European Literature Night 2023

Calling all book lovers!

European Literature Night is a brilliant and lively annual showcase of a diverse and wide range of contemporary writers across many genres, from fiction and poetry, to memoir and histories. Presented by members of EUNIC New York cluster in collaboration with PEN America, the evening will feature multilingual readings, a musical performance, panel discussions and Q&As, introducing the audience to the best of contemporary European literature.

Authors, translators, and performers representing 11 European countries will gather at the Ukrainian Institute of America for an evening of cultural exchanges and conversations exploring the way history has shaped the current crises facing Europe and the power of literature to unearth the truths about how we live and understand the role of writers in times of war and political upheavals.

The program will feature authors Lore Segal (Austria), Kateřina Tučková (Czechia), Kätlin Kaldmaa (Estonia), Sanaé Lemoine (France), Anja Kampmann (Germany), Laima Vincė Sruoginis (Lithuania), Anna Frajlich-Zajac(Poland), Liliana Corobca (Romania), Kirmen Uribe (Spain- Basque Country), Andrey Kurkov (Ukraine). To celebrate the 100th birth anniversary of Portuguese poets Natália Correia, Eugénio de Andrade, and Mário Cesariny, it will spotlight their poetry, accompanied by the evocative strains of the Portuguese guitar played by Pedro Henriques da Silva. Two panel discussions moderated by Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf, Chief Program Officer, Literary Programming at PEN America, and Sabir Sultan, Associate Director, World Voices Festival and Literary Programs at PEN America, will explore how literature can help us navigate the challenges of our time, from global crises to the impact of history on our present.