| | | | Dear Friend,
The words bursting forth from all of us are, spring has come! We made it through a ferocious winter! What better way to celebrate than with some powerful and uplifting book events. Books have always been sanctuaries during dark and turbulent times, acts of resistance and rebellion, or moral compasses helping us find our way. April brings the merriment of the Woodstock Bookfest Story Slam, while Writers Resist is a benefit performance of writers and music celebrating freedom, art, and the fight for our rights. In early May, Steve Gorn and I invite you to a healing journey through words and music that honors our unity as a human family. And then join Kate McGloughlin, Nina Shengold, and me for a magical afternoon at the Catskill Center as we celebrate the beauty of the Ashokan Reservoir and the important work that the Center is doing to protect this mountain valley we call home.
Full details just below.
Hoping to see many of you this spring!
Gail | | | | | | | | Woodstock Bookfest Story Slam! Saturday April 11, at 7:00 PM at the Woodstock Playhouse
Twenty Storytellers.
4 Minute Stories.
3 Judges.
1 Gong! Storytellers must include the line, “I should’ve said…” The Woodstock Story Slam is always a night of merriment and poignancy, profanity and thoughtfulness!
Here for tickets: https://woodstockbookfest.com/ | | | | | | Writers Resist Revival! Sunday April 26, from 5:00 to 8:00 PM at the Bearsville Theater
Writers Resist Revival is an evening of writers and music celebrating freedom, art, and the fight for our rights. Proceeds from this fundraiser benefit three vital causes: the New York Abortion Access Fund, the Ulster Immigrant Defense Network, and Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. The event brings together an extraordinary roster of writers and performers, including author and New York Times opinion writer M. Gessen (The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia), Ethiopian-American novelist Dinaw Mengestu (Someone Like Us) feminist author Jessica Valenti (Abortion: Our Bodies, Their Lives, and the Truths We Use to Win), and author and cultural critic Lucy Sante (I Heard Her Call My Name). The evening will also feature musical performances by David Gonzalez, Robert Burke Warren, and The Goddess Party. Writers Resist is a shared affirmation of democratic values and creative resistance.
Tickets: https://bearsvilletheater.com/event/writers-resist-revival | | | | | | Honoring Our Unity as a Human Family: A Tapestry of Words and Music With Gail Straub and Steve Gorn Friday May 8, from 5:00 to 6:30 at Blue Heron Books in High Falls
Gail Straub and Steve Gorn invite you to a special event at Blue Heron Books. During this highly divisive time, this event honors our unity as a human family across cultures and time. A weaving of words and music taking you around the globe to the Sahara, India, Morocco, and the Himalayas, Gail will read from her memoir Home Inside the Globe as Steve evokes these places through the luminous sounds of his flute and clarinet.
Join us for a healing journey where we travel together to that unitive place that transcends boundaries and differences of all kinds. This is a free event open to the public. https://rtp.earth/blueheronbooks | | | | | | Stories of the Ashokan: Art, Literature, and Landscape With Gail Straub, Kate McGloughlin, and Nina Shengold Saturday May 16, from 3:00 to 4:00 at the Catskill Visitor Center
This event celebrates the dedicated work of the Catskill Center and their mission to protect and foster the environmental, cultural, and economic well-being of the Catskills. Gail Straub, Kate, McGloughlin, and Nina Shengold, AKA the Reservoiristas, all live within a few miles of the Ashokan Reservoir. All three walk there often—you might say obsessively—and each has written about the reservoir's haunted beauty and infinite variations. Their books are joined at the hip by Kate's gorgeous cover paintings for Gail's The Ashokan Way, Nina's Reservoir Year, and Kate and Gail's art-and-text collaboration Solace and Sanctuary: The Ashokan's Enduring Gifts. Accompanied by a slide show of Kate’s luminous paintings, the trio will read a weaving of their works celebrating their love of the Ashokan Reservoir throughout the seasons. Reading will be followed by lively conversation and book signing. Join us for a magical afternoon celebrating the beauty of the Catskills and supporting the important work that the Catskill Center is doing to protect this mountain valley we call home. This is a free event with a suggested donation of $10.
Register: https://givebutter.com/stories-of-the-ashokan-art-literature-and-landscape-sat1aj
| | | | | | And Save The Date: More details will follow! | |
The Creative Process: Vulnerability, Courage, and Resilience Bev Donofrio, Beth Lisick, and Ned Leavitt in conversation with Gail Straub Saturday August 29, from 2:00 to 3:30 at the Woodstock Library | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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