Events
February 2012
February 8: Lunchtime Q&A with the Northeastern Illinois University Golden Eagles book club.
February 12: I’ll be talking at a meeting of the Polish Genealogical Society of America about the Polish resistance movement during World War II. Here’s more information.
February 15: I’ll be doing a signing, reading and Q&A at the Oak Lawn Public Library at 7:00; book discussion to follow.
February 19: The Polish American Librarians Association has invited me to give the keynote address at their annual meeting, where I’ll be talking about gerbils, stickers and my favorite librarian, Mrs. Gehant, of Graves Public Library in Mendota, IL.
September 2011
September 26: Join me for the first reading from (the draft of) “The Sun and Other Stars,” which is still a year away from actually being on the shelves. 7:30 p.m. at Katerina’s (1920 W. Irving Park, Chicago). Other readers include Heather Palmer, Lauren Pretnar and Mike Zapata.
June 2011
June 2–My first creative writing teacher, Tim White, is retiring after 52 years. Some of us alums went to Lisle to surprise him (we come in at the end of the clip). It’s a very funny piece–Mr. White has always said exactly what’s on his mind.
June 5, 3:00-3:45 p.m.: Printer’s Row Lit Fest. Brigid will be on the historical fiction panel with Rebecca Johns, Goldie Goldbloom and Ellen Bryson, moderated by Frank Tempone. The full schedule for the lit fest is here. The panel will be held in the University Center/Park Fountain Room, and tickets are required, but free. Here’s the hook-up for this and all other events that require them.
June 18, 12:00 p.m.: Glen Ellyn Bookfest. Brigid will be speaking at a luncheon at the Glen Oak Restaurant in Glen Ellyn along with Luis Urrea, Cristina Henriquez and Sarah McCoy. Tickets are available through Just the Bookstore.
May 2011
May 11, 6:00 p.m.: People Eating and Giving, a fund-raiser for 826Chi, a fantastic youth writing program here in Chicago. (There are seven other centers across the country.) The Chicago center has a spy store–go by and check it out!
April 2011
April 28, 6:00 p.m.: A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True-themed dinner and signing at Town House Books in St. Charles. If you haven’t been to Town House, you MUST GO. It’s a book-lover’s and food-lover’s paradise.
March 2011
March 7, 12:00 p.m.: Polish Women’s Civic Club meeting. Happy Pulaski Day!
February 2011
February 11, 6:00 p.m.: UIC Alumni Reading at Hull House (800 South Halsted, Chicago) with poet Duriel Harris.
November 2010
The Polish edition is out! Here is the cover.
Nov. 3: Brigid will be at the Empik Junior, ul. Marszałkowska 116/122, Warsaw at 6:00 p.m.
Nov. 3: Watch Brigid on a segment of Polska-24 on TV Polonia, live at 4:05 p.m. in Chicago, 9:05 p.m. in Poland.
Nov. 6-7: Brigid will be at the Targi Ksiazki in Krakow at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday and noon on Sunday
Nov. 16: Brigid will be at Anderson’s Bookstore in Naperville at 7:00 p.m.
October 2010
Saturday, October 2, 2:00 p.m.: Brigid will be reading and speaking at the LaSalle Public Library in LaSalle Illinois.
Monday-Wednesday, October 4-6: Brigid will be in Moscow, Idaho, participating in the Hemingway & Idaho Festival at the University of Idaho. Here is the full events calendar. Brigid will be giving a public reading on Wednesday at 7:30 at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Center – 508 S. Main St., Moscow, ID.
Tuesday, October 26: A Long, Long Time Ago has been chosen for “Palos Reads,” a community reading event sponsored by Palos Fine Arts and the libraries of Palos Heights, Palos Hills and Palos Park. Brigid will be speaking, reading and signing books at the Palos Heights Library (12501 South 71st Ave., Palos Heights).
August 2010
Brigid spent the month on a writing residency at the UCross Foundation in Wyoming, working on the second novel.
June 2010
Wednesday, June 30: Brigid joined authors Audrey Niffenegger (Her Fearful Symmetry and The Time Traveler’s Wife) and Gina Frangello (My Sister’s Continent) for a Chicago Tonight Book Round Table on summer reads (WTTW)\.
June 2010
Saturday/Sunday, June 12/13: Brigid was at the Printers Row Book Fair (Chicago), on a panel with Dan Chaon (Await Your Reply) and Katharine Weber (True Confections). She also introduced the fabulous student writers of 826Chi, who held the book release for their new Compendium.
April 2010
Saturday, April 17: Brigid did a panel and signing at the Southern Kentucky Book Fest.
Saturday, April 20: Brigid spoke at Lewis University along with poet, Brandi Homan.
March 2010
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True has won the 2010 Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award! The ceremony will be held in the JFK Presidential Library in Boston on March 28th. Here is the official press release. Many thanks to judges Julia Glass, Michael Lowenthal and Gail Tsukiyama, the PEN Foundation, the JFK Library and the Hemingway family.
February 2010
February 15-16: Visited Point Park University in Pittsburgh for their Visiting Writers Series. Here is a link to the article in the Point Park Globe after a lovely conversation with student Faith Cotter. Thanks, Point Park!
Friday, February 19: I’ll be speaking to the Council of Educators in Polonia with my colleague, Joe Scotese. I’ll read from the book, and Joe will talk about how he taught A Long, Long Time Ago in his classroom. The meeting is open to all and is taking place at 7:00 p.m. at the White Eagle in Niles (6839 North Milwaukee Ave.)
January 2010
The new cover for the British paperback (Hodder & Stoughton)…coming out in March!
Saturday/Sunday, January 9th and 10th: I made my Polish television debut on Oblicza Ameryki (Polsat 2) in an interview by Agnieszka Topolska. Watch the video here. (It’s about five minutes.)
December 2009
Tuesday, December 1st, 7:30 p.m.: reading and signing in Chicago
Barbara’s Bookstore at UIC
1218 South Halsted, Chicago 60607
(312)413-2665
Tuesday, December 15th: I appeared on Chicago Tonight (WTTW/Channel 11) for a Books Round Table with Gretchen Kalwinski, fellow writer and literago.org founder, and Al Gini, Loyola professor. Watch the video here, and read my holiday book recommendations here.
October 2009
Tuesday, October 6: Reading/Signing in Raleigh, NC
Quail Ridge Books and Music
3522 Wade Ave., Raleigh, NC
(919)828-1588
Wednesday, October 7: Reading/Signing in Portsmouth, NH
River Run Bookstore
20 Congress Street, Portsmouth, NH
(603)431-2100
October 18, 2009
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True made the New York Times Book Review!! Here is the online version.
September 2009
An article about A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True appeared in Brigid’s hometown paper, News Tribune on September 18th, 2009.
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True has been chosen as the Elle (UK) “Read of the Month” for September.
Click here to read a series of guest blogs I wrote for Jewcy.com about relationships between Jewish and non-Jewish Poles during WWII, the Polish resistance, Jewish culture in Poland today, and why we still write about the war.
August 2009
August 6–UK publication date (Editor: Lisa Highton at Hodder & Stoughton/Sceptre)
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True will also be published by Nova Frontiera in Brazil, by Mistral in the Netherlands, and Kinneret Zmora in Israel.
August 8–A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True will be featured in the Chicago Tribune Book section
August 12–US publication date (Editors: Anjali Singh, and now Jenna Johnson at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Tuesday, August 18 at 7:00 p.m.—I will be reading/signing with Christine Lehner, author of What to Wear to See the Pope and Absent a Miracle
Brookline Booksmith
279 Harvard St., Brookline MA
617-566-6660
Wednesday, August 19 at 7:00 p.m.—Local Author Night: I will be speaking with Andrea Jones, author of Hook and Jill
The Book Cellar
4736-38 North Lincoln Ave., Chicago IL
773-293-2665
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True has been chosen for the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Series (Fall 2009)
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True has been chosen for National Geographic Traveler’s Book of the Month
A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True has a mention in the August 2009 issue of Marie Claire
Click here for a list I wrote for National Geographic Traveler on what to do in Poland.
