Live at The Mount
The first Berkshire WordFest is underway at The Mount in Lenox and Saturday was a full day of literary events; the dedicated readers and writers who attended didn’t seem to be daunted by the changing weather, not even during a mid-afternoon downpour.
The first Saturday event I attended was breakfast on the terrace with a talk by novelist Elizabeth Brundage. Her new book, her third, is coming out in a week or two, and she read several passages before taking questions from the group. She started by saying how much she enjoys being at Edith Wharton's home. "I hope she's listening," Brundage commented. "She's influenced my writing so much."
Brundage's new novel, A Stranger Like You, is set in Los Angeles and is about the movie business; she describes the book as a thriller, in that it's fast-paced, but she also calls the novel character-based. Brundage answered questions about her writing discipline, working with her editor (who was in attendance and participated in the discussion), and tackling controversial topics. I've read Brundage's two previous novels and as a fan, it was delightful to be part of the conversation.
There were two panel discussions on Saturday, and the first one was on the topic of "Old Money, New Money," part of the series dubbed "Channeling Edith Wharton." Simon Winchester was the moderator; Kurt Andersen, Tad Friend, Katy Lederer, and Martha McPhee were the participating writers. The conversation was wide-ranging, from a comparison of what constitutes "old money" in Great Britain as opposed to "old money" in the U.S., to an analysis of class differences, to how Edith Wharton treated the monied characters and the less-privileged in her novels. Every seat in the Stables was filled and the questions from the audience were lively.
The second panel discussion, convened after lunch, was titled “Writers in Wartime,” with panelists John Hockenberry, Elizabeth Samet, and Tatjana Soli, moderated by Frank Delaney. Edith Wharton is known for her books about the wealthy, but she did her share of war reporting during WWI. The participating writers discussed whether or not there can be truth in writing about war, the pros and cons of the embedded journalist, approaching war in a work of fiction rather than nonfiction, and some of their personal experiences, from Delaney’s coverage of the conflict in Northern Ireland to Hockenberry’s experience at the funeral of the Ayatollah Khomeini.
At four o’clock, in a shady tent overlooking the flower garden, I listened to WAMC radio’s Joe Donahue interview writer Roy Blount Jr. Blount has published twenty-one books on a variety of subjects; his most recent work is Alphabet Juice, which includes his interesting theory on word origins. Blount explained his theory in a most amusing way. He also talked about the way he works, his time as president of the Author’s Guild, and why he doesn’t write more novels. During the question and answer portion of the interview, Garrison Keillor, who was sitting towards the back of the tent, weighed in with a question.
The day also included poetry readings on the terrace, booksignings after each event (books by the participating writers are available for purchase at a special Festival Bookstore arranged in cooperation with the Bookstore in Lenox), and several additional interviews.
A lovely cocktail party at the Stables concluded my day; many of the WordFest attendees went on to a dinner with a talk by Garrison Keillor.
Tomorrow's breakfast event features novelist Elinor Lipman, beginning at 8:30, followed by the third panel discussion: “Well-Behaved Women” with Katie Roiphe, Judith Thurman, and Laura Miller. Susan Arbetter will interview Dani Shapiro (at 11) and Susan Orlean (at 2), and the poetry readings will be held at 12:30 and 3:30.
Check www.edithwharton.org for more information.
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