Pacific Laureate Lani Young to challenge literary status quo

The New Zealand Book Council is thrilled to announce that award-winning author, publisher and journalist Lani Wendt Young will deliver its annual lecture on Wednesday 28 August at Wellington High School.

Stories from the Wild: Reading and Writing in the Digital Age is a brave and personal charting of the current realities and possible futures of publishing, reading and writing. Young explores these topics with her distinctive honesty, humour and passion.

Named Pacific Laureate 2018, Young is well known for her bestselling young adult series Telesa, as well as her critical and engaging essays and blogs on feminism, motherhood, Samoan culture, Pasifika literature, and digital and self-publishing. She has long been vocal about child sexual abuse and domestic violence in Pasifika communities and has raised the profile of these issues on a global scale.

Book Council CEO Jo Cribb is very excited about the event.

“We are honoured to have Lani as this year’s speaker as this will be the only chance for a Wellington audience to hear her speak this year. She is a forerunner in the field of self-publishing and an inspiration to the next generation of writers and readers.”

“Lani’s topic this year is really thought-provoking,” says Jo, who adds that while Young’s fans range from her teenage readers to parents who visit her Twitter feed for advice, it will be of particular interest to parents, aspiring writers and those from Pasifika communities.

Minister of Social Development and Disability Issues, and Associate Minister of Pacific Peoples and Arts, Culture, and Heritage, Carmel Sepuloni, will give the opening address.

Young joins a star-studded line-up of previous speakers, including Joy Cowley, Selina Tusitala Marsh, Owen Marshall and Witi Ihimaera.

Last year’s event sold out within two days, and tickets for the 2019 event will go on sale on August 5. Updates will be sent out via the Book Council mailing list and social media.

WHAT: Stories from the Wild presented by Lani Wendt Young
WHEN: Wednesday, 28 August 2019, 6pm
WHERE: Wellington High School, 249 Taranaki St, Mt Cook, Wellington, 6011

The Book Council Lecture

The New Zealand Book Council Lecture has become a prominent part of the literary landscape in Aotearoa New Zealand. It provides an opportunity for one of our country’s leading writers to discuss an aspect of literature close to their heart.

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