Illinois Libraries Present

Percival Everett – Thursday, March 19, 2026

Cristina Henríquez – Thursday, April 16, 2026

R.F. Kuang – Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Illinois Libraries Present is a statewide collaboration among public libraries. The collaboration is designed to bring virtual events with bestselling, esteemed, and diverse speakers to library patrons across the state. 192 Illinois libraries have joined Illinois Libraries Present. Working together allows libraries to bring speakers to their communities that might not be possible due to budget constraints or production capabilities.

Beyond the Page with Percival Everett

Industrious, irreverent, humble–though he may deny the accusation–Percival Everett, like his fiction, defies categorization. His most recent novel, James, earned both the Pulitzer Prize for fiction and the National Book Award, and his 2001 novel Erasure inspired the film American Fiction, which received the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2024. 

Everett’s other titles include Dr. No, The Trees (finalist for the Booker Prize and the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction), Telephone (finalist for the Pulitzer Prize), So Much Blue, and I Am Not Sidney Poitier. Despite these accomplishments, he remains devoted to reviewing his own work critically, and indeed his writing process involves intensive research and revision. Tune in for our conversation with Percival Everett to get a glimpse beyond the page. 

Brandis Friedman will moderate the event. Friedman is a writer and anchor for WTTW’s Chicago Tonight and Chicago Tonight: Black Voices, and also serves as a champion for libraries.

This event is intended for adults.

This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of the Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). 

ILP is committed to inclusion and accessibility. American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation and Closed Captioning are provided for all events by default—no special request needed.

If a patron needs accommodations not listed, please email the Librarian at stjosephtownshiplibrary@gmail.com

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Thursday, March 19 at 7 PM

Register Here: https://bit.ly/ILPPercivalEverett

Registration for this event closes at 5:00 p.m. on event day. Late registrations will be processed after the live event, allowing access to the event recording.

Recording terms:
30 days public (posted to ILP YouTube) and emailed to all registrants