DETROIT, Aug. 02, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Marygrove College announces award-winning author and graphic novelist Mat Johnson as the featured guest at its 2017 Contemporary American Authors Lecture Series (CAALS) on Friday, April 7. Since 1989, Marygrove has brought nationally-known authors to its campus for a public lecture and seminar. The 8 p.m. Lillian and Don Bauder Lecture and book signing are free of charge and open to the public.
In addition to the public reading, Mr. Johnson will teach a class for high school students on April 7 at 10 a.m. “Marygrove is thrilled to host this extraordinary opportunity to engage with the best African American authors of our time,” said Dr. Darcy L. Brandel, chair of the Department of English and Modern Languages. “To watch students get hooked as readers and pass their excitement onto those around them is remarkable and a big part of what makes this event so distinctive.”
Johnson is the author of “The Great Negro Plot,” a work of nonfiction, and four novels including “Drop,” which was listed among the Best Novels of the Year by Progressive Magazine and included in Barnes & Noble’s Great New Writers selection. In addition to winning the Zora Neale Hurston and Richard Wright Legacy Award for Novel of the Year for “Hunting in Harlem,” Johnson has also authored four graphic novels including the five-issue limited series “Hellblazer Special: Papa Midnite.”
Support for the 2016 CAALS event, which featured nationally-acclaimed poet and playwright Claudia Rankine, was provided in part by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts. For information about sponsorship opportunities for the 2017 event, contact Susan Smith, 313-927-1594 or ssmith16@marygrove.edu . For more information or to schedule an interview with Mat Johnson, contact Renée Ahee, 313-927-1438 or rahee@marygrove.edu . You may also visit: http://english.marygrove.edu/caals.html .
Founded by the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) in 1905, Marygrove College is an independent liberal arts college and a Catholic institution of higher learning. The College’s commitment to the city of Detroit comprises an institutional mission and vision for developing urban leaders. The main campus is situated on 53 wooded acres in northwest Detroit at 8425 W. McNichols Rd., Detroit, MI 48221. Visit www.marygrove.edu .
CONTACT: Renée Ahee Phone: 313-927-1438 Email: rahee@marygrove.edu
