This April, the New York Public Library hosted our first World Literature Festival. Across three weeks, there were a wide range of programs from live storytimes, to book discussions, to author talks. 

We hosted an “In Conversation” series of author talks and panels where we invited authors, poets, and leaders of organizations to speak with us. These programs were conducted in many languages and we are pleased to share the recordings now as part of Immigrant Heritage Month 2021 to continue to highlight and celebrate authors that reflect our communities.

On April 14th, the Library hosted Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of the acclaimed novel, Patsy, (Norton/Liveright, June 2019), which Time magazine called “stunning,” and the debut novel, Here Comes the Sun (Norton/Liveright, July 2016). Nicole Dennis-Benn fielded questions on the immigrant experience, the crossroads of literary fiction and Caribbean storytelling, and the challenge of writing about pain and trauma without romanticizing, and more. 

Leading the lively discussion were Alison Quammie, Adult Librarian at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, Hyacinth Persad, Adult Librarian, at the Stavros Foundation Library, Lucile Francois, Library Manager at Macomb's Bridge Library and Ifran Ali, Community Outreach Coordinator at St. Agnes Library. 

This video has captions in English.

Find Nicole Dennis-Benn's books at NYPL.

#CelebrateImmigrants