Eugenides and Saunders read from My Mistress’s Sparrow Is Dead

Last night I attended a reading by Jeffrey Eugenides and George Saunders in support of Eugenides’s new short story anthology My Mistress’s Sparrow Is Dead: Great Love Stories, from Chekhov to Munro. The coolest thing about this book (aside from its content) is that all sales proceeds directly fund free youth writing programs offered by 826 Chicago, one segment of 826 National, a non-profit organization designed to help students ages 6 to 18 with creative and expository writing skills as well as help teachers inspire students to write.

In my previous notable books posts I declared Eugenides my favorite author of ‘07 after reading & absolutely loving both The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex. Thus, I was psyched (and maybe even a little starstruck) to see/hear him in person. He didn’t disappoint, of course; after reading from the introduction he authored, Eugenides explained his story selection process, which involved thousands of conversations not only with fellow writers, but with just about anyone he came in contact with.

Then, George Saunders was a nice surprise. He wasn’t advertised as part of the event, and he’s a writer I only very recently started getting into. He read from his included piece “John,” which was hilarious and profound. I definitely plan to seek out more of his work now, after hearing his voice bring such extraordinary life to his already very original work.

Anyway, Barnes & Noble hosted the reading — something their stores do pretty often if you want to check out upcoming events near you. More info on the anthology here as well.