THE ART OF MEMOIR

What is memoir but a report from the center of the self? Free of restraints and determined to exist. A letter to a past self and a consideration of a future self. The memoir writers on this panel represent a variety of selves, born from distinct experiences. Larry Bagneris is the author of Call Me Larry, A Creole Man’s Triumph over Racism, his story of growing up gay in New Orleans in the 1950s and political activism in Texas, where he founded Houston Pride Parade, then returning to his hometown. Pretty is the memoir of KB Brookins, a Black Trans writer, who offers a vibrant portrait of queerness, masculinity, and race. Combat veteran J.T. Blatty writes about her photography and oral history project, documenting the lives of Ukrainians in the Donbas region in Snapshots Sent Home. The author of numerous novels, Bernice L. McFadden delves into memoir with First Born Girls, her family history that traces the entwined generations of mothers and daughters. The panel is moderated by Constance Adler, author of the memoir My Bayou, New Orleans Through the Eyes of a Lover and a debut novel Sight Unseen.