sizable audience of Friends, faculty, staff, and students gave a warm welcome to two distinguished authors who read from their novels in the library's Archives on Thursday, September 24.  Maryse Condé, along with her translator/husband Richard Philcox, and Evangeline Blanco delighted enthusiastic listeners with readings and a discussion of their work.

 "Caribbean Writers at CCNY," sponsored by The Friends of the City College Library and The  Simon H. Rifkind Center for the Humanities at CCNY, was one of many events in the city-wide "New York is Book Country" celebration.

After an introduction by Chief Librarian Pamela Gillespie, Ms. Condé, a native of Guadeloupe who teaches at Columbia and directs the Center for French and Francophone Studies there, lead off with a reading in French of a passage from her novel, The Last of the African Kings.  Mr. Philcox next read the passage in English, and they both then read extracts in French and English from her soon-to-be published novel, Windward Heights.  Ms. Condé's vivid and compelling language had the audience listening raptly.  The author also of Segu, Crossing the Mangrove, Season in Rhiata, and I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem among other works, she has been described as a writer who "masterfully merges history and imagination in her novels and plays," and as "perhaps the most powerful woman's voice in contemporary literature of the Americas."

When Ms. Blanco, a native of Puerto Rico, followed, she drew appreciative laughs noting that she had hoped she would lead off the readings, since "Ms. Condé is a hard act to follow."  This first-time novelist and author of short stories and poetry more than held her own, however, as she read passages from Caribe: a Novel of Puerto Rico, her debut book.  Ms. Blanco charmed listeners also with a recounting of the time it took to write it (after 20 years of "putting it off," the novel took two-and-a-half years to write) and the additional time it took to get Caribe to the bookstores after she first had to land an agent (six years).  Getting an agent became possible only after she won the 21st Annual Chicano/Latino Literary Contest at the University of California, Irvine in 1995.  Caribe weaves an intricate tale of love, race, and history in Puerto Rico, and has been lauded for its "historical dimension, meticulous investigation, and handling of characters."

Both authors fielded questions from the audience about their writing styles and literary themes.  Laudatory comments from many expressed appreciation for the opportunity to interact with these gifted writers.  Ms. Condé and Ms. Blanco then joined those present at a reception in the Archives where they graciously autographed copies of their works, which were available for purchase courtesy of the campus Barnes & Noble bookstore.

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