HARLEM BOOK FAIR SCHEDULE

Harlem Book Fair – 2009
Program of Events

OUTDOOR EXHIBITORS ROW:
West 135th Street - Malcolm X to Frederick Douglass Boulevard (6th to 8th Avenues)

INDOOR VENUES:
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
515 Malcolm X Boulevard @West 135th Street

Countee Cullen Library
104 West 136th Street (near Malcolm X Boulevard)

Thurgood Marshall Academy (TMA)
200 W 135th Street (West 135th Street @ Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. Boulevard)

FRIDAY, July 17, 2009

THE PHILLIS WHEATLEY AWARDS
In Association with the National & Dallas African American
Read-In – HBF’s National Literacy Partners
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
7:00pm – 9:00pm
Free to the Public by reservation (rsvp@qbr.com)

SATURDAY, July 18, 2009

Venue: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
515 Malcolm X Boulevard @West 135th Street

AUTHOR TALKS & DISCUSSIONS @ THE SCHOMBURG
Schomburg/Langston Hughes Auditorium
Author Talk: They Lived Before Adam
Time: 11:30a – 12:00p
Author: Catherine Acholonu

In 2001, after more than 11 years of research, the author discovered a library of ancient stone inscriptions made by the common ancestors of what she refers to as the Niger-Benue sub-family of Nigerian tribes. These stones inscriptions are located in Ikom, Cross River State, Nigeria. That discovery buoyed her researchand created an access into the lost civilizations of ancient Nigeria.

As groundbreaking as the research found in John Hope Franklin’s They Came Before Columbus, They Livde Before Adam extends the conversation and controversy surrounding Africa as the birthplace of human civilization.

Author Talk: A Journal for Jordan – A Story of Love and Honor
Time: 12:10p – 12:40p
Presenter: Troy Johnson, AALBC.com
Author: Dana Canedy (A Journal for Jordan)

Dana Canedy is a senior editor for the New York Times. In 2001 she was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting. A Journal for Jordan is a mother’s letter to her son – fierce in its honesty – about the father he lost before he could even speak. It is also a father’s advice and prayers for the son he will never know. In 2005, First Sergeant Charles Monroe King began to write what would become a two-hundred-page journal for his son in case he did not make it home from the war in Iraq. Charles King, forty-eight, was killed on October 14, 2006, when an improvised explosive device detonated under his Humvee on an isolated road near Baghdad. His son, Jordan, was seven months old.

Author Talk: The Ethiopus Rediscovered –The African Expedition Into the Trojan War
Time: 12:45p – 1:15p
Author: Gregory Walker (Shades of Memnon)
Join author Gregory Walker as he discusses his research into the
Greek mythology of the Trojan War. The Ethiopus is the missing second book from the works of Homer's trilogy, Iliad and the Odyssey, from which the author bases his Memnon series. Between 1194 BC and 1184 BC Memnon, King of the Ethiopians, came with a great expeditionary force to help Troy against the Achaean invaders.

Life Is Short and Wide: Memoir and Biography in the Diaspora
Time: 1:30p – 2:45p
Moderator: Dr. Marie Umeh (Flora Mwapa: A Pen and A Press)
Panelists: Karen Quinones Miller (Harlem Godfather: The Rap On My Husband, Ellsworth Bumpy Johnson), Selwyn Cudjoe (Caribbean Visionary: A. R. F. Webber and the Making of the Guyanese Nation). Staceyann Chin (The Other Side of Paradise: A Memoir); Haki Madhubuti (Yellow Black: the First 21 Years of a Poet’s Life: A Memoir); Dr. Evelyn Bethune (Bethune: Out of Darkness Into the Light of Freedom)

These compelling stories explore commonalities within the broad Diaspora experience. How does environment inform experience? Is there such a thing as a shared cultural experience? What are the common denominators that make these memoirs and biographies compelling? Nigeria, Harlem, Guyana, Jamaica, Florida, and Chicago’s Bronzeville lay the setting for these magnified vignettes. Are their stories any different from yours?

We Be You Are They Is: Black English, Language, and Culture
Time: 3:00p – 4:15p
Moderator: Carla Ranger, Founder & Director, Dallas African American Read-In
Panelist(s): TBD
Throughout history, African-Americans have tried to find ways to maintain their identity, yet still find success in the United States. Many obstacles have stood in their way, one of those barriers is the dialect they speak. The acceptable language for Americans is titled Standard English that variety of English used in print and taught in schools to non-native speakers learning the language. What does not fall into the category of Standard English is labeled nonstandard, an example of such being Black English. If one takes into account the many regional dialects and accents that are present in the United States, how could there be a standard? If the idea of a standard isn't reasonable, why is Black English seen as inferior? Where did these ideas come from? This panel of distinguished linguists explores the politics of language and culture.

The Politics and Legacy of Ama Ata Aidoo
Time: 4:30p – 5:45p
Moderator: Elizabeth Nunez (Anna In-Between)
Panelists: Carole Boyce Davies (Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora: Origins, Experiences, and Culture); Naana Banyiwa Horne, (Sunkwa: Clingings Onto Life); Tuzyline Jita Allan, (The Twelve Best Books by African Women: Critical Readings)

Ghanaian writer Ama Ata Aidoo has left an indelible mark on almost every literary genre - poetry, drama, fiction, the essay, children's literature, and more. Equally significant are the values infused in her writing, the revolutionary dynamic she set in motion since she began to write in the 1960s. From slavery, the human and political rights of women and the dispossessed, the colonial impact, to reconnections between Africa and its Diaspora, Aidoo's familiar themes aim to push back against the threats to our shared humanity and sense of human decency. These distinguished writers and academics discuss the works and impact of the critically acclaimed Ama Ata Aidoo.

LIVE PERFORMANCE @ THE SCHOMBURG
VENUE: Schomburg/American Negro Theatre
Redefining Identity: Black, Male & Gay in the South
Time: 12:00p – 1:00p
Author: E. Patrick Johnson (Sweet Tea - Black Gay Men of the South)
A live performance by E. Patrick Johnson titled "Pouring Tea" is a one-man-show based on the interviews collected for Sweet Tea. Traveling to every southern state, Johnson conducted interviews with more than seventy black gay men between the ages of 19 and 93. He challenges stereotypes of the South as "backward" or "repressive," suggesting that these men draw upon the performance of "southern-ness" – politeness, coded speech, and religiosity – to legitimate themselves as members of both southern and black cultures. Sweet Tea validates the lives of these black gay men and reinforces the role of storytelling in both African American and southern cultures.

An Excerpt from Growing Up Daddy, A One Man Play
Time: 1:15p - 2:15p
Author: Kayo Charles (I Can Move Mountains)
In this semi-autobiographical work Kayo combines poetry, Hip Hop, and humor to explore what happens when an upcoming artist and businessman on the verge of a professional breakthrough discovers a baby is on the way. Should he become the anchoring support the mother of his child wants or flee to pursue the lavish life of a working artist that he’s always dreamt of having? An honest depiction of what many young male artists experience when their passion is challenged by their sense of responsibility.

E-Males: The Internet Date From Hell
Time: 2:30p - 3:30p
Author: Marcia L. McNair (E-Males) ? ?Why is reading someone else’s E-mail so tempting?
This intimate glimpse into the cyber love life of two passionately opinionated African American women is as addictive as eavesdropping. As the discussion grows from personal computers to the simply personal, Ebony and Wanita aren’t afraid to go where no sister has gone before, as they debate each other about everything from office romance, meddling mothers, interracial dating, and the holiday blues.

When her best friend finds love on-line, Ebony decides to give Internet dating a try. Yet, all of the advice in the world from Wanita doesn't prepare Ebony for meeting two Mr. Wrongs: one of who turns out to be Wanita's new man, Chazz. Will Ebony and Wanita let an e-male come between them? Can betrayal have a silver lining? Humorous and enlightening…

The HBF OUTDOOR MAINSTAGE SCHEDULE
Corner of West 135th Street @ Malcolm X Blvd.


OPENING CEREMONIES ?
Dallas African American Read-In Live!
Ricardo Jerome Reggae Trio
Penny Meacham Cornelius: Reality
Tripping (Poet)
Docena Beyden (Poet)
Atiba Wilson and the B4 Quotet
Monica Martinez (Author)
Arlene Brathwaite (Author)
Queen Afua ?3:00p – 3:20p
Bob McNeil
Rapping You With The Facts 3:30p – 3:45p
Bernard Henry (Vocalist)
Bess Kepp (Poet)
Black Star (Poet)
Johnathan Harris (Poet)
Michael Colyar

AUTHOR TALKS & PANELS @ COUNTEE CULLEN VENUE:

Countee Cullen Library
104 West 136th Street (near Malcolm X Boulevard)

Countee Cullen Library/Auditorium
KILLING ME SOFTLY: How Publishing Is Repressing the African American Literary Market
Time: 12:00p - 1:15p
Moderator: Gloria Mallette (Sassy)
Panelist(s) Geneva Holliday (Lover Man); Karen Quinones-Miller (Passin’); Margaret Hodges-Johnson (Red Light, Green Light); Moody Holiday (Three Days In Bed)
What editors and publishers won't say about the silencing of African American mainstream and literary authors, this panel of national and critically acclaimed authors will. These award winning authors will speak from their unique publishing experiences on how to stand strong and how they have survived publisher's view of the African American reader. These writers go inside...

Doin' It: Promoting & Selling Your Book Online
Time: 1:30p – 2:45p
Moderator: Maitefa Angaza (Kwanzaa from Holiday to Every Day); Managing Editor - African Voices
Panelists: Marcia Pendelton (Walk Tall Girl Productions); Jeff Rivera (GalleyCat.com); April Silver (Be A Father to Your Child: Real Talk from Black Men on Family, Love, and Fatherhood).
African Voices magazine will host a discussion on the resources available for authors to successfully use new technology to promote and sell their book online. Guests will include a panel of publicists, authors and other professionals who specialize in electronic marketing — everything from blogs, e-newsletters to social networking and the use of mobile phones will be covered in this exciting presentation. Learn how to get the word out about your new book without having a multi-million dollar marketing budget!

The Myth of Marriage – Panel Discussion
Time: 3:00p – 4:15p
Moderated by The Flow (Marc Collins, Angelo Hunt, and Roy Frank)
Panelist(s): Deborah Cofer (If He's Hooked on P_ _ _ y, Buy Him a Cat: The Spiritual Rules for Dating, Relating, and Mating!) Kurin (The Black Man's Guide to How to Cheat on Your Woman), Drew L. Hines (Don't Spoil Your Appetite: Get Your Relationship Right, Recipes for Life, Love, and Happiness), Rajen Pursaud (Why Black Men Love White Women)

It is generally perceived that men fear love and commitment. We are usually viewed as emotional eunuchs, playing a numbers game of male privilege that is stacked in our favor? What role does men's understanding of what is masculinity; love and commitment play in our interactions with women? What is women's role, if any, in making love and commitment a less desirable option for men? Why must men commit? Are both men and women victims of expectations that don't fit who we are as human beings, leading to the widespread dissatisfaction that characterizes our relationships?

Why Men Fear Love & Commitment – Panel Discussion
Time: 4:15p – 5:30p
Moderated by The Flow (Marc Collins, Angelo Hunt, and Roy Frank)
Panelist(s): Cassandra Mack (The Black Man's Little Book of Encouragement), Derrick Watkins (Black Man's Guide to Dating), Terrence Layne (The Black Barbershop Monologues), Kenneth Braswell (TK)

What are the ideals of marriage and how have they come to be so illusive, while the reality of disillusionment is so pervasive. There are few other institutions that can transform two individuals who have proclaimed eternal love, respect and affection into blood thirsty enemies. How viable marriage is depends upon what personal history, baggage and expectations we bring. Meaningful, satisfying, self-affirming marriage can exist, but this is an environment created by two healthy individuals. The current marriage landscape suggests that something is amiss.

WORKSHOPS @ COUNTEE CULLEN
Countee Cullen Library/Mezzanine
Writing Memoir: Is My Story Worth Telling?
Time: 12:00 – 1:00p
Location: Mezzanine, Room B
Presenter: Kush Miri (Seasons in Sheol: A Black Woman’s Nightmare Journey Through Synagogue Culture)

This seminar describes the difference between an autobiography (a life story) and a memoir (covering an event or period of time in a life). It moves on to cover subjects that can be the focus of a memoir: childhood memories, coming of age, a life-altering or character influencing event, memories of a place, a relationship, change, etc. Other published memoirs will be briefly discussed. Participants will be encouraged to think about what makes their experience unique and interesting and what they gained that is worth sharing with others. Writing methods will be explored: notes, transcription via recording (tape, video) and research (capturing the recollections of family, or other participants involved in the events). Various methods of publication from major publishing to self-publishing to actually making monographs will also be discussed.

Moving One Level Up: Writing Fiction With Style
Time: 1:15p – 2:15p Location: Mezzanine, Room B
Presenter: Grace Edwards, Author
Led by novelist Grace Edwards, whose novels include her first, If I Should Die, which received an Anthony Award nomination for the Best First Book; A Toast Before Dying, which won the 1999 Fiction Honor Award from the Black Caucus of the American Literary Association; No Time to Die; In the Shadow of the Peacock, which is the result of her graduate thesis in the creative-writing program at Columbia University, New York; Do or Die; and The Viaduct, which contains elements of romance, her first writing that mixes love and murder.

SMART Publishing: What You Need to Know to Profit from the Digital Revolution in Publishing
Time: 2:30pm – 3:30pm Location: Mezzanine, Room A
Presenter: Max Rodriguez, HBF Publishing
Digital technology has radically changed the landscape of publishing. Self-publishing, print-on-demand, Internet publishing – whatever it’s being called – is making best sellers out of many of its books. Does your book meet the ‘success profile’ of an on-demand best seller? Is traditional publishing still the best way to go? How much will this cost and will I make money? All of these questions and more will be answered during this audience presentation.

The Manuscript Review
Location: Mezzanine, Room A
Time: 3:30pm – 4:30pm
Facilitator: Sandra Powell
Are you ready to publish? Looking for finer points towards a more finished product? Considering self-publishing and looking for an experienced, reliable, and cost-effective partner? Bring your manuscript and a one-page synopsis to move your project into the market with velocity.

ALL WORKSHOPS ARE FREE TO THE PUBLIC.

AUTHOR TALKS & DISCUSSIONS @ TMA (THURGOOD MARSHALL ACADEMY)
TMA/GYM (Thurgood Marshall Academy)

Free Verse: A Conversation and Readings with Jessica Care Moore and Phyliss Yvonne Stickney
Time: 12:30p – 1:45p
Jessica Care Moore (God Is Not An American)
A poignant and timely conversation between Phyliss Yvonne Stickney, performance artist, poet and actress, and Jessica Care Moore, poet and acclaimed innovator of today’s Spoken Word poetry. They discuss poetry, publishing, culture, and Jessica’s latest book.

Haki Madhubuti: The Liberation Narratives
Time: 3:15p – 3:45p
Poet, publisher, editor and educator, Haki Madhubuti serves as a pivotal figure in the development of the Black literary tradition, emerging from the 60s Black Arts Movement to today. He has published 24 books (some under his former name, Don L. Lee) and is one of the world’s best-selling poets with over 3 million total books in print. Join this acclaimed standard bearer in the reading and release of his new title. ?


Abiodun Oyewole: A Tribute to A Life in Poetry
Location: TMA/Gym
Time: 4:00p – 5:30p
Host(s): Jessica Care Moore; Brother Earl
Abiodun is a poet; teacher and founding member of the legendary spoken-word group The Last Poets. The group was born on May 19, 1968, Malcolm X's birthday, when Abiodun and two others, David Nelson, Gylan Kain, read poetry in tribute to Malcolm X. The Last Poets, along with Gil Scott-Heron, are credited as being major influences on the development of hip hop and performance poetry.
This will be an afternoon to honor the world-renowned poet Abiodun Oyewole. He is a poet, teacher and founding member of the legendary American music and spoken-word group The Last Poets that developed into what is considered the first ever Hip Hop group. The Harlem Book Fair will honor Abiodun for all his hard work, mentorship, and service to Harlem. Harlem’s own Brother Earl will host the event and we will have six poets out of the Abiodun’s Sunday Sessions perform in honor of= Abiodun. Comedian Paul Mooney will also honor Abiodun and The Last Poets experience. Join us as we, and those who love him, celebrate his life in poetry.

Marketing & Making a Living From My Art: Practical Tools for Today's Poet – Panel Discussion
Time: 12:30pm-1:45pm Location: TMA/CLASS RM: 303
Moderator: Mo Beasley
Panelist(s): BLUE (Don't Beat Your Children or They'll Come Out Like Me); Mahogany Browne (Unlikely & Other Sorts); Ebony Washington (Revolutionary Kind of Girl)
This panel discussion features poets who have transcended the maze of financial stability by marketing their craft in various ways and in various mediums. The objective here is simple: to assist up and coming poets on their personal paths to financial stability marketing their art, using practical tools.

Re-defining Manhood for the 21st Century: A Literary Exploration
Time 2:15pm - 3:15pm
TMA RM: 312
Facilitator: Mo Beasley, Performance Artist, Author, Educator, and Motivational Speaker
This is a holistic conversation into the social, economic, political, physical, and spiritual elements that shape modern urban manhood, specifically, and global manhood in general. Through the examination of hip hop, history, mass media, pop culture, classic, and modern literature this brutally honest discourse seeks to spark a "consciousness raising conversation", and action.

Yvonne Bynoe: Author Talk
Time 3:30pm - 4:30pm
RM: 312

"A lot of books about motherhood have been written over the years, but they've been mainly about affluent, married White women. The picture is bigger than that. Author and life coach, Yvonne Bynoe will discuss her anthology Who's Your Mama? The Unsung Voices of Women and Mothers, a collection of essays about motherhood from a racially and economically diverse group of Hip Hop generation women, single, married, partnered gay and straight. Bynoe is the author of Stand and Deliver: Political Activism, Leadership and Hip Hop Culture and the Encyclopedia of Rap and Hip Hop Culture. She is also the founder of SophisticatedWomanandMama.com, a company dedicated to empowering working mothers."

INTIMATE READINGS @ TMA/LIBRARY
(Thurgood Marshall Academy)
Poets & Passions
Presented by The Caribbean Cultural Theatre
Time: 1:00pm – 2:15pm Location: TMA/Library
Poets & Passions is a mix of open mic performance and literary salon. Designed for lovers of the written word, the program provide a forum= for celebrated artists, emerging New York area talents, and the general public to share their creativity, experiences and insights on Caribbean heritage and the immigrant experience.

Be it spoken or written, this living anthology of a people’s collective wisdom, struggle, joy and pain, embraces the insights and creativity of some of the anglophile Caribbean’s most talented writers, social commentators, and electrifying performing artists.

Presenter: E. Wayne McDonald – Artistic Director, Caribbean Cultural Theatre
Host: Marcia Mayne – Founder, Peenie Wallie Book Club
Writers: Merle Collins (Grenada), Jacqueline Bishop (Jamaica), Anton Nimblett (Trinidad &Tobago)
The Caribbean Cultural Theatre is a theatrical immersion experience presenting the work of Caribbean based and/or influenced writers, performers and other practitioners that both entertain and enlighten. With an eclectic and ever-evolving blend of artists and cultures, the company, through active collaboration with both Caribbean and non-Caribbean artists of all disciplines, honors a balanced rendering of Caribbean culture and the Caribbean-American experience.

THE AFRICAN WORLD VIEW @ TMA Presented by QBR/Triatlantic Books
Religion and the African World
Location: TMA/Room 211
Time: 11:00am – 12:00pm
Moderator: Dr. Adeline Apena
Panelists: Raymond Kerr ( ); Dr. Ivor Miller (Voice of the Leopard), Stephanie E. Smallwood (Salt Water).

Religion was critical to African development like in most ancient civilizations. Several societies have been able to manage religion in development, recognizing its significance, without necessarily allowing religion to undermine critical cultural values and development of development. In this panel, our concern is to examine the role that religion is playing in Africa’s development. We will address the benefits and disadvantages, focusing on the extent to which religion is constructive and positive, negative and destructive, in the growth and development of African world and its peoples. We expect to engage our audience and to come up with more balanced deductions.

What Future For The African Union? Insights from P. Chudi Uwazurike’s Instrumental Pan-Africanism, The Making of Nwuzor Nwannah, and The Flycatcher’s Identity
Location: TMA/Room 211
Time: 12:15pm – 1:30pm
Moderator: Kofi Bekoe, College of New Rochelle

Panelists: A.B. Assensoh, PhD, Indiana University; Eloho Otobo, United Nations; Oumar Gueye, City Univ of New York; Chris Anyanwu, PhD, Medgar Evers

African writers from Achebe to Soyinka to Ngugi have often seen themselves as socially engaged actors, particularly those with an interdisciplinary background, from Ali Mazrui to Ayi Kwei Armah (The Beautyful Ones are Not Yet Born).

Is it possible that despite the proclamation of the African Union, the twin challenges of elite embourgeoisment, the allures of globalization and the lack of grassroots outreach, or even solid linkage to the black diaspora middle class, will end up destroying Africa's lone chance for survival in the next 100 years. This panel will debate the central core of his critiques addressed in some of his works with the author on hand to respond.

Political sociologist and novelist playwright, Chudi Uwazurike, a former African Union Peer Review Mission consultant teaches development theories and international studies in the CUNY system. In addition to producing plays and editing magazines, Uwazurike deploys his man-of-letters inclinations to tackling the most important challenge facing Africa since independence - to unite or not, now or later.

AT THE SCHOMBURG:
Women Writing Africa: The Politics and Legacy of Ama
Ata Aidoo
Location: Schomburg/Hughes Auditorium
Time: 4:30p – 5:45p
Moderator: Elizabeth Nunez (Anna In-Between)
Panelists: Carole Boyce Davies (Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora: Origins, Experiences, and Culture); Naana Banyiwa Horne, (Sunkwa: Clingings Onto Life); Tuzyline Jita Allan, (The Twelve Best Books by African Women: Critical Readings)

Ghanaian writer Ama Ata Aidoo has left an indelible mark on almost every literary genre - poetry, drama, fiction, the essay, children's literature, and more. Equally significant are the values infused in her writing, the revolutionary dynamic she set in motion since she began to write in the 1960s. From slavery, the human and political rights of women and the dispossessed, the colonial impact, to reconnections between Africa and its Diaspora, Aidoo's familiar themes aim to push back against the threats to our shared humanity and sense of human decency. These distinguished writers and academics discuss the works and impact of the critically acclaimed Ama Ata Aidoo.