2-4 p.m., Trinity Lutheran Church, 1400 W. Stadium. Free. annarborstorytelling.org, 997-5388.
Literati is pleased to welcome Gregory Boyle to Ann Arbor! He will be speaking at the Rogel Ballrom in the Union on topics from his new book Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship.
About Barking to the Choir:
In his first book, Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion, Gregory Boyle introduced us to Homeboy Industries, the largest gang-intervention program in the world . Critics hailed that book as an “astounding literary and spiritual feat” ( Publishers Weekly) that is “destined to become a classic of both urban reportage and contemporary spirituality” ( Los Angeles Times). Now, after the suc-cessful expansion of Homeboy Industries, Boyle returns with Barking to the Choir to reveal how com-passion is transforming the lives of gang members.
In a nation deeply divided and plagued by poverty and violence, Barking to the Choir offers a snapshot into the challenges and joys of life on the margins. Sergio, arrested at nine, in a gang by twelve, and serving time shortly thereafter, now works with the substance-abuse team at Homeboy to help others find sobriety. Jamal, abandoned by his family when he tried to attend school at age seven, gradually finds forgive-ness for his schizophrenic mother. New father Cuco, who never knew his own dad, thinks of a daily adventure on which to take his four-year-old son. These former gang members uplift the soul and reveal how bright life can be when filled with unconditional love and kindness.
This book is guaranteed to shake up our ideas about God and about people with a glimpse at a world defined by more compassion and fewer barriers. Gently and humorously, Barking to the Choir invites us to find kinship with one another and reconvinces us all of our own goodness.
Gregory Boyle is the founder of Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles, CA. Now in its 30th year, Homeboy traces its roots to when Boyle, a Jesuit priest with advanced degrees in English and theology, served as pastor of Dolores Mission Church, then the poorest Catholic parish in Los Angeles, which also had the highest concentration of gang activity in the city. Homeboy has become the largest gang-intervention, rehabilitation, and reentry program in the world, and employs and trains gang members and felons in a range of social enterprises, as well as provides critical services to thousands of men and women each year who walk through its doors seeking a better life. Father Boyle has received the California Peace Prize, the James Beard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year Award, and the University of Notre Dame’s Laetare Medal. He was inducted into the California Hall of Fame and named a 2014 Champion of Change by the White House. He is also the author of the New York Times bestseller Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion.
Literati is proud to partner with the University of Michigan Institute for the Humanities to present Yaa Gyaasi, author of Homegoing, as the speaker for The 2018 Jill S. Harris Memorial Lecture.
About Homecoming
Two half sisters, Effia and Esi, unknown to each other, are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and will live in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle, raising children who will be sent abroad to be educated before returning to the Gold Coast to serve as administrators of the empire. Esi, imprisoned beneath Effia in the Castle’s women’s dungeon and then shipped off on a boat bound for America, will be sold into slavery. Stretching from the wars of Ghana to slavery and the Civil War in America, from the coal mines in the American South to the Great Migration to twentieth-century Harlem, Yaa Gyasi’s novel moves through histories and geographies and captures—with outstanding economy and force—the troubled spirit of our own nation. She has written a modern masterpiece.
Yaa Gyasi was born in Ghana in 1989, raised in Huntsville, Alabama, and is a graduate of the Iowa Writer’s Workshop.
Jan 2 & 16. Monthly open mike storytelling competition sponsored by The Moth, the NYC-based nonprofit storytelling organization that also produces a weekly public radio show. Each month 10 storytellers are selected at random from among those who sign up to tell a 3-5 minute story on the monthly theme. The 3 teams of judges are recruited from the audience. Monthly winners compete in a semiannual Grand Slam. Space limited, so it’s smart to arrive early.
7:30-9 p.m. (doors open and sign-up begins at 6 p.m.), Greyline, 100 N. Ashley. $8. 764-5118.
Literati is thrilled to partner with the Stamps School of Art and Design to welcome author and musician Joseph Keckler to the Rackham Auditorium as part of the Penny Stamps Distinguished Speaker Series.
Straddling the worlds of music, art, and performance, Joseph Keckler has garnered acclaim for his rich, versatile 3+ octave voice and sharp wit. Keckler’s live performances have been seen at SXSW Music, the New Museum, Issue Project Room, the BAM Fischer Center, Joe’s Pub, the Afterglow Festival, and many other venues. He has received residencies from MacDowell and Yaddo, as well as a Franklin Furnace Grant and a Fellowship in Interdisciplinary Work from the New York Foundation for the Arts. His most recent performance piece, I am an Opera, was commissioned by Dixon Place. The Village Voicenamed him Best Downtown Performance Artist, 2013. For this special speaker series event, Keckler will read from his latest book, Dragon at the Edge of a Flat World (Dragon Point Press, 2017). Drawn from the stories of his life, Keckler’s essays explore the corners of downtown New York, where he made his name performing his songs and plays, and back to the Midwest, where everything began. The texts included in Dragon at the Edge of a Flat Worldrepresent both the continuation and foundation of Keckler’s work on stage.
The RC Resident Advisors are proud to present:
Open-Mic Night
February 8th, 7:30-9pm in the Java Blu Cafe right here in East Quad–
ft. local band City of Lakes!
City of Lakes comes from a variety of musical backgrounds, fusing styles of indie-folk, blues, and traditional scores, with influences such as Band of Horses and Head and the Heart.
RC Creative Writing Faculty may be making an appearance…
and ALL are welcome to to come perform a poem, a story, a song, or anything else!
Sign up here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfUEkRd0AtSYg69ltCs8L2ylEwV2nm-7rxFYg4t1_fIWPzwyQ/viewform
Email eshabis@umich.edu with any questions!
Performances include dance, music, spoken word, and a variety of mixed media and digital arts. Artists include Anthony Coffee, Spencer Haney, Olivia Johnson, Alex Kime (RC 2017), Hannah Marcus, Maddy Joss & Johnny Matthews, Augie Lessins & Daniel Kumapayi, Red Shoe Company, Nichole Reehorst, and more!
Join us for this special evening hosted by the UMMA Student Engagement Council, in partnership with Arts at Michigan, the Michigan Community Scholars Program, the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, and Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs.
Students of Kate Mendeloff’s class RCHUMS 481 perform four short plays by Tennessee Williams.
EMU women’s and gender studies professor Elizabeth Currans discusses her new book.
4:10 p.m., 2239 Lane, 204 S. State. Free. 764-9537.
Toastmasters is an international group devoted to helping each other grow in our abilities to give speeches. The Sweetwaters Toastmasters Club meets twice monthly. We are a fun and friendly group! Toastmasters also helps you develop leadership skills if you wish to do that. Come as many times as you want for free, and decide later if you want to join. In the meantime, come make new friends and have fun!
Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea on Washington Street, 123 West Washington Street. Free. 323-286-3999. https://www.facebook.com/groups/TMSweet/
