Cozy reading for a winter weekend

…from @PENamerican, a global literary community protecting free expression & celebrating literature

Weekend reads from PEN American Center. December 15, 2013   POETRY A is for Addis By Anna Moschovakis When I tell people about my impending trip, I try to avoid the word "Africa," though I can't explain why. I am struck by the timidity, the lack of specificity of the euphemism I adopt: "I got a grant to spend a month in Ethiopia," I say. "Have you ever been to that part of the world?" Read more » DISSIDENT BLOG What Does it Mean to be a Syrian Poet Today? By Jasim Mohamed Ghost towns, devastated forests, fire-ravaged fruit groves, refugees in their millions, deaths in their hundreds of thousands, a raging war and a future without prospects. This, in a nutshell, is the Syrian tragedy. Read more » THE PEN TEN Karen Emmerich By Lauren Cerand The writer might have no responsibilities whatsoever, but the translator has only responsibilities—or at least that's the popular perception. That's why we're always failing—according, again, to the popular perception. It's not, of course, how I see things. Read more » MISSING: A GRASS ROOTS CAMPAIGN FOR LIU XIA "Saving Liu Xia" calls on netizens to spread an image of a "Missing" poster around their workplaces, around their towns, around their cyber villages.   NEW POEMS BY LIU XIA Recent translations by Jennifer Stern and Ming Di are a reminder that Liu Xia, under extralegal house arrest since October 2010, has not been forgotten.   FROM OUR PARTNERS: Thalia Book Club GARY SHTEYNGART LITTLE FAILURE: A MEMOIR Jan 7, 2014 Symphony Space The author of Super Sad True Love Story presents his new memoir, a seriously hilarious exploration of his life so far, featuring tales of newly landed immigrants; unrequited love; American and Soviet absurdities; incomparable wit and word play; an audacious sense of fun; and a lovable, stumbling, lusting hero: Gary himself. In conversation with Jay McInerney (Bright Lights, Big City).   follow on Twitter | friend on Facebook | forward to a friend  Copyright © 2013 PEN American Center, All rights reserved. You are receiving this e-mail because you opted in to our mailing list at PEN.org Our mailing address is: PEN American Center 588 Broadway Suite 303 New York, NY 10012