Wordfest's trademark storytelling series continues with The Way We Speak, featuring four of the contributors to the new essay collection Tongues: On Longing and Belonging Through Language: Kamal Al-Solaylee, Amanda Leduc, Carrianne Leung, and Ayelet Tsabari.
Each writer will perform an open-mic style monologue on the theme of how we communicate. The Imagine On Air show, hosted by Pam Rocker, starts at 7:00 p.m. MT (The pre-show starts at 6:50 p.m. MT.) The broadcast on Wordfest.com is free; if you RSVP, we'll send you a reminder on the morning of the show, as well as our unique Digital Doggie Bag after the event with links to extended interviews with each author.
We are grateful to Book*hug Press for helping us connect you with these thoughtful and inspiring writers.
About Tongues: On Longing and Belonging Through Language
In Tongues: On Longing and Belonging Through Language writers examine their intimate relationship with language in essays that are compelling and captivating.
There are over 200 mother tongues spoken in Canada, and at least 5.8 million Canadians use two or more languages at home. This vital anthology opens a dialogue about this unique language diversity and probes the importance of language in our identity and the ways in which it shapes us.
In this collection of deeply personal essays, 26 writers explore their connection with language, accents, and vocabularies, and contend with the ways they can be used as both bridge and weapon. Some explore the way power and privilege affect language learning, especially the shame and exclusion often felt by non-native English speakers in a white, settler, colonial nation. Some confront the pain of losing a mother tongue or an ancestral language along with the loss of community and highlight the empowerment that comes with reclamation. Others celebrate the joys of learning a new language and the power of connection. All underscore how language can offer transformation and collective healing to various communities.
With contributions by: Kamal Al-Solaylee, Jenny Heijun Wills, Karen McBride, Melissa Bull, Leonarda Carranza, Adam Pottle, Kai Cheng Thom, Sigal Samuel, Rebecca Fisseha, Logan Broeckaert, Taslim Jaffer, Ashley Hynd, Jagtar Kaul Atwal, Téa Mutonji, Rowan McCandless, Sahar Golshan, Camila Justino, Amanda Leduc, Ayelet Tsabari, Carrianne Leung, Janet Hong, Danny Ramadan, Sadiqa de Meijer, Jónína Kirton, and Eufemia Fantetti.
Owl's Nest Books (Calgary) | Shelf Life Books (Calgary) | Audreys Books (Edmonton) | Glass Bookshop (Edmonton) | Flying Books (Ontario) | Massy Books (B.C.) | Indigo | Calgary Public Library
About Host Pam Rocker
Pam Rocker is a native Texan turned Albertan, atypical activist, award winning writer, speaker, and musician. Rocker has worked for over a decade for the full inclusion of LGBTQ2S+ people in faith communities and beyond. She was chosen as one of the Top 40 Under 40 in Calgary, and as one of the top 30 activists in Canada. She was a frequent panelist on CBC Radio's Unconventional Panel, is the Chair of Broadview Magazine, and an Instructor with YouthWrite Alberta and YOUth Riot. Rocker is currently the Director of Affirming Connections, performs queer feminist ukulele comedy music, and speaks and plays across in the US and Canada.
Visit her at www.pamrocker.com or follow her on Twitter and Instagram @realpamrocker.