Peace Corps Writers Bob Shacochis and Sarah Erdman will appear at Miami Book Fair International (MBFI) on November 13 - 14



Peace Corps Writers Bob Shacochis and Sarah Erdman will appear at Miami Book Fair International (MBFI) on November 13 - 14

For the first time in its twenty-year history, the Miami Book Fair International (MBFI) has invited Peace Corps Writers to present their unique perspectives on the developing world and literature. The MBFI started as a street fair called "Books by the Bay" in 1984 and has evolved into the largest book fair in America, an event eagerly anticipated annually by hundreds of thousands of book lovers. The Fair will be covered by CSPAN over the November 13-14 weekend, when the RPCV panel will present. For a program of readings and special activities, please see www.miamibookfair.org.

RPCV writers, Bob Shacochis and Sarah Erdman will be included in the MBFI international Congress of Authors. Leita Kaldi will moderate on behalf of John Coyne and Marian Haley Beil, who have made inestimable contributions to promoting Peace Corps literature in the ezine, RPCV Writers & Readers. John edited Living on the Edge, Going Up Country: Travel Essays by PCWs, and is the author and editor of over twenty books of fiction and non-fiction.

Sarah Erdman brings a deep understanding of African culture and changing society to her book, Nine Hills to Nambokaha:Two Years in the Heart of an African Village, which won the 2004 Paul Cowan Non-Fiction Award from PC Writers and was singled out by Border’s Original Voices Booklist and the Barnes and Noble "Discover Great New Writers" program.

Bob Shacochis is author of Easy in the Islands, and a detailed account of the United States’ occupation of Haiti in the 1990s entitled The Immaculate Invasion.

John Coyne wrote, "Peace Corps writers are telling the stories of the Peace Corps, and more importantly, of life in the developing world. A world that Americans know so little about, or care to consider." He considers these writings to be an "emerging genre of American literature." Recognition by the MBFI confirms this notion and will provide a platform for expanding awareness of Peace Corps chronicles.

For further information, please contact Leita Kaldi at lkaldi@hotmail.com.

When this story was posted in October 2004, this was on the front page of PCOL:

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