Past Events
November 2021
Jan Beatty: On American Bastard: A Memoir
In American Bastard: A Memoir, lauded poet Jan Beatty sandblasts the exaltation of adoption in Western culture and the myth of the “chosen baby.” Chronicling her search for her birth parents, her journey into the relationship of place and body compels and unhinges, with the link between identity and blood history its driving force. This event requires a ticket for admission. All in-person events at MBF 2021 will require a ticket for entry. Tickets will be available to Friends of the Fair October 18 and to the general public November 3.…
In Conversation: On Until We’re Fish: A Novel & Letters from Cuba
Susannah Rodriguez Drissi’s coming-of-age story Until We’re Fish: A Novel blends love and the romance, violence, mood, and ethos of the Cuban Revolution. It’s a gossamer tale of political defiance and hearts set adrift, and of two ordinary characters: childhood sweethearts Elio and Maria, people willing to sacrifice everything to be free. When Esther follows her father’s escape to Cuba as the situation for Jews worsens in Poland on the eve of WWII, she promises her sister to write to her sharing everything she experiences until they reunite.…
In Conversation: On The Reluctant King
Navigating the power circles of New York City’s movers and shakers, the King family is regarded as modern-day royalty. In The Reluctant King, K’wan Foye follows Shadow, who is the least like the rest of his charismatic and powerful family. But when his father decides to climb the political ladder, even Shadow will have to make a sacrifice when the devil comes to claim his due. Moderated by poet, spoken-word performer, and educator Calvin “Made-S.O.N.” Early.…
In Conversation: On Rastafari in the 21st Century: What Life has Taught I&I – Volume I
In Rastafari In The 21st Century – What Life Has Taught I&I: Volume One: Tribute to the Rastafari Elders, co-authors Douglas Smith and I. Jabulani Tafari present the previously unwritten history of the first generation of Rastafari elders. The book is a literary tribute, as many of those elders are transitioning on to become ancestors, and their stories are already starting to fade from the collective memory of the people of Jamaica and the world. This event requires a ticket for admission.…
Dr. Mikkael Sekeres: On When Blood Breaks Down: Life Lessons from Leukemia
In When Blood Breaks Down: Life Lessons from Leukemia, Dr. Mikkael A. Sekeres – chief of the division of hematology in the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine – tells the compelling stories of three adult leukemia patients and their treatments, and discusses the disease itself and the drugs developed to treat it. This event requires a ticket for admission. All in-person events at MBF 2021 will require a ticket for entry. Tickets will be available to Friends of the Fair October 18 and to the general public November 3.…
In Conversation: On Tropical Burn
In Tropical Burn, artist Gonzalo Fuenmayor sets assumptions about exoticism and colonialism on their head. From opulent Victorian-era façades to McDonald’s iconography, Fuenmayor playfully subverts the power of the consumerist industry while exploring the impact of North American business practices around the world. Moderated by Dennis Scholl, president and CEO of Oolite Arts. This event requires a ticket for admission. All in-person events at MBF 2021 will require a ticket for entry. Tickets will be available to Friends of the Fair October 18 and to the general public November 3.…
In Conversation: On Hear Us: Writing from the Inside During the Time of COVID
Hear Us: Writing from the Inside During the Time of COVID is a one-of-a-kind anthology of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and artwork from incarcerated writers, family members, and Department of Corrections staff. Presented by Exchange for Change, a nonprofit that offers writing classes in South Florida correctional institutions, it describes how the pandemic and George Floyd’s murder have impacted its contributors’ lives. With panelists Kathie Klarreich, executive director of Exchange for Change; Kathryn Nowotny, UM professor and co-founder of the COVID Prison Project;…
In Conversation: On Orange Blossom 2.0
Historian Cesar Becerra’s Orange Blossom 2.0, fittingly released on Miami’s 125th anniversary on July 28, 2021, tells the untold story of the city’s “other mother,” South Florida pioneer Mary Brickell, and her integral and often overlooked role in the founding of the Magic City. Joining him is special guest Bea Brickell, great-granddaughter of Mary and William Brickell. This event requires a ticket for admission. All in-person events at MBF 2021 will require a ticket for entry.…