Public Lives/Private Lives

The fourth annual PEN World Voices: The New York Festival of International Literature will take place 29th April to 4th May 2008. This year’s theme of Public Lives/Private Lives could hardly be more timely. How do we draw a line between our private and public selves? When must we tell private stories for the public good? How, as readers, writers, and citizens, do we confront threats to our privacy? What is still considered private in the Internet age? Do we need to redefine the meaning of public and private in the 21st century? The writers in this year’s Festival will mine this rich theme in a variety of literary conversations, panels, readings, and performances.

The complete list of participants, includes Peter Carey, Umberto Eco, Ian McEwan, Jo Nesbø, Joyce Carol Oates, Michael Ondaatje, Annie Proulx, Bernhard Schlink, Mario Vargas Llosa and Salman Rushdie.

If you enjoyed this post, subscribe to my RSS feed




  1. Aerin

    Sounds like a great event - and I will be mulling those questions through my weekend….

    jb says: Hi Aerin; good to hear from you. A mulling weekend, ahead, then . . .

Leave a Comment




About Writing:

Writing is the only thing that, when I do it, I don't feel I should be doing something else. Gloria Steinem

Save a Blogger from Begging: Buy Books:


chinese jacket

Signed first editions
at special prices.

1009 feed subscribers

My Website

Visit my website for news of readings and appearances, reviews of and extracts from my novels, interviews, quotations on writing, revolution, lies, time and dance, art, serial killers, and humour. Read short stories, view author images and much more.

All Posts

See a list of all posts