Take a look at our live-streamed programs, and explore the full 2023 schedule of events!
2023 Live-Streamed Events
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Rise Of The Spy
In “Need to Know: World War II and the Rise of American Intelligence,” Nicholas Reynolds unlocks the history of American intelligence during World War II.
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Forbidden Dreams: Coming of Age Fiction
Join Jeffrey Dale Lofton, Kristina Gorcheva-Newberry, and William Mark Habeeb for a discussion of three compelling coming of age stories.
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A Romance Salon: American Royalty
Meet Tracey Livesay during this informal salon and discuss her novel “American Royalty,” inspired by the love story of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
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The Turning Point: Shaping a Poetic Life
Acclaimed Virginia-based poets Janine Joseph, Gregory Orr, and Kiki Petrosino take a look back at their lives and works.
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An Identity on the Edges
Mary Alice Hostetter’s “Plain: A Memoir of Mennonite Girlhood” is the story of a woman’s journey to define a sense of authenticity amid a rigid upbringing in a Mennonite farm family.
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Food and Blackness
Cultural critic Clarkisha Kent and scholar Psyche A. Williams-Forson meet to discuss how racism operates in the practice and culture of eating.
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A Sci-Fi Salon: Flying the Coop
Distinguished Virginia Tech professor Lucinda Roy meets with writers and readers in this informal salon to discuss her latest book, “Flying the Coop.”
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Deaf Utopia
Nyle DiMarco—an actor, cultural icon of the Deaf community, and now an NYT bestselling author—shares his story of navigating a world built for hearing people.
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Folklore and Futures
A future-focused, materialist, and collaborative approach to cultural work is what Emily Hilliard offers in “Making our Future: Visionary Folklore and Everyday Culture in Appalachia.”
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Furious Flower Poetry Hour
Join past and present members of JMU’s Furious Flower Poetry Center for poetry readings and discussion.
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IN PERSON EVENT SOLD OUT – SELC’s 2023 Reed Award Ceremony (virtual attendance available)
IN PERSON EVENT SOLD OUT – SELC’s 2023 Reed Award Ceremony (virtual attendance available). The ceremony’s featured speaker is Heather McTeer Toney, an expert on environmental and climate justice issues.
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Finding the Light: Bestsellers Panel
Three NYT bestselling authors with new books—Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, Meghan O’Rourke, and Matthew Quick—share what it means to find the light.
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Fifth Annual Carol Troxell Reader: Meghan O’Rourke
Meghan O’Rourke’s new book “The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness” blends an account of her own medical journey with a broad view of the history and current state of long-term maladies.
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Newbery Authors Panel
Children’s book authors Andrea Beatriz Arango and Meg Medina meet for a conversation about what it means to write the books they wanted to read in their youth.
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2023 Same Page Community Read
We’re pleased to share that our 2023 Same Page featured book is Ross Gay’s “The Book of Delights.” Gay will be in conversation about this book and his most recent work, “Inciting Joy.”
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Crowns & Claws: Coming of Age in YA Fantasy Fiction
Debut authors Emily Thiede and Andrew Joseph White discuss their YA fantasy/dystopian novels.
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National Book Foundation Presents: An Afternoon with the National Book Awards
John Keene (“Punks: New & Selected Poems”) and Robert Samuels & Toluse Olorunnipa (“His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice”) discuss how singular stories collectively shape history.
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Poets Across Genre
In this panel, poets Quan Barry, Thorpe Moeckel, and Lisa Russ Spaar discuss their forays into prose.
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Origin Stories: Belief & Identity in VA Memoirs
These memoirs from VA professors Sofia Samatar and Matthew Vollmer explore how family, history, and religion shape our backgrounds.
