County Reads kicks off weekend of literary events

Defenders and their selected books for the 11th Annual County Reads Authors Festival at St. Mary Magdalene Church April 25 are Sally Keefe-Cohen, Bill Roberts, Trevor Brookes, Elizabeth Etue and Bernie Finkelstein.

Prince Edward County’s favourite literary events have joined forces for the County Reads Authors Festival weekend, hosted by the Prince Edward County Public Library, in April.

The 11th County Reads event kicks off the weekend on Thursday, April 25 as five County residents champion their chosen Canadian book of the year at the St. Mary Magdalene Church in Picton.

Moderated by County author Ken Murray, the five will present a spirited debate and spectators will vote for their favourite while enjoying some refreshments and taking in the DiscARTed  Show and Sale, (example at right) being held in conjunction with the Festival. Prince Edward County authors are invited to set up a table at the event to discuss and sell their books. The winner of the debate will be announced to great fanfare at the evening’s finale. Tickets $5

Sally Keefe-Chen will defend Dear Evelyn, by Kathy Page.
Trevor Brookes will defend Women Talking, by Miriam Toews.
Bill Roberts will defend A Matter of Malice, by Thomas King.
Bernie Finkelsttein will defend Seven Fallen Feathers, by Tanya Talaga.
Elizabeth Etue will defend Too Dumb for Democracy? Why We Make Bad Political Decisions and how We Can Make Better Ones, by David Moscrop.

These books are available at the library for anybody who wants to read them before the event.

Over the remainder of the weekend, book lovers are invited to return to the church hall to hear from authors such as Wayne Grady, Debra Komar and Camilla Gibb.

Debra Komar

Debra Komar’s event is scheduled for Friday, April 26 at 7 p.m. Her books have won numerous honours, including the Canadian Authors Award for History.
A Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, she investigated genocides for the United Nations, testifying as an expert witness at The Hague and across North America.

Her latest book, The Court of Better Fiction, examines the 1921 court case in which the Canadian government, in its rush to establish dominion over the North, executed two innocent Inuit men. Tickets $10

An Author’s Festival Panel is set for Saturday, April 27 from 1:30-4:30 p.m. at the church hall. Tickets $20

Camilla Gibb will be doing a reading and discussion from 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. She is the author of four novels – —Mouthing the Words, The Petty Details of So-and-so’s Life, Sweetness in the Belly and The Beauty of Humanity Movement—and has been the recipient of the Trillium Book Award, the City of Toronto Book Award and the CBC Canadian Literary Award and shortlisted for the Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Following an intermission with refreshments, Ken Murray will moderate an author panel with readings and discussion, from 3-4:30 p.m. Featured are:
Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall, author of Hungover: The Morning After
Brian Flack, author of When Madmen Lead the Blind
Cornelia Hoogland, author of Trailer Park Elegy
Brian T.W. Way, author of The Prince of Leroy, and
Samra Zafar, author of A Good Wife

Save $5 with a festival pass, valid for County Reads, Komar’s talk and the author’s panel. $30.

Click here to get tickets!