| Release Date:
04/11/2012
The Seattle Public Library presents Amy Waldman, author of 2012 Seattle Reads selection 'The Submission'
In 1998, The Seattle Public Library launched a program to get Seattleites reading and discussing the same book. "Seattle Reads" is now an annual event and has been widely emulated in cities, states and countries around the world.
In this 14th year of the series, The Seattle Public Library has selected "The Submission," a novel by author Amy Waldman. From Thursday, May 3, through Saturday, May 5, Waldman will meet with readers and discuss his book.
"The Submission" opens with a Manhattan jury's charge to choose a memorial for the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attack. When the jury learns that the plan they selected through a blind admissions process was drafted by a young Muslim American architect, they know that their selection will unleash a firestorm of controversy and they are proven right.
The story focuses on two central characters: Claire Burwell, the wife of a victim and a memorial juror who fought for the selection of the chosen design, and Mohammad Khan, the stubborn, inscrutable architect who defends his design and his right as an American to enter and win the project. "The Submission" reveals the welter of emotions that America embodied in the wake of the national tragedy. Waldman explores the complexity of emotional and political response, the contradictions in identity politics, and how easily emotion and prejudice can overwhelm rhetoric. Her debut novel asks hard questions about the American values of tolerance, diversity, and community in the face of very real challenges.
All Library programs are free and open to the public. Times and locations are listed below. For more information on these events, visit the Library's website at www.spl.org or call 206-386-4636.
Meet Amy Waldman
The public is invited to meet Waldman and discuss "The Submission" at five locations. Books will be available for purchase at all events, courtesy of The Elliott Bay Book Co. or University Book Store. Doors open 30 minutes before each branch event. Limited free parking and street parking is available at branch libraries. Times and locations for these events with Waldman are outlined below.
- Noon to 1:30 p.m. Thursday, May 3 - Seattle Central Community College, Broadway, Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway, 206-386-4636
- 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, May 3 - Northeast Branch, 6801 35th Ave. N.E., 206-684-7539
- 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, May 5 - Ballard Branch, 5614 22nd Ave. N.W., 206-684-4089
- 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 5 - Columbia Branch, 4721 Rainier Ave. S., 206-386-1908
The Book-It Repertory Theatre will perform a staged reading from "The Submission" adapted by Rachel Atkins and directed by Annie Lareau. Waldman will join the adapter, director and cast for a discussion with the audience from noon to 1:30 p.m. Friday, May 4, Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium, 206-386-4636. Tickets and reservations are not required. Doors will open at 11:30 a.m. Limited parking will be available in the Central Library garage at the regular rates.
Main Event: An Evening with Amy Waldman
The public is invited to hear Waldman discuss "The Submission" from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, May 4, Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave., Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium, 206-386-4636. No tickets are required. The Library will close at its regular Friday time at 6 p.m. and will reopen the Fourth Ave. entrance at 6:30 p.m. Limited parking in the Central Library garage will be available for $5 after 5 p.m. The event is presented in partnership with The Elliott Bay Book Co. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
About the Author
Amy Waldman was a reporter for The New York Times for eight years, including three as co-chief of the New Delhi bureau. She was also a national correspondent for the Atlantic.
"The Submission" is her debut novel and was named a New York Times Notable Book for 2011, one of NPR's Ten Best Novels, Esquire's Book of the Year, Entertainment Weekly's #1 Novel for the Year, a Washington Post Notable Fiction Book, and one of Amazon's Top 100 Books and top ten debut fiction. It was a finalist for the Guardian (UK) First Book Award. Waldman's fiction has appeared in the Atlantic, the Boston Review and the Financial Times, and was anthologized in "The Best American Non-Required Reading 2010."
Waldman graduated from Yale University and has been a fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study and at the American Academy in Berlin. She lives with her family in Brooklyn.
For more information contact:
Chris Higashi, program manager for the Washington Center for the Book
206-386-4650
Andra Addison, communications director
206-386-4103
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