and local and University authors. R.S.V.P. to 982-2231.

March 21, 4-6 p.m., Morea House, Sprigg Lane
South Asian Studies
Voices of the Puppet Masters of Indonesia slide presentation

March 19, 4 p.m., 160 Campbell Hall
Authors Eugene Trani and Frances Gouda discuss U.S. foreign policy with the former Soviet Union and Indonesia.

March 19, 4 p.m., U.Va. Bookstore MezzaninecContemporary Literature of India and Pakistan in translation.
March 21, 4 p.m., Rotunda

A Spanish approach
Assistant Dean of Students and Coordinator of the "Students With Children" Initiative Pablo Davis will be featured at the Virginia Festival of the Book's StoryFest. "Pablo Davis and Friends" will present a special edition of La Hora de los Cuentos en Espanol (Storytime in Spanish).
March 22, 10:30 a.m., Downtown Library

Visual artist Enrique Chagoya and U.Va. Spanish professor Ricardo Padrón, author of “The Spacious Word: Cartography, Literature and Empire in Early Modern Spain,” will discuss “Cannibalism and the Spaces of History: Book Arts and Literature” — their unique approaches to language, history, globalism and cultural transformation — with moderator Pablo Davis, assistant dean of students.
March 22, 2 p.m., Second Street Art Gallery

U.Va. alumni and their words
Throughout the festival, a few alums are coming back.

Chris Camuto will talk about his latest book, “Hunting from Home: A Year in the Blue Ridge.”

March 19, 4 p.m., New Dominion Bookshop
Rosemary Graham, author of “My Not So Terrible Time at the Hippie Hotel,” will be a panelist on young adult book publishing.

March 22, 4 p.m., Omni Hotel
Poet Reetika Vazirani, who recently published her second book, “World Hotel,” will read with poets R. T. Smith and Steve Kuusisto.

March 22, 10 a.m., Barnes & Noble
Poet Michael Chitwood, a graduate of the Creative Writing Program whose most recent collection is “Gospel Road Going,” with poet Kim Addonizio.

March 21, 8 p.m., U.Va. Bookstore
Greg Bottoms, creative writing instructor at Sweet Briar College and author of the story collection “Sentimental Heartbroken Rednecks” and the memoir “Angel Head,” will discuss the value of fellowships with Peggy Baggett of the Virginia Commission for the Arts, Cliff Becker of the National Endowment for the Arts and fiction writer Lenore Hart.
March 20, 10 a.m., Rotunda

Science and Nature
From mountain hiking to genetic exploration, from bird-watching to ocean ecology, there are readings and panels to interest nature-lovers of all kinds.

Discussing his book, “Byrd’s Line: A Natural History,” Stephen Conrad Ausband talks about revisiting the boundary between North Carolina and Virginia 300 years after William Byrd wrote “The History of the Dividing Line.”
March 18, 7 p.m., Blue Ridge Mountain Sports

For bird-watchers with a sense of humor, author and avid birder Peter Cashwell will give a talk on “The Verb ‘To Bird.’”

March 19, 7 p.m., Cavalier Best Western
Leonard Adkins, known as the “habitual hiker,” will give two talks, one on wildflowers and another on hiking the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine.

March 20, 2 p.m., Senior Center

March 20, 8 p.m., Blue Ridge Mountain Sports

Steve Olson and Ellen Ruppel Shell will discuss what genetics is revealing about human origins and conditions like obesity.

March 21, 4 p.m., City Council Chambers
Concurrently, nature writers Melissa Walker and Ian Marshall will talk about their environmental memoirs, published by U.Va. Press.

March 21, 4 p.m., New Dominion Bookshop

Check the website at http://www.vabook.org for any last minute program changes.