Susan Straight, winner of multiple literary awards, including the Edgar Allen Poe Award in 2008, will present a reading of one of her novels as the featured writer for common reading in the English department on Wednesday, Oct. 26 in the Student Union Theater. Admission is free and the reading will take place at 7 p.m., with a book signing following the reading. On Thursday, there will be three other activities that relate to Straight’s works.
Straight will give a reading on the English fall 2011 Common Read, “Highwire Moon.” The book takes a look at the contemporary issue of illegal immigration and themes such as teen pregnancy, drug abuse and ethnic identity as the main character tries to assemble her new life in California.
Dr. David Hanson, head of the Department of English, described how Straight’s ability to connect with the audience at the spring 2011 Tennessee Williams Festival was a primary reason for Straight being chosen to present a reading at Southeastern.
According to her website, Straight has published seven novels and one middle school reader in addition to having short stories, articles and essays published in various magazines.
“Highwire Moon” was a finalist for the National Book Award. She completed the novel with the help of the Guggenheim Fellowship, which is annually awarded to those who have demonstrated a capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts. Her novel, “A Million Nightingales,” was a finalist for the 2006 Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the 2006 Southern California Booksellers Award. The novel is set in Louisiana in the years following the Louisiana Purchase. Straight is currently a professor in the Department of Creative Writing at the University of California, Riverside.
While those who have read “Highwire Moon” may be more familiar with what Straight will be discussing, those who haven’t read the novel are encouraged to come out to the reading.
“For members of the Southeastern community who aren’t studying Straight’s work in class, an evening with award-winner author Susan Straight will still prove enjoyable,” said Hanson. “She will provide a context to her reading that will allow everyone, even those who haven’t read ‘Highwire Moon,’ to engage in the passages she reads. Further, the contemporary and controversial issues in the book promise a lively Q-and-A session after the reading.”
On Thursday from 9:30-10:45 a.m. on the 3rd floor of Sims Memorial Library, students will give presentations on both “Highwire Moon” and Straight’s short story, “El Ojo de Agua.” The short story, which appeared in the short fiction and art quarterly Zoetrope, won an O. Henry Award in 2007, which recognized it as one of the best short stories of the year.
From 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m., students from Ponchatoula High School will be visiting for a presentation of Straight’s story, “El Ojo de Agua” in D Vickers 210. According to Hansen, while intended primarily for the visiting students, Southeastern students and faculty and staff can attend if space permits.
According to English instructor Heather O’Connell, the high school students read the short story two weeks ago and had a creative writing assignment where they had to write a response to it. The best one was chosen by the editorial board of the creative writing journal, The Manchac Review to be included in the 2012 issue. In addition, the winning writer will present it at the 9:30 a.m. presentation. At 2 p.m. there will be a “Highwire Moon” Q-and-A session in D Vickers 210.