Literary Events in Edmonton

There's a lot going on in E-town and EPL is happy to be a part of it. In addition to the awesome programs we initiate and deliver in our branches, we are also proud supporters and sponsors of many extraordinary literary events that happen throughout the year.

We're back! And, we're better than ever!!!

The Edmonton Public Library Alberta Readers' Choice Award is now in it's third year and we've made some significant changes to the eligibility criteria which makes this truly an Alberta award recognizing the exceptional writing talent in our province while encouraging readers to support Alberta authors. The prize is still $10,000 - one of Alberta's richest literary awards - and the winner is decided by the readers!

2012 Semi-finalists

Wayne Arthurson - Fall From Grace (Forge Books)

Tim Bowling - In the Suicide's Library (Gaspereau Press)

Brian Brennan - Leaving Dublin: Writing My Way from Ireland to Canada (Rocky Mountain Books)

Lynn Coady - The Antagonist (House of Anansi Press)

Dawn Dumont - Nobody Cries at Bingo (Thistledown Press)

Marina Endicott - The Little Shadows (Doubleday Canada Publishing Group)

Will Ferguson - Canadian Pie (Viking Canada)

Judy Schultz - Freddy's War (Brindle & Glass Publishing Ltd.)

Gail Sidonie Sobat - Chance to Dance For You (Great Plains Publications)

Anne Sorbie - Memoir of a Good Death (Thistledown Press)

The top-five finalists will be announced in April 2012. Public voting begins May 2012.

Click here to learn more about the 2012 Alberta Readers' Choice Award.

LitFest 2011 presents its largest and most wide-ranging festival ever, with 40+ authors representing nearly every aspect of creative nonfiction. LitFest runs October 12-23, with a pre-festival showcase on September 26. The festival features a record 34 events, held at 7 downtown locations, including the Stanley A. Milner Library. Below are events being held at the Stanley A. Milner Library. For a complete listing of events at all venues, visit http://litfestalberta.org/home.aspx.

Date / Time	Event Description
Fri. Oct. 14 7pm	Stories About Storytellers: An evening with Doug Gibson and many famous Canadian authors Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Douglas Gibson Not many editors can say they have been at the top of the industry for decades (or have their own imprint), but Douglas Gibson can. Hear first-hand stories from the editor who has worked with, well, everyone—Alice Munro, Pierre Trudeau, Robertson Davies, Alistair MacLeod, John Diefenbaker, Mavis Gallant, Hugh MacLennan, Peter C. Newman, Brian Mulroney, Morley Callaghan, John Kenneth Galbraith, Paul Martin, Margaret Atwood, James Houston, Peter Gzowski, W.O.Mitchell and others.
Sun. Oct. 16 2pm	Silver and Scots Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Ken McGoogan, Paul Cowan and host Margaret Macpherson Ken McGoogan, author of How the Scots Invented Canada, teams up with the Edmonton Public Library in celebrating 25 years of the Public Lending Rights Commission—which supports the work of authors across Canada. McGoogan is joined by Paul Cowan, author of How the Scots Created Canada for a double dose of Scottish heritage and lore and a debate on how the Scots influenced the development of our nation. Silver and Scots is presented in partnership with the Edmonton Public Library.
Mon. Oct. 17 7pm	The Man in Blue Pajamas Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Jalal Barzanji, Peter Midgley, Sabah Salih and Goran Simic In 2007, Jalal Barzanji, a Kurdish poet and human rights activist, became Edmonton’s inaugural Writer in Exile. His memoir of imprisonment in Iraq, and his flight to Canada in 1998, is told in vivid and passionate detail in The Man in Blue Pajamas. For the English re-imagining of his memoir, Barzanji will be joined by Bosnia-Herzegovina native poet Goran Simic and Edmonton’s current Writer in Exile, as well as Jalal’s translator, Sabah Salih, and his editor, Peter Midgley. They will speak about the challenges that come when reshaping a story for a new language, new culture and new context. LitFest is proud to partner with NeWest Press on this event. Ticket revenues from this event will go to support PEN Canada.
Tue. Oct. 18 7pm	Intersecting Sets Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Alice Major, David Belke and Shawn Pinchbeck Edmonton’s beloved first poet laureate, Alice Major, nches Intersecting Sets, a new collection of essays about the interconnections and surprising similarities between the worlds of science and poetry. LitFest is proud to partner with NeWest Press on this event.
Wed. Oct. 19 7pm	Adrienne Clarkson: Room for All of Us Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Adrienne Clarkson Adrienne Clarkson has had rich careers as a journalist, author, artist and public servant, and transformed the role of the Governor General during her tenure. After leaving the office of Governor General, Clarkson founded the Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC) and chairs it with her husband, John Ralston Saul. Her new book, Room for All of Us, is a collection of personal stories that explore the immigrant experience. In it, Clarkson reveals not only how Canada has shaped these individuals, but how they have helped to shape the nation.
Fri. Oct. 21 2pm	Keeping it Straight: Stevie Cameron and the Long Form Narrative Stanley A. Milner Library - Centennial Room Stevie Cameron Stevie Cameron is an award-winning journalist, author and magazine publisher. Her most recent book, On the Farm, is the culmination of nearly a decade of research and work on the Pickton murders. With this workshop, Cameron offers tips and processes for organizing, crafting and creating narrative for a major investigative project.
Fri. Oct. 21 7pm	The Changing Face of the North Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Michael Byers, Andrew Nikiforuk, John Vaillant and host Niobe Thompson Three authors examine the cataclysmic change that has come to the Arctic in recent decades, and look at how the hunger for the North’s natural resources is profoundly shaping the politics and personality of the region.
Sat. Oct. 22 10am	There are Many I's in Narrative Nonfiction: a workshop with Marni Jackson Stanley A. Milner Library - Centennial Room Marni Jackson What Editors Like (and don't like) About First Person Journalism The former Chair of the Literary Journalism Program at the Banff Centre talks about the craft of writing in the first person, and the route to getting published. Marni Jackson is a Toronto journalist and the author of three books of narrative nonfiction: The Mother Zone, Pain: The Fifth Vital Sign, and her most recent, Home Free: The Myth of the Empty Nest. She has won numerous National Magazine Awards, worked as a senior editor at The Walrus, and served as Rogers Chair of the Literary Journalism program at the Banff Centre. LitFest is pleased to partner with the Alberta Magazine Publishers Association in presenting this workshop.
Sat. Oct. 22 10am	Write to Literacy Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Anna Marie Sewell The Learning Centre Literacy Association Abbottsfield Writers' Circle - faciliated by Edmonton's Poet Laureate, Anna Marie Sewell - have spent the last two years writing, presenting and learning how following their own creative muse can help unlock literacy. Come share their stories of success and growth, from organising a city-wide conference to reading their own works for various audiences. Hear how literacy issues have framed their experience, and how they are using creative writing to change that frame of reference.
Sat. Oct. 22 12pm	Writer Jam Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Anna Porter, John Vaillant and host Carol Holmes Anna Porter is the acclaimed author of three novels, and the winner of the Writer’s Trust Shaughnessy Cohen Award. Her recent book, Ghosts of Europe, explores power, nationalism, racism and denial. John Vaillant received the Governor General’s Award for The Golden Spruce. His stories often focus on collisions between the human and natural worlds. These two extraordinary authors discuss the approach they take to their writing in this free session that will interest professional writers and passionate readers alike.
Sat. Oct. 22 4pm	Green Inc. Stanley A. Milner Library Andrew Heintzman, Chris Turner, John Vaillant and host Dave Cournoyer Everyone talks about sustainable development—but who’s doing it? And who’s doing it right? Join acclaimed authors Andrew Heintzman (The New Entrepreneurs: Building a Green Economy for the Future), Chris Turner (The Leap: How to Survive and Thrive in the Sustainable Economy) and John Vaillant (The Tiger: A True Story of Revenge and Survival) in this lively, no-holds-barred assessment of what’s actually working in our global quest to live within our means.
Sat. Oct. 22 7pm	The Mother of All Readings Stanley A. Milner Library Myrl Coulter, Charlene Diehl, Marni Jackson and host Liane Faulder The mother-child relationship is a rich source of inspiration—a source of great joy and pain. We celebrate this bond in the writings of Marni Jackson (The Mother Zone and Home Free), Myrl Coulter (winner of the First Book Award for The House with the Broken Two) and Charlene Diehl (Out of Grief Singing).

For a complete listing of events at all venues, visit http://litfestalberta.org/home.aspx.

EPL is a proud sponsor of the Edmonton Poetry Festival hosting several events during this week-long festival from April 25 to May 1, 2011.

Schedule of Events at Stanley A. Milner Library (Downtown)

Date	Event
Tuesday, April 26	Poetry Central - 11:30am to 1:30pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Foyer Poetry Central is the heart of the festival in the heart of the city. It’s for poets, passersby, and anybody who identifies with any other label (or not). Youth Showcase - 7:00pm to 9:00pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Come and hear the next generation of performance poets. This showcase reveals the talents of a group of young poets that has been learning the ropes in a series of workshops with some of Edmonton’s top performers, including Cadence Weapon and members of the Edmonton slam team, Mary Pinkoski, Chris Krueger, and Ben Chu. Come and cheer them on. Launch to the Moon - 8:00pm to 10:00pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre Here’s a super-hot presentation by two of North America’s best-known names in spoken word: Sheri-D Wilson and Regie Cabico. They’re launching the brand-new Spoken Word Workbook: inspiration from poets who teach, which will be the Go-To resource for Spoken Word Poetry.
Wednesday, April 27	Poetry Central - 11:30am to 1:30pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Foyer Poetry Central is the heart of the festival in the heart of the city. It’s for poets, passersby, and anybody who identifies with any other label (or not).
Thursday, April 28	Poetry Central - 11:30am to 1:30pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Foyer Poetry Central is the heart of the festival in the heart of the city. It’s for poets, passersby, and anybody who identifies with any other label (or not). Video Virality - 7:00pm to 9:00pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Theatre The poetry video opens up whole new ways to combine words and images and connect them to audiences. This session will feature Tanya Davis, whose “How to be alone” video has logged more than 2.5 million hits, and Edmonton’s own Kath MacLean.
Friday, April 29	Poetry Central - 11:30am to 1:30pm Stanley A. Milner Library - Foyer Poetry Central is the heart of the festival in the heart of the city. It’s for poets, passersby, and anybody who identifies with any other label (or not).
Saturday, April 30	Words Out Loud: Find Your Own Performance Style - 9:30am to 11:30am Stanley A. Milner Library *This workshop is now full* Performance workshop with master performer John Leppard. “Spoken word is not an all-or-nothing thing,” says workshop leader John Leppard. “There are gradations and progressions. This workshop will help you figure out what spoken word techniques are and how to tailor them for yourself.” Writing Under the Influence - 9:30am to 12:15pm (Session 1) Stanley A. Milner Library Writing Under the Influence This poetry workshop will explore the intoxication that comes from drinking the wine of a different tavern. Fall under the spell of Sufi poetry, create spontaneous work and perform in the moment. Moving through the senses to the sixth sense, this workshop will also include a short introduction to the dance of the Whirling Dervish. Requirements: Passion, Patience, Paper, Pencil, relaxed clothing and good socks. Writing Under the Influence - 1:30am to 4:15pm (Session 2) Stanley A. Milner Library Turning Point Performance Examine a personal transition point and transform it into artistic expression. Through guided meditation and writing exercises, produce a polished piece of poetry, get tips on the music of language and present the work in a non-competitive “Alphabet SLAM.” Requirements: Passion, Patience, Paper, Pencil, Mind, Body and Voice. Writing Under the Influence (both sessions) is presented by the Canadian Authors Association in collaboration with the Edmonton Poetry Festival. Workshop fee for each session is $20 for members of the CAA and the Edmonton Poetry Festival Society, or $35 for non-members. Advance registration is required. Register for this workshop here.

Festival History

The Edmonton Poetry Festival kicked off in 2006, with the help of Edmonton’s then-poet-laureate Alice Major and an organizing committee representing a wide range of poetry groups in the city. TELUS came on board as the founding sponsor. Victoria School for the Arts held its hugely successful poetry day, with dozens of local poets in classrooms and the Parliamentary Poet Laureate, Pauline Michel in the school theatre.

A passle of other poets laureate descended on the festival, including Dolores Bell of Washington, D.C., Louise Halfe of Saskatchewan and Lorri Neilen Glenn of Halifax. There was Concrete Poetry — poems chalked all over Sir Winston Churchill Square — and the Roar’s big pub crawl. And there was the first ever Blinks poetry event — sixty poets, 30 seconds each — organized by the Stroll of Poets Society.

The 2007 festival got even bigger, thanks to a funding boost from Edmonton’s Cultural Capital Program. TELUS continued its support. That allowed us to stage a symposium, bringing in people like U.S. slam poet, Jack McCarthy. The school program exapnded to seven schools, Poets Blinked, Roared and did Stand-up Poetry on street corners.

For more information and details about the festival schedule, visit www.edmontonpoetryfestival.com

Each year, CBC Canada Reads celebrates five Canadian books for three months online, on the air and at public events. It all leads up to a week-long show in March, hosted by Jian Ghomeshi. In this annual title fight, five celebrity panelists defend their favourite work of Canadian fiction. One by one, books are voted off the list, until one panelist triumphs with the book for Canada to read this year.

Canada Reads Five Finalists

The five celebrity Canada Reads panelists have each chosen their book to defend from the Top 10 "essential Canadian novels of the past decade." Who are they and what did they choose?

The Best Laid Plans by Terry Fallis	The Birth House by Ami McKay	The Bone Cage by Angie Abdou	Essex County by Jeff Lemire	Unless by Carol Shields

Defended by Ali Velshi	Defended by Debbie Travis	Defended by Georges Laraque	Defended by Sara Quin	Defended by Lorne Cardinal