Noon. Struggling to Survive: featuring Joe Meno, Weike Wang, & Ernesto Mestre-Reed; moderated by MJ Franklin. How do we persevere in the face of disaster? In Weike Wang’s Joan is Okay, a young ICU doctor faces sudden upheaval in her family just as the coronavirus pandemic throws the world into disarray. A man searches for his missing friend and answers amid counter-revolutionary bombings in ’90s Havana in Ernesto Mestre-Reed’s Sacrificio. And in Joe Meno’s Book of Extraordinary Tragedies, a former classical music prodigy looks for hope amid the absurdity of his disaster-prone family’s problems. Join these three novelists along with moderator MJ Franklin from the New York Times Book Review for a discussion about characters navigating worlds that seem to have come crashing down around them.

Noon. The Legitimacy of Law at a Crossroads: featuring M. Chris Fabricant, William Araiza, & Wilfred U. Codrington III; moderated by Assistant Professor Alexis Hoag-Fordjour. From the Supreme Court to presidential administration, from local criminal courts to state election bureaus, Americans of all political leanings are increasingly voicing skepticism about the legitimacy of our laws and legal institutions. Authors William Araiza (Rebuilding Expertise), Wilfred U. Codrington III, (co-author of The People’s Constitution: 200 Years, 27 Amendments, and the Promise of a More Perfect Union) and M. Chris Fabricant, (Junk Science and the American Criminal Justice System) discuss current struggles to contend with the legitimacy of the Constitution, our courts, and our legal institutions in a time of political polarization. Presented by the Brooklyn Law School and moderated by Assistant Professor Alexis Hoag-Fordjour, Brooklyn Law School.

Character Studies: featuring Don Lee, Elizabeth Nunez, and Claire Messud; moderated by Carolyn Kellogg. The flawed but deeply compelling protagonists of Elizabeth Nunez (Now Lila Knows), Claire Messud (A Dream Life), and Don Lee (The Partition) struggle to form intimate relationships and do what is right. These three authors offer stunning portraits of humanity that challenge stereotypes and resist simplification. Moderated by writer and critic Carolyn Kellogg.