The authors selected for SPEAK 2025 encourage us to reflect on our individual and shared pasts. Through their works, these authors address themes of identity, history, and personal or collective struggle. Their stories encourage us to connect through past human experiences and inspire us to build a more thoughtful future.
JUMP TO: Timothy Egan | Ralph Shayne | Kwame Alexander | Angela Jackson-Brown
Thanks to the generosity of the EVPL Foundation and its donors, each of these author presentations are FREE and open to all.
Timothy Egan
Wednesday, March 19 • 7:00 p.m.
First Presbyterian Church
Timothy Egan’s most recent book, A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them, is a New York Times Bestseller. This book describes the rise of the KKK in Indiana (Evansville is featured many times), and how one brave woman brought about its downfall. Egan is also the author of several other bestsellers, including The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dustbowl, which won the 2006 National Book Award and was featured prominently in Ken Burns’ 2012 documentary, The Dust Bowl.
VIP Reception | Timothy Egan
Enjoy a reception with appetizers and a special meet and greet with the author. Tickets are $40.00 and include special seating at the presentation. New this year, you may purchase a VIP Reception Package wich includes admission to all three VIP Reception events for $100.00.
Ralph Shayne
Wednesday, April 16 • 7:00 p.m.
Victory Theatre
EVPL, CYPRESS, and the Rechnic Family are partnering to bring Ralph Shayne to Evansville for a series of public and educational presentations. His graphic novel, Hour of Need, pays tribute to the heroes who saved the Danish Jews during the Holocaust, and reminds readers of how humanity can triumph in the darkest hours.
VIP Reception | Ralph Shayne
Enjoy a reception with appetizers and a special meet and greet with the author. Tickets are $40.00 and include special seating at the presentation. New this year, you may purchase a VIP Reception Package wich includes admission to all three VIP Reception events for $100.00.
Kwame Alexander
NEW DATE: Thursday, June 12 • 7:00 p.m.
Victory Theatre
Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, publisher, Emmy® Award-winning producer, and #1 New York Times bestselling author of 40 books, including This is the Honey, Why Fathers Cry at Night, An American Story, The Door of No Return, Becoming Muhammad Ali (co-authored with James Patterson), Rebound, which was shortlisted for the prestigious UK Carnegie Medal, and The Undefeated, the National Book Award nominee, Newbery Honor, and Caldecott Medal-winning picture book illustrated by Kadir Nelson. His book, The Crossover, has been made into a sports drama series on Disney+.
VIP Reception | Kwame Alexander
Enjoy a reception with appetizers and a special meet and greet with the author. Tickets are $40.00 and include special seating at the presentation. New this year, you may purchase a VIP Reception Package wich includes admission to all three VIP Reception events for $100.00.
Angela Jackson-Brown
Saturday, June 21 • 2:00 p.m.
EVPL Central
Angela Jackson-Brown is an award-winning writer, poet, and playwright who is also an Associate Professor in the Creative Writing program at Indiana University. Her books tell stories about family, love, and perseverance in the 20th century. Some of her best-known works include When Stars Rain Down and The Light Always Breaks.
More about Angela Jackson-Brown
More about Timothy Egan
JUMP TO: Interviews | Programs & Book Discussions | Host Your Own Book Discussion | Back to the Top
Timothy Egan is the author of ten books. His most recent, A Fever in the Heartland, is a historical thriller that was an immediate New York Times bestseller. “Brisk” “Powerful” and “Gripping,” wrote the Times. Publishers Weekly, in a starred review, called it “a harrowing look at a forgotten chapter in American history.” A Pilgrimage to Eternity was a personal adventure on an ancient pilgrimage trail through the heart of Europe, the Via Francigena — a journey, a family story, and a history of Christianity. The Immortal Irishman was also a New York Times bestseller. His book on Edward Curtis, Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher, was awarded the Carnegie Award for best nonfiction.
A lifelong journalist, Egan worked as a national correspondent and opinion columnist for the New York Times, roaming the West. As a Times correspondent, he shared a Pulitzer Prize in 2001 with a team of reporters for its series, “How Race is Lived in America.”
A graduate of the University of Washington, Mr. Egan also holds honorary doctorates from Whitman College, Willamette University, Lewis and Clark College, and Western Washington University. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Interviews Discussing A Fever in the Heartland
Upcoming EVPL Programs & Book Discussions related to Timothy Egan and A Fever In The Heartland
NEW DATE: SPEAK Panel Discussion
Tuesday, Mar. 4 • 6:30 – 8:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church
- A Fever in the Heartland and its exploration of the impact of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), racism, and faith in Evansville will be discussed by a panel of local experts. Facilitated by EVPL, the discussion will feature Rev. MB McCandless of First Presbyterian, Dr. M.T. Hallock Morris from the University of Southern Indiana, Dr. Daniel Byrne from the University of Evansville, and Mr. Gerald Summers. The discussion will be moderated by Watez G. Phelps, Sr., Past President of University of Evansville African American Alumni Association. The event will be held at the First Presbyterian Church, located at 609 SE Second St. in Evansville, and is free and open to the public.
Author Event: Kelley Coures
Thursday, March 13 • 6:00 – 7:30 pm
EVPL Oaklyn
- Join local author and historian, Kelley Coures, for a visual presentation surrounding race, religion, and the KKK in Evansville in the 1920s.
Book Discussion | Tea Talk with Books: The Big Burn
Wednesday, March 12 • 12:00 – 1:00 pm
EVPL Red Bank
Book Discussion | The A/B (Audiobook) Club: The Worst Hard Time
Thursday, March 13 • 6:30 – 7:30 pm
EVPL Red Bank
Book Discussion | The Worst Hard Time
Friday, March 14 • 4:30 – 5:30 pm
EVPL East
Book Discussion | Historical Happenings: A Fever in the Heartland
Tuesday, March 18 • 3:00 – 4:00 pm
EVPL Oaklyn
Book Discussion | Evansville & A Fever in the Heartland
Tuesday, March 18 • 5:30 – 6:30 pm
EVPL West
Host Your Own Book Discussion
Plan your own book discussion with other A Fever in the Heartland enthusiasts. Here are some guiding questions:
- The book opens by situating us in the “uniquely American state” of Indiana. What do you think made Indiana in the 1920s “uniquely American”? Why do you think it became particularly fertile ground for the Ku Klux Klan to take root?
- D.C. Stephenson once remarked, “I did not sell the Klan in Indiana on hatreds. I sold it on Americanism.” To what extent do you think this statement was accurate? How did hatred play into Stephenson’s version of American values?
- What role did disinformation serve as a tactic for the Ku Klux Klan to wrest and maintain power? How did media suppression come into play?
- Why do you think the Ku Klux Klan fought for prohibition and championed Christianity and moral purity, even as Stephenson and its leadership acted in complete disregard of these causes?
- The Ku Klux Klan carried out their reign of hate under the pretense of defending “pure Americanism.” On the opposing end, the Irish American lawyer Patrick O’Donnell said that the fight against the Klan was “an American fight.” What do you think it means to stand up for American values? Does patriotism differ now from what it meant in the 1920s?
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More about Ralph Shayne
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Ralph Shayne is an entrepreneur and finance professional, and the son of a mother who was a Danish citizen until she married an American and immigrated to the United States in the 1960s. Born and raised in Chicago, his mere existence is predicated on being the offspring of a mother who was part of the one in ten European Jewish children to survive the War because of the rare bravery, compassion and exploits of her fellow Danish citizens.
Interviews and Articles Discussing Hour of Need
- School Library Journal | Guest Post: The Making of HOUR OF NEED – A Chicago Story by Ralph Shayne
- GraphicMemoir.co.uk | WW2 Graphic Novelist : Ralph Shayne
- School Library Journal | Hour of Need | Review
- Jewish Book Council | Hour of Need: The Daring Escape of the Danish Jews during World War II: A Graphic Novel
Upcoming EVPL Programs & Book Discussions related to Ralph Shayne and Hour of Need
Early Warning Signs: A United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Poster Series
Monday, January 27 • 1:00 – 5:00 pm
EVPL Stringtown
- Reflecting on contributing events to the Holocaust challenges us to consider what might motivate us to respond to indicators of genocide today. To commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day, visit this drop-in exhibit, examine the images, and discuss them with others from our community.
Miracle at Midnight (1998, TV-PG)
Monday, March 31 • 6:00 – 7:30 pm
EVPL McCollough
- A dramatization of the true story of the Danish rescue of Jews from deportation to Nazi concentration camps, set in Denmark in 1943. Doctor Karl (Sam Waterston) and Doris (Mia Farrow) Koster are a Christian couple living in Copenhagen with their two children, 18-year-old Henrik (Justin Whalin) and preteen Else (Nicola Mycroft). Miracle at Midnight is a Disney production and premiered on ABC in 1998.
Morse Code Bracelets
March 31 – April 16
All EVPL locations
- Inspired by Ralph Shayne’s Hour of Need, this program uses beads and thread to create messages of resilience, unity, and hope. Visit any of our eight participating locations, each featuring a unique Morse code message, and create a personalized bracelet symbolizing the enduring power of communication in times of crisis.
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More about Kwame Alexander
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Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, publisher, Emmy® Award-winning producer, and #1 New York Times bestselling author of 40 books, including This is the Honey, Why Fathers Cry at Night, An American Story, The Door of No Return, Becoming Muhammad Ali (co-authored with James Patterson), Rebound, which was shortlisted for the prestigious UK Carnegie Medal, and The Undefeated, the National Book Award nominee, Newbery Honor, and Caldecott Medal-winning picture book illustrated by Kadir Nelson.
Kwame is also the Executive Producer, Showrunner, and Writer of the Emmy-award winning series The Crossover, based on his Newbery-Medal winning novel of the same name, which premiered on Disney+ in April 2023. The series was produced in partnership with LeBron James’ SpringHill Company and Big Sea Entertainment, Kwame’s production company that is dedicated to creating innovative, highly original children’s and family entertainment. Other current projects in development at Big Sea include America’s Next Great Author, the groundbreaking reality television series for writers, as well as an animated series in production with GBH based on his beloved children’s book Acoustic Rooster.
Kwame was recently appointed as the Michael I. Rudell Artistic Director of Literary Arts for Chautauqua Literary Arts, and also serves as their Inaugural Writer-in-Residence. A regular contributor to NPR’s Morning Edition, Kwame is the creator and host of the Why Fathers Cry podcast featuring conversations about love and parenting and loss, with fathers and sons. He regularly shares his passion for literacy, books and the craft of writing around the world at events like the Chautauqua Lecture Series, the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Aspen Ideas Festival, and the Global Literacy Symposium in Ghana, where he opened the Barbara E. Alexander Memorial Library and Health Clinic in Ghana.
His mission is to change the world, one word at a time.
Selected Interviews With Kwame Alexander
TODAY • February 2024
From books about Black trailblazers to suspenseful thrillers, Kwame Alexander joins TODAY to share his top book recommendations for February and discuss his newest book, This is the Honey: An Anthology of Contemporary Black Poets.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert • February 2024
Kwame Alexander tells Stephen how he first got interested in poetry as a young man, and he reads a poem that appears in his latest book, This is the Honey: An Anthology of Contemporary Black Poets.
Fresh Air with Terry Gross • June 2023
“I’m not a grown man — I’m a growing man,” Alexander says. His new memoir, Why Fathers Cry at Night, started as a book of love poems, but ended up being a collection of essays and poems about love, divorce, and raising children.
Reviews of Kwame Alexander’s Works
“VERDICT This amazing anthology may be the most important poetry collection of this decade. It is a book for poetry lovers, a book for the curious, a book of comfort, a book of prayer, a book of passion and a book of joy, a book of sorrow and a book of desire, but in the end, it is simply and wondrously a grand and glorious book.”
- B&N Reads | This Is Who I Am: An Exclusive Guest Post from Kwame Alexander, Author of Why Fathers Cry at Night
- New York Times | Newly Published, From Fluid Friendship to Fatherhood in Verse
Upcoming EVPL Programs & Book Discussions related to Kwame Alexander’s Works
Book Discussion | Why Fathers Cry at Night
Thursday, April 24 • 4:30 – 5:30 pm
EVPL East
Blackout Poetry
May 1 – 31
EVPL McCollough
- Explore the art of blackout poetry inspired by Kwame Alexander. Use words from existing texts to create your own poetic masterpieces, transforming ordinary pages into works of art.
Children’s Poet-Tree
May 1-31
EVPL West
- Help us decorate our children’s poet-tree in anticipation of Kwame Alexander’s SPEAK visit! Leave a poem, take a poem, or add your own special decorated leaf to our tree.
Poetry Workshop
Saturday, May 3 • 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
EVPL North Park
- This workshop gives 8-11 year olds a chance to play with poetic expression in anticipation of Kwame Alexander’s upcoming SPEAK visit. We will talk about what poetry means to us and go over some poetry basics. We will then experiment with different kinds of poetry, based on examples given in Kwame Alexander’s educational workbook, The Write Thing.
How To Write A Poem
Thursday, May 15 • 4:00 – 5:00 pm
EVPL Red Bank
- In How to Write a Poem, Kwame Alexander invites us to listen and feel the words that are dancing all around us ready to “slide down your pencil” and become a poem. What poems can we find if we let ourselves experience the sound and rhythm of the words waiting in everything to be heard? For ages 6-11.
Summer Poetry Fest
Friday, May 30 • 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
EVPL Stringtown
- Enjoy different hands-on sensory techniques to create poetry inspired by Kwame Alexander’s children’s book, How to Write a Poem.
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More about Angela Jackson-Brown
JUMP TO: Interviews | EVPL Programs & Discussions | Back to the Top
Angela Jackson-Brown is an award-winning writer, poet and playwright who is an Associate Professor in the creative writing program at Indiana University in Bloomington. She also teaches in the graduate program at the Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing at Spalding University in Louisville, KY. She is a graduate of Troy University, Auburn University and the Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing at Spalding University. She has published her short fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry in journals like The Louisville Journal and the Appalachian Review. She is the author of Drinking From a Bitter Cup, House Repairs, When Stars Rain Down, and The Light Always Breaks. Her novels have received starred reviews from the Library Journal and glowing reviews from Alabama Public Library, Buzzfeed, Parade Magazine, and Women’s Weekly, just to name a few. When Stars Rain Down was named a finalist for the 2021 David J. Langum, Sr. Prize in American Historical Fiction, longlisted for the Granum Foundation Award, and shortlisted for the 2022 Indiana Authors Award. In October of 2023, Angela’s novel, Homeward, a follow-up to When Stars Rain Down, was published by Harper Muse. Her most recent novel, Untethered, was published in December 2024 by Harper Muse.
Selected Interviews With Angela Jackson-Brown
Upcoming EVPL Programs & Book Discussions related to Angela Jackson-Brown’s Works
Book Discussion | House Repairs
Thursday, May 22 • 4:30 – 5:30 pm
EVPL East
Book Discussion | Homeward
Friday, May 30 • 4:30 – 5:30 pm
EVPL East
Book Discussion | When Stars Rain Down
Friday, June 13 • 4:30 – 5:30 pm
EVPL East
