This post was written by Communications Intern Sara Heegaard
We’re beyond thrilled to welcome New York Times bestselling author Emily St. John Mandel to our CHAPTERS Reading on April 24. Gathering acclaim and admiration from both her readers and the writing community, Mandel is more than the sum of her literary accomplishments: she’s also an advocate for women’s voices, not only on the page, but in her own life. Her writing is full of strong female characters whose voices are critical to the unfolding of her narratives, reflecting the value Mandel herself places on women in literature.
We couldn’t be more excited for her to join Girls Write Now mentees as they perform their own fearless stories. Keeping company with one of today’s most innovative and inspiring female writing idols as they command the stage, mentees’ pieces will cover topics from understanding ancestry to the experience of writing as a teen to a sci-fi take on family relationships.
Girls Write Now is an essential institution. I come away from this collection not only filled with gratitude that such an organization exists, but delighted and moved to have encountered such talented and vibrant young writers.” –Emily St. John Mandel on Voice to Voice: The Girls Write Now 2015 Anthology (May, 2015)
Mandel’s latest novel, Station Eleven, has been a smashing success: the book was a 2014 National Book Award finalist, a PEN/Faulkner Award finalist, longlisted for the Bailey’s Prize and the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, and chosen as one of the “10 Best Books of the Year” by The Washington Post, TIME Magazine, and TimeOut New York, to name just a few of its distinctions. A staff writer for The Millions, it’s no surprise that Mandel’s writing talents extend beyond the novel: her essays and short fiction have been included in numerous collections, including Best American Mystery Stories 2013.
There’s still time to grab your tickets for the April 24th CHAPTERS reading, and for the rest of the series, too! Our teens will be joined by Roxane Gay on May 29th and Quiara Alegría Hudes on June 19th.
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Emily St. John Mandel was born and raised on the west coast of British Columbia, Canada. She studied contemporary dance at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre and lived briefly in Montreal before relocating to New York. Her fourth novel, Station Eleven, was a 2014 National Book Award Finalist. All four of her novels—previous books were Last Night in Montreal, The Singer’s Gun, and The Lola Quartet—were Indie Next Picks, and The Singer’s Gun was the 2014 winner of the Prix Mystere de la Critique in France. Her short fiction and essays have been anthologized in numerous collections, including Best American Mystery Stories 2013. She is a staff writer for The Millions. She lives in New York City with her husband.