Performance Works

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Sometimes the best way to get to the heart
of a story is to “show,” not tell. Three gifted
storytellers have taken a genre that has caught
the imagination of many young adult readers,
and created graphic novels that will ... (more)take your
breath away. These creators will explore the
marriage of “show” and “tell,” narrative and
illustration, when to use words and when to use
art to explore the wondrous, and even the most
difficult, experiences in our lives.
Suitable for grades 10 to 12 and adults
$14 + $.50 facilit y surcharge / $7 for student groups

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

It’s opening night at the Writers Festival, and the Festival’s Artistic Director, Hal Wake, introduces seven
fine writers. Pakistan-born Nadeem Aslam reads from The Wasted Vigil, set in post-9/11 Afghanistan.
Lorna Goodison ... (more)transports us to Jamaica with her spellbinding memoir, From Harvey River. 2008 Dublin IMPAC
award winner Rawi Hage reads from his new novel, Cockroach. Homegrown star Shane Koyczan reads from
Stickboy, his novel in verse. Ursula K. Le Guin breathes life into a minor character from Virgil’s Aeneid in her new
novel, Lavinia. Donna Morrissey takes us to the wild shores of a Newfoundland outport and the equally wild
environment of an Alberta oil rig in her novel, What They Wanted. And the intensely watchful writer Jonathan
Raban reads from his novel, Surveillance. Open the Festival in grand style in the company of these authors.
$25 + $1 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

The teen years are fraught with trials, but most
of them are expected. However, Susin Nielsen
and Eric Walters have created two fictional
kids who find themselves faced with realities
they couldn’t have imagined. From a pampered
life ... (more)in North America, after one misdeed too
many, Alexandria finds herself doing community
service in Kenya. Class nerd Ambrose’s love of
words leads him into a world of ex-cons and
self-defence lessons at the West Side Scrabble
Club. Nielsen and Walters have no trouble
imagining these realities and bringing them
vividly to life.
Suitable for grades 5 to 8
$14 + $.50 facility surcharge / $7 for student groups

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Bifocal has been called “perhaps the bravest, most
important, engaging and enraging, most satisfying
work of fiction for young Canadians in a long while.”
Deborah Ellis and Eric Walters have co-written a
timely novel that ... (more)does not shy away from issues
of racism and intolerance, issues that will engage
young adult readers in real-life situations that are
becoming all too common, even in Canada. Set in
a Toronto high school, Bifocal is the story of a two
students—one Muslim and one not—engulfed in
the investigation of a terrorist plot. Surrounded by
arrests and a school lockdown, each boy makes
one small gesture that symbolizes
what he has discovered about himself
and the tumultuous world in which
many young people live.
Suitable for grades 7 to 10
$14 + $.50 facility surcharge / $7 for student groups

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Voters in the USA are on the cusp of a momentous
election that has the world watching. At this potential
turning point in history, we’ll explore the startling
contradictions of a great nation. Four distinguished
American ... (more)writers will go to the heart of what defines
our powerful neighbour. Peter Matthiessen’s new
book has been hailed as one of the great American
novels. In his crime fiction, George Pelecanos
insightfully examines race relations. From the
perspective of an outsider, Jonathan Raban’s fiction
and nonfiction looks at American history and politics.
Meg Wolitzer’s novels turn a discerning eye on
contemporary marriage, sex and social issues. Join us
for an unforgettable evening.
$17 + $1 facilit y surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Two authors tackle the universal themes for
young people of friendship, peer pressure and
our desire for unwavering support. Melanie
Little’s story, told in extended verse, captures
the rivalry and friendship between two ... (more)teens, a
scribe and a slave, at the height of the Spanish
Inquisition. Half a world away and centuries
apart from that time, Ting-xing Ye tells an
eloquent tale of two teenage Chinese girls who
leave home in pursuit of adventure and escape
from poverty and isolation.
Suitable for grades 8 to 12 and adults
$14 + $.50 facility surcharge / $7 for student groups

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

High school can be a tough place for the
outsider or misfit. In her graphic novel, Mariko
Tamaki’s goth heroine is struggling to find
her own identity in an all-girls school where
conformity is honoured above all. In his
poetic ... (more)novel, Shane Koyczan writes about an
overweight teenager who is bullied and then
becomes a bully himself. But both authors,
talented and groundbreaking Canadian voices
to whom student audiences will immediately
relate, convey a great optimism amid what could
be heartbreaking circumstances.
This event may contain difficult
subject matter.
Suitable for grades 10 to 12 and adults
$14 + $.50 facility surcharge / $7 for student groups

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

The Vancouver International Writers Festival
presents the sixth annual Thursday-Night-
Anything-Goes evening of blood, sweat and
beers. Join host Billeh Nickerson and eight
writers who will make you laugh and cry, as
Nickerson’s ... (more)evenings at the Festival always do.
This year’s event will also feature the Festival’s
first ever nipple-piercing give-a-way, our
infamous Festival dancers and Nickerson’s mom.
$18 + $1 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

In recent years both the Australian and Canadian
governments have apologized for their treatment
of Aboriginal peoples. The clash of cultures is
central to the past and present of both countries.
Canadian writers David Bergen ... (more)and Joseph
Boyden and Australian Gail Jones have written
insightful novels about aboriginal–white relations
from very different perspectives. What will it
take to heal the wounds of the past? How can
we manage our contemporary relationships
more successfully? And what role can literature
play in reconciliation? Join in the conversation
with these fine novelists.
$14 + $.50 facility surcharge / $7 for student groups

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

It’s quite simply magic that happens among
Sal Ferreras, his chameleonic band Poetic
License and the authors who take the stage
tonight. This wildly popular event blends music
and literature in ways that can only be described
as ... (more)breathtaking. Audiences are guaranteed a
sensory spectacular, an evening of jaw-dropping
talent on all fronts. Don’t miss out on the fun;
buy your tickets early because they’re sure to
go quickly.
$25 + $1 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

The challenges of race relations are not unique
to any one nation. That gives writers plenty of
conflict to explore, but the telling requires equal
measures of honesty and sensitivity. From the
plight of Sri Lankan immigrants ... (more)trying to settle
in England in the 1950s, to the impoverished
neighbourhoods of Toronto, and finally New
Orleans before Hurricane Katrina, these novels
take an unflinching look at a subject we all
too frequently want to avoid. Three different
countries, three different histories and three
insightful writers will talk about where we have
succeeded and where we have failed in living
together in this world.
$15 + $.50 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Some of our very finest novels hinge on a
moment of drama, a significant and singular
event that has deep repercussions on
individuals and the community. In their new
novels, Paul Quarrington and Mary Swan
focus on personal ... (more)childhood traumas that
leave an indelible mark on their characters and
an impact that lasts far into adulthood. In the
books of both Nino Ricci and Anja Sicking,
devastating secrets threaten to upend the
precarious balance of their characters’ ordinary
lives. And Steven Galloway’s novel opens
with the explosion of a bomb, the effects of
which reverberate throughout the entire book.
Enjoy an afternoon with writers who reveal
how a single incident can lead to a story you
can’t put down.
$15 + $.50 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

What could be more pleasant and relaxing than joining host Paul
Grant for a thought-provoking afternoon of tea and tales from a
diverse selection of Festival authors? This event is freshly baked
to warm your senses and stimulate ... (more)your soul.
TEA AND SCONES INCLUDED
$30 + $1 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Genni Gunn is at the helm of this year’s Bash and, for all you insatiable poetry
lovers, she’s charted a voyage that is off the map. Whether you’re looking for
a little free verse or form, lyric energy or staccato pop, ... (more)there’s a poet in this
unbelievable lineup who will be speaking directly to you. International voices,
new voices, seasoned voices—get ready for an evening of readings that will
reaffirm why poetry matters, in case there was ever any doubt.
$22 + $1 facility surcharge

Part of the Vancouver International Writers and Readers Festival 2008.

Those who wake up in the early hours of the weekend to the voice of Sheryl MacKay
on CBC Radio One’s North by Northwest don’t have to get up with the birds this
morning. MacKay, in person, will serve up a literary repast ... (more)that is sure to satisfy your
appetites in more ways than one. With lots of good readings and large helpings of
merriment, your morning cup of coffee won’t be the only hot thing on the go. Come
with a friend or make a new one over croissants and champagne. Be forewarned, this
event is very popular and tables fill early.
$30 + $1 facility surcharge