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Literature 

Lavin’s literary speakers—legends and next-wave authors alike—can conjure entire worlds with just language and imagination. But for all their skill on the page, each, importantly, is also an enlivening public speaker.

 
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James Ellroy

Acclaimed Author of The Black Dahlia, L.A. Confidential, American Tabloid, and Perfidia

Self-described as the “Demon Dog” of American literature, James Ellroy is best known as the mind behind such legendary books as L.A. Confidential, The Black Dahlia, American Tabloid, and Perfidia. An unmatched raconteur, Ellroy’s talks explore his vision of California noir—in presentations that are bold, reflective, and hilarious. 
 
Margaret Atwood

Booker Prize-Winning Author of over Fifty Books, Including The Handmaid's Tale and Alias Grace

Margaret Atwood has long been a literary titan, but “current events have polished the oracular sheen of her reputation,” says The New Yorker. With her 1985 novel The Handmaid’s Tale back on the bestsellers lists and its television adaptation awarded eight Emmy Awards...
 
Isabel Allende

Author of The House of the Spirits and In the Midst of Winter

A literary legend, a social activist, and a feminist icon, Isabel Allende—now in the fourth decade of a career like no other—has sold over 50 million books in over 30 languages. The massive audiences who laugh, and occasionally cry, at her public talks are a testament to her boldly imaginative works...
 
Teju Cole

Professor of Creative Writing at Harvard | Author of Blind Spot | Photography Critic for NYT Magazine

A prodigious novelist, critic, and photographer, Teju Cole was born in the US and raised in Nigeria—a biographical fact that informs much of his work. His first novel, Open City, won the PEN/Hemingway Award. His second, Every Day Is for the Thief, was named a Book of the Year by The New York Times.
 
Angie Thomas

#1 New York Times Bestselling Author of On the Come Up and The Hate U Give

Angie Thomas is the author of the instant #1 New York Times bestseller The Hate U Give: widely known as the Black Lives Matter-inspired YA novel. Called “a stunning, brilliant, gut-wrenching novel that will be remembered as a classic of our time” (The New York Times), it’s already been adapted as a major feature film.
 
Gabby Rivera

Author of the New Marvel Comic Series America and Juliet Takes a Breath

Gabby Rivera is an outgoing, outspoken creator invested in fostering better dialogue, inspiring radical creativity, and improving our most vulnerable communities. The author of Juliet Takes a Breath, she’s also the writer of the new Marvel series America—featuring the first queer, Latinx teen-girl superhero, ever...
 
Alan Lightman

Theoretical Physicist and Novelist

Both a theoretical physicist and a novelist, Alan Lightman bridges the gap between the worlds of art, the humanities, and science, and is an internationally recognized thinker on the meaning of science for understanding ourselves. 
 
Patti Smith

Punk Rock Legend and Author of Just Kids, winner of The National Book Award

Named one of the most influential people in the world in Time Magazine’s Time 100, Patti Smith is a poet, singer, songwriter, photographer, and fine artist. A seminal American artist, Smith has produced a body of work whose influence branches out through generations, across disciplines, and around the world. 
 
James Patterson

One of the Best-selling Authors in the World Today

In January, 2010, The New York Times Magazine featured James Patterson on its cover and hailed him as having “transformed book publishing.” Time Magazine named him “The Man Who Can’t Miss,” and he is a two-time Children’s Choice Book Award “Author of the Year” nominee—a designation decided on by more than 15,000 children and teen readers.
 
Chuck Klosterman

Renowned Cultural Critic | Author of Ten Books, Including Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs

Pop culture, in all its distracting glitz, isn’t just entertainment. It is culture—American culture. And our most insightful guide is Chuck Klosterman. In his bestselling, culture-defining books, he’s pinned down modern America like no one else.
 
Suki Kim

New York Times bestselling author of Without You, There Is No Us, Expert on North Korea

Suki Kim is one of the only writers to ever go undercover in North Korea. Her six months in Pyongyang living and working as a teacher to the sons of North Korea’s elite gave her unprecedented insights into the country’s current state. Her work sheds new light on a place that has been, for the past 70 years, completely shrouded from the eyes of the world.  
Sir Salman Rushdie

One of the Most Celebrated Writers of Our Time

Sir Salman Rushdie is one of the most celebrated authors of our time—of any time. A brilliant provocateur, he’s penned a handful of classic novels, influenced a generation of writers, and received a Queen’s Knighthood for his “services to literature.”
 
Kwame Anthony Appiah

One of America's Leading Public Intellectuals

When it comes to the most pressing social issues of the day, The Lies That Bind author Kwame Anthony Appiah is a touchstone of reason and inclusivity; asking—and answering—probing questions of morality, ethnicity, and religion.