VOICES, Pitt-Greensburg’s reading series celebrating the beauty and diversity of America’s literary landscape, will bring together author Noah Cicero with Creative & Professional Writing major Emily Lohr and Education major McKenzie Bonar for its first reading of the 2022-2023 season this Wednesday, Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. EST. This virtual event is free and open to the public.
Noah Cicero is the author of numerous books including novels, stories, poetry, philosophy, and a travelogue. His first novel, The Human War, was made into a film by Pirooz Kalayeh and Thomas Henwood and won the 2014 Beloit Film Festival for best screenplay. Noah’s books have been translated into Turkish, Swedish, and Spanish. Cicero has been praised by authors as diverse as Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket) and legendary comic book writer Harvey Pekar. Cicero grew up near Youngstown, OH, and graduated from Youngstown State University. He currently resides in Las Vegas, NV, after stints in Korea and Colorado. Author Ned Vizzini described Cicero as “really, really brilliant and readable.”
Lori Jakiela, professor of English and director of the Creative and Professional Writing Program, and Dave Newman, an assistant professor in the Creative and Professional Writing Program, co-direct Pitt-Greensburg’s VOICES series.
“We’re super excited to have Noah Cicero join us this month,” Newman says. “Noah has been publishing brilliant books for most of his adult life in just about every literary genre. He always has fascinating things to say about the place where art and the working-class artist collide. He writes about being poor and educated as well as any writer working in America right now.”
Building on the campus’s long-running Written/Spoken Series, VOICES showcases Pitt-Greensburg's focus on experiential learning by bringing together undergraduate student-writers with award-winning authors.
“One unique thing about the VOICES series is that it showcases our talented student writers along with our visiting authors,” Jakiela says. “Our writing majors complete and publish chapbook-length collections before they graduate. This experience, along with presenting their poems in the VOICES series, prepares our student-authors to find their own place in the wide literary landscape.”
The Academic Village funds the VOICES readings. For more information about the series or about the Creative & Professional Writing Program at Pitt-Greensburg, please visit the campus website (https://greensburg.pitt.edu) or contact Jakiela at loj@pitt.edu.