Below I first pasted the Stanford Announcement.Below that is the Heyday book description and announcement. In addition to this event, there’s a slew of events in Fresno here.
William Saroyan Centennial Celebration – Reception & Concert
2008 marks the 100th anniversary of William Saroyan’s birth, and Stanford is celebrating. In an afternoon reception in Green Library, we will simultaneously celebrate the launch of Heyday Books’ compilation “He Flies Through the Air with the Greatest of Ease: A William Saroyan Reader”, and recognize the winners of the 2008 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing. Malcolm Margolin and Herbert Gold will speak at the event.
Following the reception, an evening performance showcasing Saroyan’s musical talents and collaborations will be held in Kresge Auditorium. Gregory Wait, Senior Lecturer and Director of Vocal Studies at Stanford University, and Music Director of Schola Cantorum, will direct the program, which will feature a world premier of Girakgi Picnic, a piece by William Saroyan and Alan Hovhaness that was recently discovered in Stanford’s William Saroyan archive.
Friday, September 5, 2008. 3:00 PM.
Approximate duration of 3.5 hour(s).
Stanford University, Green Library East (3:00-4:30) Kresge Auditorium (5:30-6:30)
http://library.stanford.edu/saroyan/centennial.html
Stanford University Libraries Contact:
725-5813
mcalter@stanford.edu
Free to the public
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He Flies through the Air with the Greatest of Ease: A William Saroyan Reader
Edited by William E. Justice
Foreword by Herbert Gold
Hardcover, ISBN: 978-1-59714-089-8, $35.00
Paperback, ISBN: 978-1-59714-090-4, $24.95
632 pages (6 x 9)
In celebration of one of America’s literary greats
“Through the air on the flying trapeze, his mind hummed. Amusing it was, astoundingly funny. A trapeze to God, or to nothing, a flying trapeze to some sort of eternity; he prayed objectively for strength to make the flight with grace.”—From “The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze”
Published for the centennial celebration of the iconic author’s birth, this collection of William Saroyan’s writings overflows with exuberance, explodes with flashes of pure brilliance and literary daring, and brings to life an Armenian American voice unique and unforgettable. A careful selection of known and loved short stories along with plays, novels, letters, essays, and previously unpublished works, this volume allows readers to discover afresh the many aspects of a complex, engaging, and sophisticated writer.
For more information on the William Saroyan Centennial, visit these websites: