The William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series returns for 13th season

Authors Don DeLillo, Lawrence Wright and Roxane Gay kick off series’ first half

The William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series will return for its 13th season in September, with a schedule of seven events featuring eight writers. The series is presented by the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation and its academic partner, Case Western Reserve University. All events in the 2016-2017 William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the Milton and Tamar Maltz Performing Arts Center at The Temple – Tifereth Israel.

Don DeLillo

Tuesday, September 13 The 2016 – 2017 William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series opens with Don DeLillo, one of America’s most acclaimed writers whose storied career has spanned more than four decades. His works include the novels White Noise, for which he won the 1985 National Book Award; Libra, a National Book Award and Critics Circle Award finalist; Mao II, for which he received the 1992 PEN/Faulkner Award and a Pulitzer Prize; and Underworld, for which he received the 1998 American Book Award. His latest novel is Zero K.

Lawrence Wright

Wednesday, October 19 Lawrence Wright is the author of one novel (God’s Favorite, 2000) and eight nonfiction books, including the acclaimed bestseller The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, for which he received a Pulitzer Prize in general nonfiction. In 2006, Time Magazine proclaimed The Looming Tower one of the 100 best nonfiction books ever written. Wright’s 2013 book, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood and the Prison of Belief, was a National Book Award finalist and the subject of a 2015 HBO documentary directed by Alex Gibney. His latest book is The Terror Years.

Roxane Gay

Tuesday, November 15 Haitian-American author Roxane Gay’s writing focuses on feminist issues, gender and racial equality. Her works include the novel An Untamed State, which was named one of the ten best books of 2014 by Library Journal; and Bad Feminist, a collection of no-holds-barred essays for which she garnered international acclaim. Gay is a professor of English at Purdue University, the founder of Tiny Hardcore Press and regular op-ed contributor for The New York Times. Her latest work is the novel, Hunger.

Colum McCann and Edna O’Brien

Tuesday, March 21, 2017 The second half of the 2016-17 Series begins with a pair of award winning Irish authors: Colum McCann and Edna O’Brien. McCann is the author of six novels and three collections of short stories, including the novels TransAtlantic, an international bestseller; and Let the Great World Spin, for which he won the 2009 National Book Award, a literary award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and several major international literary prizes. He received a Pushcart Prize for his most recent collection of short stories titled, Thirteen Ways of Looking. Author Edna O’Brien’s trilogy of novels—The Country Girls, The Lonely Girl and Girls in Their Married Bliss—shocked readers in the 1960s with their frank depictions of sexuality, resulting in a ban by the Irish Censorship Board. Today she is recognized as a trailblazer and one of the leading voices of her generation. Her works include the novels Time and Tide, winner of the 1992 Writer’s Guild Award for Best Fiction; and Lantern Slides, for which she won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize; and the 2012 memoir Country Girl, which details her adventurous life with the likes of Marlon Brando, Jackie Onassis and Samuel Beckett. Her most recent novel is The Little Red Chairs.

Alison Bechdel

Thursday, April 20, 2017 Acclaimed author and illustrator Alison Bechdel’s work explores themes of gender bias, homosexuality and family relationships. She is best known as the creator of the long-running comic strip Dykes to Watch Out for, and the 2006 graphic memoir Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, which garnered critical and commercial success and has since been adapted as a Tony Award-winning musical. Bechdel is a 2014 recipient of the MacArthur Genius Award. Her most recent book is the graphic memoir, Are You My Mother?

John Green

Wednesday, May 3, 2017 John Green is the New York Times bestselling author of the young adult novels Looking for Alaska, for which he received the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award; An Abundance of Katherines; and Paper Towns, for which he received a 2009 Edgar Award. His sixth novel, The Fault in Our Stars, debuted at No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list in 2012, and was followed by a hit film adaptation starring Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort. In 2014, Time Magazine named Green to its list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Subscription packages to see all six shows in the 2016-2017 William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series are available now. For information, visit case.edu/maltzcenter/wcs/. Funds raised by this series help support Cuyahoga County Public Library, the nation’s top-rated library system for six consecutive years.