Inprint’s 40th Margarett Root Brown Reading Series Lineup Just Went from Big to Epic
Image: Courtesy of Publishers
Updated 12:40 p.m. Jan 5
the 2021 (virtual) edition of inprint's beloved annual reading series was already slated to be Big. Now it's just mindblowing. Last fall the organization announced the stacked lineup for its 40th Margarett Root Brown Reading Series. And now it's added two more literary heavyweights to the schedule: Nobel Laureate Kazuo Ishiguro on March 7 and Pulitzer Prize-winner Jhumpa Lahiri on May 10.
“We are extremely excited to add these brilliant, internationally acclaimed authors to what is already an extraordinary season,” Inprint Executive Director Rich Levy said in a statement. “It’s fitting that our 40th anniversary season be filled with an astonishing array of literary experiences, and of the highest technical quality, in the context of the pandemic.”
In Inprint’s “virtual studio,” Ishiguro and Lahiri will read from their new books, Klara and the Sun and Whereabouts, respectively. Season ticket holders will receive admission to the studio and free copies of the books as part of their subscription. General admission tickets will also include a hardcover copy of the book.
Kazuo Ishiguro: 5 p.m. Mar 7. $30, general admission; tickets go on sale Jan 11. Online. Learn more here.
Jhumpa Lahiri: 7 p.m. May 10. $25, general admission; tickets go on sale Mar 8. Online. Learn more here.
Published 11:45 a.m. Sept 7, 2020
When InPrint celebrates a special occasion, it goes seriously big. Nothing demonstrates that more than the lineup of internationally celebrated authors the organization is bringing for its Margarett Root Brown Reading Series' 40th anniversary. It’s a group of talent sure to spark conversations in every corner of the Bayou City and beyond, thanks to a new tweak to the longstanding literary series.
"We wanted the lineup to be reflective of the time we’re in, reflect the issues that we’re all facing," Associate Director Krupa Parikh tells Houstonia. "I think there’s a lot in this season that people will find very relevant and moving.”
Although a smaller lineup than in previous years, this seven-event, nine-writer season, which kicks off September 21 and runs through April 2021, features an array of literary heavyweights, including Pulitzer Prize winners Viet Thanh Nguyen, Marilynne Robinson, and Jericho Brown (a former Inprint Fellow, who just so happened to earn his PhD from the University of Houston). Also making appearances are National Medal of Arts recipient Julia Alvarez, Emmy-winning screenwriter and author Nick Hornby, and PEN/Hemingway Award recipient Chang-rae Lee, among others.
In an exciting twist, all of the season’s readings will be presented live via Inprint’s “virtual studio,” so you can satisfy that literary itch whether you're in Houston or not. If safety allows, the two April readings will also be held in person—some serious icing on this book-themed anniversary cake.
See this year's full lineup below. For more information about tickets and each reading, visit inprinthouston.org.
Inprint Margarett Root Brown Reading Series | 2020-2021
Sept 21: Yaa Gyasi
Oct 5: Marilynne Robinson
Oct 12: Julia Alvarez & Sigrid Nunez
Nov 8: Nick Hornby
Feb 22: Lily King & Chang-rae Lee
Apr 12: Viet Thanh Nguyen
April 26: Jericho Brown
