Bookworms come in all shapes and sizes, and some look like they belong more in a gym than a library. Exercising and nourishing your mind has become such a big part for many in the LGBT community, that the people who run the Miami Book Fair have shaped a significant program to cater for these library/gym rats.
The particular events that have whetted queerguru’s appetite are :-
James Allen Hall’s wonderful collection of essays with the most perfect title I Like You Before I Knew You So Well. They recount his journey to queerness which persisted despite a youth marred by violence, addiction and homophobia. Hall, an Associate Professor at Washington College will be reading from his book on Saturday November 18th @ 10.30 am.
Justin Loeber is a highly successful publicist and self-made entrepreneur who has one of those manic resumes that are just exhausting to read, yet somehow he still find time to write his very humorous Get Out Of Your Own Way Guide to Life : 10 Steps to Shift Gears, Dream Big Do It Now! He’ll be sharing all his knowledge (and more) at an event on Sunday 19th November.
Harvard English Professor Stephen Burt (who also goes by Steph and Stephanie) will be presenting a new collection of poetry called Advice From The Lights which is a brilliant and candid exploration of gender and identity. Burt is taking part in Reading Queer Presents: Four Groundbreaking Queer Poets on Saturday 18th @ 2.30pm.
Another unmissable event is on Wednesday 15th November at the Olympia Theater called PARIS IS STILL BURNING. Inspired by the legendary documentary film Paris Is Burning and the queer counterculture it documents, it will showcase some of the most prominent contemporary queer poets of color whose work reveals and explores various forms of social, racial and economic injustice: Danez Smith, t’ai freedom ford, Yrsa Daeley-Ward, and Chen Chen. The reading will be followed by a mini “ball”- a mix between a drag pageant and a queer performance competition- featuring members of South Florida’s own ballroom scene. This is another FREE event.
You can however put all books down for a special Miami Book Fair DRAG QUEEN BINGO night that is being held in partnership wth Miami Light Project, Reading Queer and Gramps. Featuring the Bearded Ladies and Priscilla Queen of the Desert Karaoke, this FREE event is at The Porch from 6 pm.
The Miami Book Fair is run by Miami Dade College November 12th-18th 2017 For further information and the complete schedule : https://www.miamibookfair.com/
