Pulitzer Prize Winner Viet Thanh Nguyen speaks Oct. 25

Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and cultural critic Viet Thanh Nguyen will read from his work at Cornell on Thursday, Oct. 25 at 4:30 p.m. This reading, which will conclude the Fall 2018 Barbara & David Zalaznick Reading Series, is sponsored by the Creative Writing Program of Cornell’s English Department. The event, at the Hollis E. Cornell Auditorium in Goldwin Smith Hall, is free and open to the public. Books by the author will be available for purchase courtesy of Buffalo Street Books; the reading will be followed by a free catered reception and book signing in the English Lounge, 258 Goldwin Smith Hall.

 Having arrived in the United States with his parents in 1975 as refugees from Vietnam, Nguyen adds a passionately critical and scholarly voice to the conversation in the United States on policies affecting refugees and displaced peoples. He is active in the media and has been interviewed by Democracy Now!, Tavis Smiley, Charlie Rose, Seth Meyers, Terry Gross and more. Nguyen’s works have international appeal and many have been translated to other languages.

 Nguyen’s novel The Sympathizer is a New York Times best seller and won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His current book is the bestselling short story collection, The Refugees. Most recently he has been the recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim and MacArthur Foundations. He is a critic-at-large for the Los Angeles Times and a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times. He is a University Professor, the Aerol Arnold Chair of English, and a Professor of English, American Studies and Ethnicity, and Comparative Literature at the University of Southern California.

 American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will be provided for this reading. The venue is wheelchair accessible and equipped with assistive listening technology. If you need additional accommodations to participate in this event, please contact us as soon as possible.

Worried about parking? The TCAT bus route 10 Commons-Cornell loop leaves the Seneca Street station every 12 minutes on Thursday afternoons until 6:16 p.m. and stops outside Klarman/Goldwin Smith Halls. After 6:16 p.m., the 10 runs every 24 minutes. Last trip from campus to downtown is 8:00 p.m. The fare for a single ride is $1.50 (cash). Campus parking information is available at cornell.edu/visit/parking.

 For more information, visit english.cornell.edu/zalaznick, email creativewriting@cornell.edu, or call 607-255-7847.