(Tucson, AZ) Pima County Public Library's LGBTQ+ Services Committee is commemorating its 25th anniversary with award-winning poet, children's book author, and novelist Benjamin Alire Sáenz. He will be the final author in the committee's 2022 author talk series, which also featured Jessica P. Pryde (Black Love Matters), Carlos Valenzuela (Letters to Young Carlos), and Tee Franklin (Bingo Love).
This free, in-person event will include a reading from Sáenz, an interview, and a Q&A session with the audience. Attendees can also enjoy raffle prizes, a book signing, and other activities, including button making.
Saturday, October 15, 2022 from 2 to 4 pm
Tucson High Magnet School, Tech Mall
400 North 2nd Avenue
Barrio Books will be on hand at the event selling copies of Benjamin's books.
Benjamin Alire Sáenz is the first Latino to win the prestigious PEN/Faulkner Book Award for Everything Begins and Ends at the Kentucky Club. He is also the recipient of the American Book Award, a Lannan Poetry Fellowship, and the Los Angeles Book Prize (finalist). His highly-praised young adult novel, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, was called "a tender, honest exploration of identity and sexuality" in a starred Publishers Weekly review. The movie adaptation, starring Max Pelayo and Reese Gonzales and directed by Aitch Alberto, premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, where it was called "an open-hearted look at finding your place in a world that wasn't necessarily built for you."
The highly-anticipated sequel, Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World, was released in October 2021. Benjamin lives and works in El Paso, TX.
Ray Baca, Co-Chair of the LGBTQ+ Services Committee, says, "We're thrilled to be hosting Benjamin and beyond excited that it will be in person. After these past few years of virtual events, it's going to be wonderful to gather as a community with an author of such esteem and celebrate the committee's silver anniversary."
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World
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