BookExpo America (BEA) starts June 2 in New York, with a fantastic looking ReadRussia program. Guests include Russian émigré writers and editors such as Marina Adamovich, Alexander Genis and Yuri Miloslavsky. Miloslavsky mentions the correspondence between Tsar Alexander I and Thomas Jefferson, something which would certainly cause Jefferson to lose any potential Tea Party support. He also mentions Alexander II supporting the American Revolution by sending a Russian fleet, which must have come a bit late since Alexander II wasn’t even born until 1818. Well, that’s one way to keep troops out of harm’s way.
Russia Beyond the Headlines has a wide assortment of articles on everything from the enduring popularity of Tolstoy’s novels in the west to a look at the emerging generation of Russian writers. And while dystopia will be one of the topics at Expo these postcards of Russia in the 23rd century present a more optimistic though extremely old-fashioned looking future.
Baltic books
Tallinn literature festival, HeadRead, is underway. Guests include David Mitchell, Lyudmila Petrushevskaya, Zinovy Zinik and Jason Goodwin, and every evening looks to be capped off with a film adaptation of a Dickens novel.
Photos – poster for the 1935 Soviet adaptation of Karel Čapek’s play R.U.R., 2) HeadRead, Tallin
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Great post. And yes — tomorrow there is an excellent Book Walk through downtown Tallinn, conducted in English — the only one of the festival that’s not in Estonian. Overall, it’s a strong program, this year, with one of the highlights being the Poetry Mass at the spectacular medieval cathedral of St. Nicholas.
Are you there? Sometimes when I post about these various festivals people tell me to have a good time though I can’t get any further than Prague’s public transport system will take me. I’m hoping that with enough hinting a wealthy patron will take an interest in (or take pity on) me.
If only… No, I’m in Portland, Oregon. But I love Tallinn, and went to a literary festival there in 2006 — this festival’s precursor, I think. I still have a number of friends in the city, though, from the summer I lived in Latvia.