Illinois Libraries Present: The Power of Story with Colson Whitehead

Kicking off the third season of Illinois Libraries Present, we are thrilled to welcome two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead to our Illinois libraries. To view the event online from your own home, please register at the link below. Otherwise, you may attend the in person screening at the Library.

Register in Zoom now »

About the author
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Underground Railroad, The Nickel Boys, Harlem Shuffle, The Noble Hustle, Zone One, Sag Harbor, The Intuitionist, John Henry Days, Apex Hides the Hurt, and a collection of essays, Whitehead is only the fourth writer to win two Pulitzers in the Fiction category (for Underground Railroad in 2018 and The Nickel Boys in 2020). His highly anticipated latest, Crook Manifesto, is a darkly funny tale of a city under siege, but also a sneakily searching portrait of the meaning of family.

His reviews, essays, and fiction have appeared in the New York Times, The New Yorker, New York Magazine, Harper’s, and Granta. Whitehead has received a MacArthur Fellowship and Guggenheim Fellowship and the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction, among others. In 2023, President Biden awarded Whitehead a National Endowment for the Humanities Medal. He has taught extensively, including at Columbia University, Princeton University, and Brooklyn College, and has been a writer-in-residence at Vassar College, the University of Richmond, and the University of Wyoming. He lives in New York City.

Disclaimer(s)

Illinois Libraries Present Virtual Program

After you register (using the registration link above), you will receive an email with a specific Zoom link to join the event from home.

By registering, you agree to library policy and understand that no conduct is permitted that may reasonably be expected to create a disturbance or otherwise interfere with the safe use and enjoyment of the library and program by others. All times are listed in Central time.

This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present, a statewide collaboration among 200+ public libraries—including Elmwood Park Public Library—offering premier events for participating member libraries of all sizes and budgets. Funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a Department of the Office for the Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).

Illinois Libraries Present is committed to inclusion and accessibility. To request accommodations, please email illinoislibrariespresent@gmail.com.