Person, Place, and Politics: Rescuing Ourselves from States of Turmoil, Presented with the Guardian

• Books & Literature
• Free
• History

What happens when the sense of place that anchors our identity falls away? In this timely discussion, a talented trio of writers examine how political upheaval challenges notions of place and self. Inês Pedrosa’s In Your Hands portrays the journeys of self-definition undertaken by three generations of Portuguese women during the Salazar dictatorship. Isabella Hammad’s The Parisianexamines a young man’s tumultuous return from Paris to the upheaval of British-occupied Palestine. And Felicity Castagna’s No More Boats relates a migrant family’s trauma during a refugee crisis that envelops Australia. Join these outstanding authors for a literary exploration of personal identity and political turmoil, moderated by Arwa Madhawi, columnist for The Guardian US.

Since 2012, the PEN World Voices Festival and New York University’s International Houses—including Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò, the NYU Creative Writing Program, Deutsches Haus at NYU, Institute of African American Affairs and Center for Black Visual Culture, and La Maison Française of NYU—have collaborated in creating a festival within the festival: “The Literary Mews.” This annual event presents free literary events in and around the cobblestone streets of NYU’s storied Washington Mews. A must attend for any lover of literature.