READINGS  Creative Writing Readings from High School students
Students from the Montclair Kimberley Academy, Glen Ridge High School, Montclair High School and Nutley High School read short works of creative writing, as chosen by each school's review committee. Hosted by Montclair State University professor, Mark Rotella. Open to all.

MEMOIR Two acclaimed writers reflect on love, loss, and the enduring bonds that shape a life. Siri Hustvedt’s Ghost Stories, written after the death of her husband Paul Auster, is both an elegy and a reckoning. Rachel Eliza Griffiths’ The Flower Bearers traces the intertwining stories of friendship and marriage, capturing the beauty—and vulnerability—of loving deeply. In discussion with Benilde Little (Welcome to My Breakdown).

DEBUT FICTION  Debut novelists Jaquira Díaz (This Is the Only Kingdom) and Natalie Guerrero (My Train Leaves at Three) discuss creating bold stories about complex protagonists searching for freedom and belonging. Their novels confront grief, rage, and resilience while exploring how individuals carve out authentic lives within—and sometimes against—the communities that shape them. Moderated by Cleyvis Natera, author of Neruda on the Park and The Grand Paloma Resort. 

HISTORY  Pulitzer and National Book Award finalist Anand Gopal brings us Days of Love and Rage, an epic account of six Syrians struggling to build a more democratic future amid war and upheaval. Sweeping yet intimate, this book transcends the particulars of one terrible conflict to illuminate the global rise of authoritarianism—and the enduring human demand for dignity and hope. In conversation with CNN International anchor, Zain E. Asher.

FICTION  Alice Elliott Dark (Fellowship Point) moderates a conversation with two novelists whose work explores the allure and consequences of forbidden desire. In Bonnie Friedman’s Don’t Stop, a spontaneous kiss pulls a married woman into a dangerous emotional spiral. In Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney’s Lake Effect, an intoxicating affair between neighbors threatens reputations, families, and a daughter’s fragile world.