Abbey Ryan
Participatory Literature
Professor Kreitz
25 October 2022
Literary Event Review
October 18, 2022 I was able to attend the release gathering of a new book called Poster Girl by Veronica Roth at the Strand bookstore in Union Square. Upon going to the event, I had never been to anything like this before. I had no idea what to expect but was pleasantly surprised. To attend it was around $40 which included a signed copy of the book, a seat in the Question and Answer session with the author, and the opportunity to get a personalized signing when the event ended. She was able to give us a little insight on what the book is going to be about and her thought process when she was writing it.
Veronica was being interviewed by Elena Nicolaou who asked very good, relevant questions that most people were wondering like what was going on in her head when she would sit down and write this, if she knew the ending before she came to it in the book, and what her writing space at home looks like. The space for the event was in a private room upstairs in the Strand and had a very warm and cozy feel to it which made it even more inviting. It smelled of a sweet, warm smell that made the entrance into the private room even more special. Since the book is new, I had no idea what to expect from it. I wasn’t sure if I would be interested in the topic or if I would even enjoy the event. Hearing in person the author talk about it and what she hopes comes from the book was so nice because you don’t have that from every book you read. Another thing I thought was cool was how living and going to school here in the city we have the ability to do events like this. Being able to not only get a signed copy of a brand new book but also to meet the author and hear her talk about the book was such an amazing experience. Meeting and talking to her didn’t last long but the few words we did get to say to each other of encouragement made this a very special experience. While I had never done any of this before, I would definitely do it again. I had read the Divergent series which was written by Veronica Roth so I have no doubt I will also like the book Poster Girl.
The sense of community in the room was contagious and being a first timer I felt very welcomed and even got to sit in the front row. I can relate this experience to our class because she talked about how she was struggling with writing the book over quarantine and turned to online journals and pages to come up with inspiration. Her writing style and attitude about writing in general is very inspiring. Our class is also very verbal. When someone says an idea outlaid other students are able to build off of that idea and expand it into something informational and creative. When someone from the crowd would ask Veronica a question she would give a detailed answer and respond in great depth, just like in our class. Writing a book during a global pandemic must have been really hard when you don’t know what is going on around you but she was able to still find the will to write her book and the inspiration from the rest of the world and other people. Since we were all going through the same thing, it was easy for her to relate to people and their stories.
Overall I had a wonderful time at this experience and would recommend going to anyone interested in new books or literature in general. It was a fairly quick event which was nice so you didnt ever feel bored and you were engaged the whole time with funny, uplifting comments made by the author and interviewer.