One Book, One Community: Emancipation Day

6:30 PM - 9:00 PM

Event Details

Wayne Grady in conversation with Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser

6:30 pm - 7 pm  HepCat Swing Dancers and band

Wayne Grady was born in Windsor, Ontario. He has written 14 books, translated 15 novels, and won a Governor General’s award for translating.  He teaches creative non-fiction at the University of British Columbia and lives near Kingston with his wife, writer Merilyn Simonds.

Emancipation Day is his first novel, and is based in part on his own family history. Steeped in the jazz and big-band music o the 1940s and 50s, Emancipation Day is a story told from the perspective of three remarkable characters: Vivian, and innocent and unworldly woman, her husband Jack, a musician, and Jack’s father Henry. The story reveals a complex web of themes around family history, race, and identity.

Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser is an award-winning conductor who has studied with some of the foremost conductors of our time. He currently serves as the assistant conductor of the KW Symphony, and has worked with the Calgary Civic Symphony and the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. He is a recipient of the Canada Council Jean-Marie Beaudet Award for Orchestra Conducting, and an RBC Royal Bank Emerging Young Artist grant.

HepCat Swing Dancers and Band are a volunteer-run, not-for-profit dance community dedicated to keeping the spirit of swing dance and music alive in Waterloo Region.

No registration required.

Seating is first come, first served. Doors open at 6:15 pm.

Books available for purchase courtesy of Chapters/Indigo.

OBOC gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the Waterloo Region Record, Penguin Random House, and the Walper Hotel.


The opinions of guest speakers do not necessarily reflect the values and mission of Kitchener Public Library. We champion the right for ideas to be heard and words expressed without censorship.
Intellectual freedom is a fundamental right.


Event Type(s): 85 Queen
Age Group(s): Adults