It’s hard to tell exactly when the Book Festival of the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta (MJCCA) begins and ends when perusing the organization’s 2021-2022 season of events. That’s because the MJCCA has presented more than 90 authors over the last 15 months, and there’s no sign of slowing down anytime soon. Every day is a book festival at MJCCA it seems.
Perhaps what distinguishes the festival, which runs from Nov. 6-21, from any other day is the concentration of big names crowding the roster of authors. This year the lineup includes Matthew McConaughey, Rachael Ray and Alice Hoffman, among others.
Executive Director Pam Morton said she had hoped the MJCCA would be hosting in-person events this fall, but a variety of factors colluded to keep programming — including the festival — virtual for the remainder of 2021.
“There’s that group of viewers that love doing it from their living rooms. They love sitting in their own homes watching a program. They don’t have to get dressed and drive to the JCC and all that. And then there are other people who are anxious to get back out again,” said Morton.
“We had planned to be somewhat hybrid for fall. Because the bigger marquee-name authors were not going out, we were looking at doing smaller events where we could socially distance in our theater. But we were offering them on Zoom as well, and the majority of tickets (ordered) were virtual. People were telling us they weren’t ready to come back.”
Morton predicts programming will be back in-person by 2022, but moving forward, “there will always be a place for virtual in our programming,” she said.
There are unexpected benefits of presenting a virtual event.
Credit: Penguin Random House
Credit: Penguin Random House
“One of the cool things about the virtual programs is you end up getting really interesting interviewers and moderators,” said Morton. “A lot of the authors are choosing to bring their own moderators. For instance, Rachael Ray is going to be in conversation with Harlan Coben,” the New York Times best-selling author. “He’s amazing. He’s a great interviewer. It’s an unlikely pairing, but I think it will be a really fascinating discussion.”
McConaughey will kick-off the festival at 8 p.m. Nov. 6, talking with former CNN correspondent Holly Firfer about his memoir, “Greenlights,” in a pre-recorded presentation. He’s a good example of the scope of the festival, which focuses primarily on books by Jewish authors and topics of particular interest to its Jewish membership, but not solely. “We’ve always gone a little outside that well,” said Morton. “We don’t only do Jewish authors and we don’t only do Jewish topics.”
Several authors will be talking about books inspired in part by their COVID-19 experiences, including Ray, whose event is 6 p.m. Nov. 10. Her book, “This Must Be the Place: Dispatches & Food from the Home Front,” is partly a memoir and partly a cookbook featuring recipes she and her family prepared together at their home during the pandemic.
Also inspired by the pandemic, New York Times bestselling author Gary Shteyngart will discuss his novel “Our Country Friends,” about eight friends riding out six months of isolation in a country house in the Hudson Valley. In her review for the New York Times, Molly Young called it “a perfect novel for these times and all times, the single textual artifact from the pandemic era I would place in a time capsule as a representation of all that is good and true and beautiful about literature.”
Shteyngart will be in conversation with New York Times bestselling author Nathan Englander at 8 p.m. Nov. 18.
Credit: Penguin Random House
Credit: Penguin Random House
Long-time sports writer Ivan Maisel will talk about his book, “I Keep Trying to Catch His Eye: A Memoir of Loss, Grief and Love,” about his 21-year-old son’s suicide.
“His story is absolutely heartbreaking,” said Morton. “His story is definitely a sad one, but he feels like there are a lot of lessons to be learned. He has a lot of things to teach people and to tell people.” Publisher’s Weekly describes the book as “a deeply affecting testament to the fragility of life, and the human capacity for resilience.”
New York Times senior writer Kevin Sack will interview Maisel at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 17.
Credit: Hachette
Credit: Hachette
The festival ends on a note of levity, thanks to comedians Annabelle Gurwitch and Wayne Federman. Gurwitch will talk about her memoir on downward mobility, “I See You Made an Effort,” and Federman will discuss his book “The History of Standup” at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 21. Both of them promise to close out the festival — and hopefully the year — with a bit of much-needed humor.
Festival tickets range from free to $40, but most are $11. For details, go to www.atlantajcc.org.
“We work hard to try to be diverse and broad with subjects that are going to be of interest to a lot of people,” said Morton. “We’re always looking to entertain and educate. I think we’ve done a great job of doing that, whether it’s an exciting book club pick in fiction, or a book of historical importance or a story about mental health and young adults. There’s a lot for people to choose from.”
Suzanne Van Atten is a book critic and contributing editor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Contact her at svanatten@ajc.com and follow her on Twitter at @svanatten.
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