Chapter 16
A Community of Tennessee Writers, Readers & Passersby

A "Hair-Raising Tale"

Hamton Sides’s new nonfiction book, In the Kingdom of Ice, earns raves from critics

September 24, 2014 Hampton Sides’s new book, In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette, was released during the height of summer’s dog days, but the book’s critical reception has been far from icy.

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Fighting Against War

Lawrence Wright takes readers behind the rancorous scenes of the Camp David Accords

September 23, 2014 In 1978, Jimmy Carter brought Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin to Camp David in one of the highest-stakes diplomatic moves ever made by a U.S. president. The talks, as chronicled by Lawrence Wright in his new book, Thirteen Days in September, were a struggle of faith and personality that resulted in a triumph of peace over war. Wright will appear at the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville October 10-12, 2014. All festival events are free and open to the public.

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Solving the World’s Problems, One Child at a Time

Nicholas D. Kristof talks with Chapter 16 about the much-anticipated sequel to his bestselling book, Half the Sky

September 22, 2014 New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and his wife, Sheryl WuDunn, have followed their worldwide bestseller, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women, with a sequel of sorts. A Path Appears: Transforming Lives, Creating Opportunity looks at innovative ways to make a difference in the world. Prior to his appearance at the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville October 10-12, 2014, Kristof sat down with Chapter 16 to discuss poverty, opportunity, and what everyday donors can do to change another person’s life.

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A Vision of Redemption

In Zion, poet TJ Jarrett explores the fierce possibilities of love and forgiveness

September 19, 2014 The poems in TJ Jarrett’s stunning second collection, Zion, are shaped by the desire to summon mercy and forgiveness in the face of terrible wrong, and they celebrate, without a trace of sentimentality, the sustaining power of love. TJ Jarrett will appear at Parnassus Books in Nashville on September 26, 2014, at 6:30 p.m. and again at the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville October 10-12, 2014.

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Officially a Genius

Poet-translator Khaled Mattawa has won a MacArthur grant

September 19, 2014 Let’s just go ahead and call 2014 Khaled Mattawa’s year: in January he was appointed chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, and now he has been named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow. What this most recent honor means in lay terms: Mattawa has just won a $625,000 “genius” grant.

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The Story That Takes Hold

Ishmael Beah writes lyrically in Radiance of Tomorrow about a village recovering from the horrors of war

September 18, 2014 In 2007, Ishmael Beah received widespread praise for his memoir, A Long Way Gone, a troubling account of his life as a child soldier in Sierra Leone. In his first novel, Radiance of Tomorrow, Beah lyrically explores a village much like his own as it struggles toward normal life after a wartime massacre. Beah will appear at the Southern Festival of Books, held in Nashville October 10-12. All festival events are free and open to the public.

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