Boston Book Fest: quick re-cap

Yesterday, October 24, was the inaugural Boston Book Festival.  There have been book fests in Boston in the past, but this was the first under this name, with this leadership.  Despite the wet, windy weather, the event drew a huge enthusiastic crowd, and is considered a great success.

There were six categories of events (I’m using ‘events’ as a catch-all to describe panels, readings, performances): fiction, non-fiction, kids, poetry, participate, and technology.  The schedule was packed, from 10:00 a.m. through 9:00 p.m.  All author events were indoors at Copley Square – the Boston Public Library, Old South Church, or Trinity Church.  There were also tents around the Square itself with various vendors, publications, and services (i.e., samples of Brigham’s limited edition Paul Revere’s Rocky Ride ice cream!)

This was some of my day, with event descriptions from the Boston Book Fest:

10:30 – 11:30 Ties that Bind

Meet the family in fiction. Two generations of academics are drawn to Cape Cod in Pulitzer Prize-winner Richard Russo’s new novel, That Old Cape Magic. In Man Gone Down, Michael Thomas plumbs the brilliant mind of a black man who came of age during Boston’s busing era, marries a white woman, and has an existential crisis in Brooklyn. Modernizing the classic Manhattan screwball comedy, Elinor Lipman surrounds The Family Man–here a sensible gay dad–with a paparazzi-stalked daughter and a needy, newly widowed ex-wife. Hosted by Bret Anthony Johnston, Director of Creative Writing at Harvard and author of Corpus Christi: Stories.

Ties that Bind was held in the sanctuary of the Old South Church – gorgeous and imposing!  The host was Bret Anthony Johnston, whose book Naming the World we’re using in a writing workshop; that lattice of coincidence again.

My favorite take-away from this panel was Richard Russo speaking about Janet Maslin’s review of That Old Cape Magic; she accused the novel of being autobiographical.  Russo told the Book Fest audience that “life has no shape, just as stars form no constellations.”  The author “winks at the reader” to disguise autobiographical elements in a novel.

12:30 – 1:30 John Hodgman interviewed by Tom Perrotta

Novelist Tom Perrotta made his reputation through attention to craft, with novels including Election, Little Children, and The Abstinence Teacher. His one-time student John Hodgman took a more improbable route to notoriety: by depicting a PC in the “Get a Mac” ads, providing commentary as a “resident expert” on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and writing the books The Areas of My Expertise and More Information Than You Require. Tom will grill (or perhaps roast, as on a slow-burning fire) the man whose irresistible humor begat Hodgmania on topics ranging from the sublime to the downright silly.

This event was held in the same great space.  I had time to “powder my nose,” then returned to the same pew and continued chatting with the man next to me (yes, I talk to strangers … more about that in my upcoming “Boston Book Fest: meeting imaginary friends and the blooper reel” post).  I’m glad I didn’t venture far, the church was packed – the sanctuary seats 850 people on the first floor, the second level was full, and people were standing!

This was billed as an interview, but it was much more like eavesdropping on a conversation between two friends subtly trying to out-do each other.  We learned something of Hodgman’s history, but mostly we laughed and laughed.  He is very quick – started by telling the audience “I always wanted my own megachurch.”  When Perrotta asked Hodgman why he wrote books about fake trivia, Hodgman replied “The world doesn’t need fake trivia any more than we need a Slanket.  But they’re making them, and you’re [pointing to us in the audience] buying them!”

2:30 – 3:30 Jumpstart Your Writing

Join one of Grub Street Writers’ award-winning instructors for an hour of innovative and inspiring prompts that will have aspiring writers brainstorming ideas for new stories and writing new scenes. The focus will be on creating memorable characters and settings, inventing plots and improving dialogue. This session is designed for people interested in writing fiction and non-fiction, but poets will also benefit.  The afternoon session is led by Stace Budzko, writer-in-residence at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. Free pre-registration is required to participate in this event.

This was held across Copley Square in a meeting room at Trinity Church.  Between admiring the beautiful stained glass windows and watching the trees bending in the plaza, it was easy to get distracted.  But, I focused!  It was a very productive hour – I’m pleasantly surprised that I can write (and share!) with such a tight timetable; maybe it was easier because I didn’t know any of these people.

In another one of those “small world” coincidences, I learned that the instructor for this session is working closely with a student who used to babysit our kids when we lived in Connecticut (OK, who else remembers “Confused? You won’t be after this week’s episode of Soap!”)

4:00 – 5:00 Poetry as Music

Experience the intersection of poetry and music with jazz aficionado and former National Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky. The founder of the Favorite Poem Project and professor of creative writing at Boston University, Robert is known for his ability to bring poetry to life as spoken language, as showcased in his collection Essential Pleasures: A New Anthology of Poems to Read Aloud. Robert will give a music-inflected reading, with back-up from jazz musicians Rakalam Bob Moses and Andrew Urbina.

This session was held in the Trinity Forum, a lovely meeting room in the lower level of Trinity Church.  Robert Pinsky read several (a half dozen?  I was mesmerized and didn’t take notes!) poems, augmented by jazz music (horns, percussion, other voices).  It was phenomenal – this trio was so in synch, and so clearly enjoying their time performing together; it was a pleasure to be part of the audience.

What happened after 5?

Well, the “Poetry as Music” session ran about 15 minutes late, but I wanted to savor every minute of it.  When I dashed (through monsoon-like winds) across Copley Plaza back to the Old South Church for the keynote address with Orhan Pamuk I was told (along with others trying to gain access) that there was “no room at the inn.”  No worries, I figured I’d head across the street to the Boston Public Library and “freshen up” (I’ve got quite a collection of euphemisms for using the restroom!) before the Boston Noir event and launch party from 6-9.  Well, this time it was a security who turned me away at the Library doors, explaining that they had closed at 5, and wouldn’t allow anyone in until the event began at 6.

I was disappointed, but decided it was a sign that I should call it a day and head home.  I forfeited the $15 I paid for the Boston Noir ticket, but I did get back in time to have pizza with my family.  J was away this week, and I had a network of friends (you know who you are – thank you!) helping out so I could attend the Boston Book Fest.

A little (or a lot of!) rain didn’t stop us from having a great time!  Many thanks to Founding President Deborah Porter, Executive Director Emily D’Amour Pardo, staff, Board members, advisors, and the scores (maybe hundreds?) of volunteers who made it possible – I’m looking forward to 2010!