Put on your beer glasses, and join the exodus into the most literary borough of them all.
The Litcrawl on May 19 — held at 13 different Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, and Brooklyn Heights venues, nine of them bars—is the first time the beer and book themed festival has tipped over into Brooklyn since Suzanne Russo founded the New York Litcrawl in Manhattan in 2008.
“Brooklyn is so literary, it seemed like a no-brainer,” Russo said. “There’s so many friendly venues and so much going on in the literary sphere there, we thought it’s really the place we should be.”
Russo said Brooklyn’s commitment to cultivating a literary community came out in working the local pubs and publications that donated their space and talent—much different from the glossy old guard on the other side of the East River.
“The venues are smaller. It’s a little more mom and pop shops coming out. There’s sort of an energy in Brooklyn, a creative spirit that’s more of a, go with the flow, we’ll-do-whatever kind of thing,” said Russo. “The literary magazines we’re working with get what we’re doing, and they get that we’re not trying to be the New Yorker Festival.”
The Litcrawl will feature, among other things, readings, acted-out short stories, trivia contests, and an old-time radio show.
Michael Roach, owner of People’s Republic of Brooklyn, said his bar — which holds a story-telling night open mic on Mondays — was the ideal venue for the event, where up-and-coming novelists will read excerpts.
“We’re very into the arts here at PRB,” said Roach. “If everything turns out right, we’d most definitely want to be a part of it next year.”
See side to get a taste of what the Litcrawl has to offer. Visit litcrawl.org/nyc/ to see a full list venues
Reach reporter Will Bredderman at (718) 260–4507 or e-mail him at wbredderman@cnglocal.com. https://twitter.com/#!/WillBredderman
