PEN Reads is a new online reading group that will bring readers and writers together to discuss works of literature relevant to PEN’s mission. Each PEN Reads discussion will include excerpts from the selected title and a series of short essays by writers, translators, scholars, and other prominent literary figures. Readers will be able to comment on each post, participating in a larger dialogue with the discussion’s contributors and with each other.The inaugural title is The Hour of the Star (New Directions) by the legendary Clarice Lispector. This haunting tale of love and pain, death and art, is widely viewed as the Brazilian author’s masterwork. Written shortly before her death, this slim novel boldly cracks open the riddles of daily existence and draws out glimmering bits of truth. Beautifully translated from the Portuguese by Giovanni Pontiero, The Hour of the Star is a vivid reminder of the power of literature, and an affirmation of its ability to connect the seemingly disparate points of the human condition.
The discussion begins Tuesday, July 6 at noon with a short piece by award-winning novelist Colm Tóibín.
More information here.
