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National Book Festival
With Marie Arana
Editor, The Washington Post Book World and
Author, "American Chica"
Friday, Sept. 7, 2001; 2 p.m. EDT
The first National Book Festival will take place at the Library of Congress and on the east lawn of the U.S. Capitol on Saturday. The festival is designed to encourage American families to develop a lifelong love of readiing and will feature over 40 award-winning authors and illustrators of books for both children and adults.
Marie Arana ,editor of The Washington Post Book World and author of "American Chica: Two Worlds, One Childhood," a memoir of her childhood in Peru and the U.S., will be reading excerpts from her book. She will be online Friday, Sept. 7, at 2 p.m. EDT, to talk about the festival and her book.
Before joining The Post, Arana had a long career in book publishing as vice president and senior editor at both Simon & Schuster and Harcourt Brace.
A transcript follows.
Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control
over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
Marie Arana: Hello, out there! I hope you book lovers are gearing yourselves up for the first National Book Festival, which will grace our fair city tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 8. The Festival will take place at the Library of Congress (LOC) grounds just behind the U.S. Capitol. Mrs. Laura Bush will welcome festival goers at 9:30 in the Neptune Plaza of the LOC, and the events will run throughout the day until 5 p.m. It promises to be an extravaganza for readers, a smorgasbord of author appearances, panels, and children’s activities—something to please every taste. Washington D.C. has deserved something like this for a very long time, and so I am thrilled to see it finally coming to pass. Did you know that we are the largest hardcover book market in the country? And did you know that we boast the most highly educated, most affluent population in America? That adds up to a lot of people able to buy and read a lot of good books. You can find more information on our very own site,
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/entertainment/new_features/nationalbookfest/ .
You can also go to the Library of Congress site at www.loc.gov/bookfest . I’m happy to take questions about the Festival (The Washington Post is the official patron), or about my own memoir, which I’ve been invited to present in the nonfiction pavilion tomorrow: “American Chica: Two Worlds, One Childhood,” published by Dial Press.
Let me know what you think about all this and whether there’s any information I can give you in advance.
New York, N.Y.:
Did you work with Mrs. Bush on this project? I know she is very into literacy intiatives.
Marie Arana: No, I didn't work with Mrs. Bush directly on the Festival. The Post volunteered to help publicize the Festival, and so we became the official patron of the event. I am so pleased that Mrs. Bush took the initiative to get this Festival off the ground. At her insistence, the Festival is coming to you this year.
Ames, Iowa:
Who decides what books or authors will be included in the book festival? And why do there seem to be so many big name bestselling authors involved? Chances are readers already know those writers; and a chance to introduce them to new ones is lost.
Marie Arana: The Library of Congress in general, and the Center for the Book in particular, made all the invitations. I happen to know that they had a big challenge on their hands, because the Festival wasn't officially announced until the end of July, and so they had very little time to invite authors. The wanted to get big name authors at the event in order to gather a large crowd. Perhaps in future years, they can expand the roster to an even larger variety.
Reston, Va.:
Just one question: When and where do we have to be tomorrow to see Michael Dirda in the flesh?
Marie Arana: Michael Dirda, our beloved critic (and Jonathan Yardley, too!) will be at the Festival at 10 a.m. in the nonfiction pavilion. Yardley will open the fiction pavilion at the same time.
Washington, D.C.:
Could you tell me of a couple of books that you have read that you think have changed your life.
Marie Arana: Great question. Books that have changed my life--the answer would change depending on the day you catch me. But today, the answer is: Anna Karenina (Tolstoy), Don Quixote (Cervantes), anything by Nabokov, Madame Bovary (Flaubert), anything by Henry James, Twenty Love Poems by Pablo Neruda, anything by Jane Austen. Try me on this question some other time!
Lexington Park, Md.:
Hi:
Can you please touch on the children activities? I am trying to convince the family to make the trek into town.
Thanks
Marie Arana: There will be many things for children. A Storytelling Pavilion is dedicated to kids. There will be demonstrations by famous authors and illustrators at the Madison Building. There will be many characters wandering around the grounds, ie. Arthur the Aardvark and Clifford the Big Red Dog. And food and games, too. Also, standing exhibits at the LOC.
Woodbridge, Va.:
Which are the best known book festivals here in the East?
Marie Arana: Well, there's the New York is Book Country in September. There's the Boston Festival in the Fall. There's the Miami Book Festival (huge) in November. But this is a first for the capital.
Washington, D.C.:
What is your book about. Elaborate.
Marie Arana: Thank you for asking. My book, American Chica, is about growing up bicultural. I was raised in Peru for the first 10 years of my life. My father is Peruvian, mother anglo-American. It is a memoir of what it's like to carry two heads at all times, two cultures, the life of a betwixt and between person.
Dupont:
Will you be doing signings of your books? Do you know who else will be signing books? Thank you.
Marie Arana: I'll present American Chica at the nonfiction pavilion at 11 a.m. And then I'll be signing books at 1 p.m. Along with many, many other authors, believe me. Come and say hello, please.
Washington D.C.:
Dear Marie:
My women's book club has been reading your book "American Chica" these last few weeks and will meet tonight to discuss it at the house of one of our members who is Peruvian (who promises to make us some yummy Peruvian treats).
I thoroughly enjoyed your book. I was intrigued by your relationship with Antonio and the talk of qosqo -- letting everything rush in, the bad with the good ... and then let the poison pour away into the heart of stone.
You say it was a lesson that you absolutely need to know. Can you share an example of how you used that lesson later in your life?
Thanks.
Marie Arana: Thanks for all these nice words. Yes, Indian legends are part of who I am. Being half-Peruvian, I grew up with these, and so believe that there is a certain logic to the world, that we were predestined to live our lives the way we do. Please let me know how your book discussion goes! And I envy you the Peruvian treats.
Woodbridge, Va.:
Marie--My only prior experience with book festivals is seeing you and the other Book World staff people speak at the book festival in Fairfax last year.
I've gotten curious. What is the difference between the various book festivals? What will the National Book Festival have that others do not? Dirda in his essays has talked about going to book fairs where there are plentiful book venders with used books -- is that only at antiquarian book fairs?
Marie Arana: The Fall for the Book Festival in Fairfax was lovely, and I understand it will be held again later this month. You should go again if you have the chance.
I imagine that the difference between it and the National Book Festival will be in sheer volume. More authors are expected from more places around the country. Gail Godwin is coming from Mass. Scot Berg (Lindbergh bio) is coming from L.A. etc. etc. A large dose of talent in one place at one time.
Washington, D.C.:
Do you know anything about when Robert Caro's 3rd volume of his LBJ biography is coming out? Thanks
Marie Arana: Well, I know it's not coming out this Fall. The second installment Means of Ascent won the 1990 National Book Critics Circle Award, so it's been 11 years in the making of the third. I'm looking forward to it, but have no further information. Sorry!
Arlington, Va.:
What do you hope each child who attends the festival will take home?
Marie Arana: A love of books. Or if not that, at least a curiosity about them. Reading is so vital to a child's future. It's will be a very good thing if we convince children that it can be a pleasurable experience, too.
Washington, D.C.:
How many people are expected at the festival?
Marie Arana: Oooooh. This is a hard one. The L.A. book festival attracted 110,000 people in two days. 55,000 folks a day. But it has had 7 years to build up to that level. I suppose if the National Book Festival can get a quarter of that, it will be doing well for its first time out of the chute. I hope people turn out in droves, thereby assuring the city that it will see another one of these next year. Come on out!
Washington, D.C.:
What do you think of books like Anne Heche's Call Me Crazy?
Marie Arana: Well, I haven't read it. And I really don't know much about her relationship to Ellen Degeneris (sp?). I am *for* memoirs, in general. The boom in them is clearly a product of our need to understand our own lives. I will say, however, that I prefer non-celebrity memoirs. Celebrity memoirs can so often be just lists of whom you knew and what they said. Anybody out there read the Heche?
Alexandria, Va.:
Laura Bush just said turn off the TV and sit down and read with your kids. That good advice?
Marie Arana: Oh boy, is it ever. Then again, I've never been a TV watcher. I like my pleasures to be of the interactive variety. A book is just about the most interactive object you'll ever find. Makes you think. Makes you afraid. Makes you happy. The brain is working all the time. What could be better for a kid?
Washington, D.C.:
Hello Marie -- Am just reading your book now. It's wonderful so far. Do you have plans for writing other books, either autobiographical or some other type?
Also, is Washington as big a market for children's books as it is for adult books? And will Book World go back to monthly children's book reviews?
Thanks -- I think you do a great job at BW.
Marie Arana: Thanks for that nice mention about Book World. I think it's the best book review in the country, and that's not to pat myself on the back, because without me it would continue to be the best review organ around. The staff is top-notch. Lively bunch of people with diverse tastes and a deep love of books.
And thank you for reading my book. I'm playing with the idea for a new book, but I'd hate to jinx myself here. I'll tell you one thing: it has to do with the viral aspects of love.
Washington is a very large market for kids' books, but I believe the L.A. market is larger. I'm happy to report that starting this month (late September) we're covering children's books twice a month. Elizabeth Ward is our new columnist. Jabari Asim is the editor in charge.
Marie Arana: I'd like to talk a little about the authors who will be in attendance tomorrow. David McCullough, for instance, whose John Adams was on the front page of Book World not too long ago. He'll be there, introduced by our own Michael Dirda. Sue Grafton, Walter Mosley and Scott Turow will be introduced by our Mystery reviewer Richard Lipez. Historians Michael Beschloss and Doris Kearns Goodwin will be introduced by our senior editor Chris Lehmann. Jabari Asim will introduce John Hope Franklin, the great chronicler of African American history.
Brooklyn, N.Y.:
What did you think of Dave Eggers' memoir, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius?
Marie Arana: Oh, I liked it a lot. Did you? I wouldn't say it was on the top of my list, the changed-your-life variety of book, but there was something about it that captured the times. Very clever. Totally insane. But very clever. What did you think?
Washington, D.C.:
It seems like writers now are really into having attractive photos of them on their books which, I interpret, makes them desirable for television appearances. Do you like this trend? Sometimes it seems like it's more about the book cover and author trendy photo than what's inside.
Marie Arana: Well, Linton Weeks wrote about this for The Post not too long ago. Having been in book publishing myself (I was an editor at Simon & Schuster and HBJ), I know that there has been a long-standing trend (since the late 1970s) to publicize authors. If you are beautiful, ie. Louise Erdrich, it's that much easier to book you on a publicity tour and attract attention. It's not a good thing, no, and I admire the writers (Anne Tyler, also beautiful) who shun it. But I'm afraid it's with us.
Huntsville, Ala.:
The Columnist by Jeffrey Frank was a hilarious book, depeciting the backstabbing ways of D.C. and journalism in general. It's one of the best books I've read in years -- and I'm a journalist! Journalists have thin skins and little sense of humor so I'm wondering: Did your review cover the book and what has the reception of the book been so far in D.C?
Byron Larder
Marie Arana: Well, my husband read Frank's novel and liked it very much indeed. As things can happen in this business, however, the Book World reviewer (Michael Thomas, as I recall) didn't care for it. Thought it was a tad shallow. I don't know how well the book is faring in D.C. I'm an admirer of Jeff Frank, though (he's an editor at the New Yorker), so I wish him every success. You should write to him and tell him how much you loved it!
D.C.:
Any favorite spots for Peruvian food?
Marie Arana: Oh boy. Yes. El Chalan in D.C. The Nibbler in Gaithersburg. Superchicken (quick take out chicken place) in Virginia.
Gaithersburg, Md.:
The Natl Book Festival is a great idea-reading should be a family activity! I'd like to see the Children and Young Adults Author Pavilion divided or at least annotated somewhere so that parents can quickly have an idea of the content ("ratings, for a lack of a better word).
Marie Arana: I'm sure that if you come out to the Festival, there will be a full program leading you to all the activities and explaining who's who and what's what. Have you checked out the LOC site? It's at www.loc.gov/bookfest. That will give you a preliminary idea. More will be available at the Festival itself.
Marie Arana: What book authors do you wish would come to the Festival? Do you have a wishlist? Post them to me now. I'm most interested in knowing what names it would take to get you out of your seats and onto the fairgrounds.
Marie Arana: Someone asked how this Festival may differ from the antiquarian book fairs that Michael Dirda loves so much. The difference will be in the currency of the authors. These are living, breathing laborers in the present-day republic of letters. It's wonderful, of course, to wander among old books and get a sense of the permanence of words. But it is another thing entirely to have the opportunity to see authors and hear them talk about how they work.
Washington, D.C.:
I'd like to see Mary Oliver; I just got turned on to her poetry recently.
Marie Arana: Mary Oliver is a lovely poet. Do you read Book World's column, Poet's Choice, by Rita Dove? It's a very good way to become acquainted with poets you might never had heard of before. There will be a nice group of poets at the Festival, Collier and Soto and many others. But yes, it would be nice to invite Mary Oliver in the future.
Silver Spring, Md.:
Hi Marie -- I really enjoyed reading your memoir and hope you will write more soon. Could you comment a little more on your spiritual views -- how they were shaped and how they have changed? Thanks ...
Marie Arana: Thanks so much for this. My spiritual views are such an amalgamation of things. I was raised a Catholic and an Episcopalian all at once. But I have also been infused with Andean and Amazon lore. My own fervent conviction is that we humans are small in the face of greater, wiser powers. That hasn't really changed for me since I was a child. When people ask me I say that I am a person of deep faith, but I would be hard pressed to tell you that it belongs to any one denomination.
Marie Arana: Thank you so much for joining me. I see that my time is up. Bring yourselves out tomorrow. Come introduce yourself to me or to the many fine people on Book World's staff: Michael Dirda, Jennifer Howard, Francis Tanabe, Jonathan Yardley, Jabari Asim, Dennis Drabelle, Chris Lehmann. We'll all be there introducing, presenting, and generally basking in the light of books. We'd love to meet you in person. 'Til tomorrow!
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