Discussion: John Edgar Wideman's Brothers and Keepers, led by D. Quentin Miller

F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Festival

D. Quentin Miller, author of Understanding John Edgar Wideman (2018), will discuss Brothers & Keepers, the 1984 memoir written by John Edgar Wideman. More details at http://FScottFestival.org.

Join us for a book discussion that is part of the 2021 F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Festival, co-sponsored by Montgomery County Public Libraries.  John Edgar Wideman is this year's Festival Honoree.

For more information on all the Festival events, which run through October 30, 2021, please see http://fscottfestival.org/ Registration via the festival web site is encouraged, but not required.

To access this event, please use the Zoom meeting link:

Join us in Zoom: https://marylandlibraries.zoom.us/j/92237075354 

Or Dial In: 301 715 8592; Meeting ID: [922 3707 5354]

The memoir charts the wildly divergent paths of two African-American brothers.  They start from a family of modest means in Pittsburgh's Homewood neighborhood where the author blossoms successfully into a Rhodes Scholar, a college professor, and a recognized writer. His brother Robby follows a different path and as a heroin addict is sentenced to life imprisonment for a role in a deadly robbery. The book navigates history through a mix of  personal recollections and prison  interviews. The author contrasts the diverging trajectory of his own life to that of his brother’s to tell a narrative illustrating struggles with race, identity, prison conditions, and the American Dream.   

D. Quentin Miller, author of Understanding John Edgar Wideman (2018), is Professor of English and Chair of the Department at Suffolk University in Boston. He is the author, editor, or coeditor of ten books, including, most recently, The Routledge Introduction to African American Literature. His interest in Wideman stemmed from teaching writing in prisons in the 1990s, which in turn led to a fascination with works by prisoners and about the prison experience.   Prior to teaching at Suffolk University he taught at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota and at the University of Connecticut.  

To check out other MCPL virtual programs - https://mcpl.link/VirtualPrograms

Many of Mr. Wideman's works are in electronic and/or paper format in the MCPL Collection.  Search our catalog at http://montgomerycountymd.gov/library

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