Buckeye Book Community to welcome renowned authors

COLUMBUS --Award-winning author Julia Alvarez and Pulitzer prize-winning author Michael Chabon will soon visit Ohio State to take part in a campus-wide discussion of their respective novels.

Alvarez, author of “In the Time of the Butterflies,” nominated for Best Book of 1994, visits campus Monday (10/7). Michael Chabon, author of “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay,” which won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for American Fiction, and “The Mysteries of Pittsburgh,” a New York Times bestseller, will visit Oct. 14. Both appearances will be held at Independence Hall, 1923 Neil Ave., at 7:30 p.m.

“The Buckeye Book Community provides an opportunity for everyone involved with our university to share both a common and cultural interest,” said Mabel Freeman, vice president of undergraduate admissions and First Year Experience. “We feel truly honored to have these highly-acclaimed authors participate in our program.”

Tickets, available at the Ohio State bookstore, Long’s bookstore, Hillel and Enarson Hall, are free of charge to faculty, staff and students who present their OSU ID or BuckID card. Tickets are also available to the public after Thursday (10/3) for Alvarez and after Oct. 10 for Chabon.

In its second year, The Buckeye Book Community seeks to involve faculty, academic advisers, staff members and students in a collaborative reading initiative designed to spark campus discussion on critical issues of the day.

Freeman added that the authors were selected last spring based on their varying themes and their novels’ potential to stimulate dialogue. The books were made available for purchase online and in area bookstores. Freshmen attending summer orientation were given the option to purchase the books at a discount. Nearly 4,000 books have been sold.

In addition to the authors’ appearances, a number of group discussions led by Ohio State faculty and staff are scheduled over the next two weeks.

Recently honored by the Hispanic Heritage Awards Foundation, Alvarez’s novel is inspired by a true story. It profiles the story of the three Mirabal sisters and their involvement in the underground resistance movement against the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic.

Chabon’s novels both explore the personal coming of age of youths, as well as the importance of relationships and hope. His future projects include the rewrite of “The Amazing Spider-Man,” the sequel to the summer box office smash.