Vancouver Sun: Joy Kogawa story + tonight reading at Vancouver Public Library
Today's Vancouver Sun features a story Joy Kogawa and the plans for the preservation of Kogawa House to turn it into a Writing Centre. There is an interview with Constance Rooke, president of PEN Canada, stating how excited she is that the proposed writing centre has tremendous cultural and literary potential.
House
pitched as refuge for exiled writers
Vancouver Sun, by Kevin Griffin
Turning the Kogawa house into a home for writers in exile would help
cement Canada's international leadership role in helping persecuted
writers from around the world, according to the head of one of the
country's major writers' organizations.
Constance Rooke, president of PEN Canada, said the history of the house, the childhood home of writer Joy Kogawa who was interned with 22,000 other Japanese Canadians during the Second World War, makes it a perfect fit for writers who have fled imprisonment and restrictions on freedom of expression in their own countries.
Rooke said if the campaign to raise $1.25 million to save the house is successful, it would become the only residence in the country dedicated to housing writers in exile.
"My initial response to the campaign to save the Kogawa house was that this was a house that ought to be saved because this is a very important part of our history and literature," Rooke said from Victoria.
"I've become increasingly excited about the house becoming a home for writers in exile."
"I cannot think of any Canadian writer's house whose destruction would pain me more," Rooke said in a letter to Vancouver council urging them to save the house.
House pitched as refuge for exiled writers
Vancouver Sun (subscription) - Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada
Turning the Kogawa house into a home for writers in exile would help cement Canada's international leadership role in helping persecuted writers from around ...
Tonight is the Joy Kogawa book reading at Vancouver Public Library
Joy Kogawa's Emily Kato Book Launch
Vancouver Public Library
Central Branch, Alice McKay Room
February 27th, 7:30pm
"A Celebration of Emily Kato"
featuring author Joy Kogawa
with special surprise literary and musical guests + silent auction to help raise funds for the preservation of Kogawa House.
I feel very honoured that Joy has asked me to MC tonight's event. It was just over a week ago, that she decided she wanted to do something more celebratory for the Emily Kato book launch. We had just had a wonderful reading of "Joy Kogawa and Friends" at Chapters bookstore on Robson St. featuring Roy Miki, Daphne Marlatt and Ellen Crowe-Swords. Joy asked if Roy and musician Harry Aoki would be able to present something. I also looked into asking Vancouver Opera if they could participate, since their production of Naomi's Road is currently touring BC schools and is still in the Vancouver Lower Mainland.
Emily Kato was originally planned for a 2005 launch at VPL during One Book One Vancouver, but was turned into a preview reading because the book wasn't ready for printing by Penguin yet.
Tonight will be something special:
We have created a program that will hopefully bring "Emily Kato" alive. It was originally written in 1992 under the title of "Itsuka" which means "someday." Itsuka fictionalizes the emotional upheavals, personal challenges and the political drama of the Japanese Canadian redress movement of the 1980's.
Harry with Dal Richards at Feb 15th "Order of Canada / Flag Day luncheon"Musician Harry Aoki will perform and bring some musical guests. Harry Aoki, as a young twenty-something young man, left the Vancouver area in 1942 voluntarily, before being forced to "evacuate." He had to leave behind his prized violin, and only took his harmonica, so he could carry more belongings.
Roy Miki (Centre) with Rev. Tim Nakayama (Joy's brother) and Joy Kogawa.Professor Roy Miki, will perhaps read something from his book Redress: Inside the Japanese Canadian Call for Justice which documents the redress process that he and Joy shared with other redress leaders such as Cassandra Kobayashi and Roy's brother Art Miki. Roy was born after internment, when his parents were assigned to work on a beet farm in Alberta.
Jeni Kato (Save Kogawa House committee member) and Jeff Chiba Stearns, film maker.Jeff Chiba Stearns is a third generation (Sensei) internment descendent, who has struggled with his identity of being half-Japanese. He grew up in in Kelowna and made an animated film about his experience. Jeff is currently in Manchester England for a Film Festival, but we will show clips from his film and his girl friend Jeni will be present.
And a silent auction! With books donated by Raincoast publishing, a Linda Ohama print donated by Roy Miki, Vancouver Opera tickets to Faust, and tickets for Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre.
How it unfolds, will hopefully allow readers will appreciate Joy's "Emily Kato"all the more, as both Roy Miki and Harry Aoki helped to inspire the composite characters in the book.
