An event bookworms flock to every year in Iowa City will not feature the in-person camaraderie normally found in various locations across the city this year. Instead, because of coronavirus restriction, the Iowa City Book Festival will be an online-only event.

According to the Cedar Rapids Gazette, the festival will begin October 5 with a speaker, Iowa City author James Autry, who will discuss his new book "The White Man Who Stayed", about his cousin who did important work in the field of race in his native Mississippi.

On October 6 at 7 p.m., another author, Thomas Frank speaks on his book "The People, No: A Brief History of Anti-Populism". Dr. Rana Awdish is up the next night, speaking about her writing of her memoir “In Shock,” based on her own critical illness. She tells of being a young critical care physician who is transfigured into a dying patient.

On Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. authors, Jill McCorkle and Ron Rash will hold a joint conversation together.

McCorkle is the author of “Life After Life,” and will discuss her new novel, “Hieroglyphics".  Rash will give a talk about his new collection, “In the Valley,”. The book features a novella and stories set in the world of what is perhaps his best-known book, “Serena.”

Many other virtual events are being lined up for the Iowa City Book Festival and you can keep tabs on the schedule here. Each event will be streamed live on their respective evenings and recorded for later viewing.

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