BERKSHIRE WORDFEST 2012 PROGRAM
To purchase event tickets or festival passes, visit our Tickets page or click here: 
| Literary Laughs Evening, The Stable 5:00-6:15 pm |
Join us for our opening night with a transatlantic twist! Writer Kevin O’Hara shares his Irish-influenced insights, then internationally acclaimed comedienne and bestselling author Alison Larkin takes the stage to present her own revealing and hilarious journey to unearth her American roots. Reception and book signing to follow. $25 general/$23 members. |
| Books and Bagels 9:00 – 10:00 am, The Terrace |
Start the day on The Mount’s beautiful terrace with a book-browsing session. Titles by all participating writers will be available for purchase, including some signed editions. Bagels, pastries, and coffee will be available for purchase. Free. |
| Readings by Berkshire Poets and Writers 10:00 am – 5 pm, The Terrace |
Come hear well-known local poets and writers read from their published and about-to-be-published works. Curated by poets Peter Filkins and Michelle Gillett, these prized presentations will introduce new work and celebrate longstanding favorites. Book signings follow most readings. Free. [Details] |
| When Bad is Good: The Literary Lure of Destructive Choices 10:00 – 11:00 am, The Forecourt |
A panel discussion with Alexander Chee, Elissa Schappell, and Dani Shapiro, with moderator Noreen Tomassi. In life and fiction, personal choices matter. The decisions we make determine the paths we take. All humans are prone to bad judgment on occasion, but some misbehavior is more destructive than others. Hear leading authors of today discuss why literary characters—and, in some cases, writers themselves—elect to embark on not-so-noble journeys that alter lives irrevocably and forever. Book signings to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| In Conversation: Adam Gopnik with Kate Bolick 11:15 am – 12:15 pm, The Forecourt |
Listen in as writer Kate Bolick engages in a lively conversation with Adam Gopnik of The New Yorker. Book signing to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| In Conversation: Matthew Pearl with Joe Donahue 12:30 – 1:30 pm, The Forecourt |
Bestselling novelist Matthew Pearl joins WAMC’s Joe Donahue to talk about unraveling historical mysteries, teaching creative writing, and giving voice to shelter animals. Book signing to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| From Insider to Informant: Conveying Culture Through Literature 1:45 – 2:45 pm, The Forecourt |
A panel discussion with Adam Gopnik, Suketu Mehta, and Roxana Robinson, with moderator Harold Augenbraum. Like Edith Wharton, who laid bare the social dynamics of wealthy New Yorkers of her time, contemporary writers find inspiration in distinctive settings. By either circumstance or design, these writers are afforded access to interior worlds. What motivates writers to convey these personal spheres? Do they consider this a privilege or a responsibility? How do essayists and memoirists structure their points of view; how do novelists fuse fact and fiction? Listen to our panel of “insiders” talk about the worlds they know, and why they’re compelled to write about them. Book signings to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| Poetry Reading with Mary Jo Salter 3:00 – 3:45 pm, The Forecourt |
Join us for a special reading by one of the nation’s leading poets, Mary Jo Salter. The reading will be followed by a book signing featuring her book A Phone Call to the Future (2008) as well as The Selected Poems of Amy Clampitt (2011), edited by Ms. Salter. Free. |
| In Conversation: John Berendt with Joe Donahue 4:15 -5:15 pm, The Forecourt |
Pulitzer Prize finalist John Berendt joins WAMC’s Joe Donahue for a captivating dialogue about the lure of eccentric personalities and casting light on the shadows in beautiful places. Book signing to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| Music After Hours: Special WordFest Edition 5:30-8:30 pm, The Terrace |
Join festival authors and attendees on the terrace to relax, converse, enjoy the view, and listen to Music After Hours, featuring the Zack Cross Quartet, a regional favorite, with special guest Jessica Freeman. Books and refreshments, including wine and beer, will be available for purchase. Free admission. |
Sunday, September 16
| Books and Bagels 9:00 – 10:00 am, The Terrace |
Start the day on The Mount’s beautiful terrace with a book-browsing session. Titles by all participating writers will be available for purchase, including some signed editions. Bagels, pastries, and coffee will be available for purchase. Free. |
| Readings by Berkshire Poets and Writers10:00 am – 2:30 pm, The Terrace | Come hear well-known local poets and writers read from their published and about-to-be-published works. Curated by poets Peter Filkins and Michelle Gillett, these prized presentations will introduce new work and celebrate longstanding favorites. Book signings follow most readings. Free. [Details] |
| Take Me There: The Power of Place 10:00 – 11:00 am, The Forecourt |
A panel discussion with John Berendt, Claire Messud, and Mary Morris, with moderator Nancy Novogrod. Place is potent. Where we are influences who we are: musings and lifestyles are shaped by our surroundings, altered by the happenstance of landing at particular geographic coordinates. Writers—and the characters they create, the scenes they portray—transport readers to places unknown, or give broader dimension to familiar settings. Join us for a lively discussion of why and how place has long been, and will likely long be, a leading literary force. Book signings to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| In Conversation: Heidi Julavits with Kate Bolick 11:15-12:15 pm, The Forecourt |
Heidi Julavits sits with writer Kate Bolick for a candid conversation about writing fiction, editing a magazine, psychic connections, and summering in Maine. Book signing to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| In Conversation: Francine du Plessix Gray with Angeline Goreau 12:30-1:30 pm, The Forecourt |
Pulitzer Prize nominee Francine du Plessix Gray joins author Angeline Goreau to share her stories about intriguing historical figures, glamorous parents, and choosing the rural life. Book signing to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
| A Sense of Menace: Fears, Foes, and Felons 1:45-2:45 pm, The Forecourt |
A panel discussion with Heidi Julavits, Matthew Pearl, and Gerald Elias, with moderator Jonathan Santlofer. What draws writers—and their readers—to the literary dark side? Since before Wharton’s time, novels fraught with frightening undertones have captured public attention; Wharton herself was lured to the genre. Why do people find a delicious thrill in reading spine-tingling ghost stories or grisly tales of heinous crimes? Join us for a revealing discussion of why writers create narratives infused with a sense of menace, and why readers continue to embrace them. Book signings to follow. $25 general; $23 Mount members. |
Readings by Berkshire Poets and Writers
| 10:00-10:45, The Terrace | Richard Berlin and Cynthia Gardner: Poetry |
| 11:00-11:45, The Terrace | Peter Filkins and Daniel Hall: Poetry |
| 12:00-12:45, The Terrace | Michelle Gillett and Karen Chase: Poetry |
| 1:00-1:45, The Terrace | Susan Kinsolving and John Hennessy: Poetry |
| 1:45-2:30, The Terrace | Kevin O’Hara |
| 4:00-4:45, The Terrace | Jess Greenbaum and Amy Dryansky: Poetry |
| 10:00-10:45, The Terrace | Irene Willis and James Arthur: Poetry |
| 11:00-11:45, The Terrace | Joshua Henkin |
| 12:00-12:45, The Terrace | Cassandra Cleghorn and Marie Gauthier: Poetry |
| 12:45-1:30, The Terrace | Gerald Elias |
| 1:45-2:30, The Terrace | Lisken Van Pelt Dus and Mark Wunderlich: Poetry |
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