International Flair Permeates 2007 AJC Decatur Book Festival Presented by DeKalb Medical

Zakes Mda, Da Chen Highlight Global Lineup

International talent is one of the many themes at the 2007 Atlanta Journal-Constitution Decatur Book Festival Presented by DeKalb Medical (DBF), as event organizers have acquired renowned authors from all over the globe for the second annual literary event. The festival is Labor Day weekend, August 31-September 2, opening Friday morning and continuing through Sunday evening with nearly non-stop events and activities.

“Literature is universal,” said Daren Wang, Executive Director of DBF. “Our group of international and American authors whose writings are inspired by overseas experiences have amazing stories to share with all of us.”

Among the group of globetrotting authors are Zakes Mda, Da Chen, Diana Gabaldon, and Sherman Alexie.

Mda is a legendary South African author, poet, journalist, playwright, and painter who splits his time between the United States and South Africa. His book, The Madonna of Excelsior, won the Notable Books Award of the American Library Association, while The Heart of Redness garnered the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for the Africa Region and the Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Legacy Award. He is also a director of the Southern African Multimedia AIDS Trust in Sophiatown, Johannesburg.

Mda is scheduled for a signing Saturday September 1, from 12 to 1 p.m., at Fellowship Hall at Decatur Presbyterian prior to his appearance at 4:15 p.m. on the Old Courthouse Stage presented by Atlanta Listens to Audiobooks.

Chen, author of the New York Times bestseller Colors of the Mountain, grew up in a small Fujian village in the deep south of China and survived through the tumultuous Cultural Revolution. Chen is a novelist, memoirist, children’s book author, and speaker. The children’s adaptation of his memoir, China’s Son, was a Borders 2002 Original Voices Award finalist, American Library Association 2002 Best Books for Young Adults final nominee, New York Public Library Book for the 2002 Teen Age List, and PBS TeacherSource recommended book.

Chen will have three appearances on Saturday: 12:30 p.m., with Elaine Orr on the City Hall Stage presented by Stone Mountain; 3-4 p.m., as part of a signing, at Fellowship Hall at Decatur Presbyterian; and 4:30 p.m. on the Target Children’s Stage.

Don’t forget to check out Diana Gabaldon (Saturday, 4:15 p.m.; Sunday, 3:45 p.m.), Sherman Alexie (Saturday, 1:45 and 5:30 p.m.), and the rest of the world-class international authors.