Novelist & journalist Omar El Akkad at BABEL Nov. 10

Organizers: ‘Background in global reporting informs El Akkad’s urgent, lyric storytelling’

Just Buffalo Literary Center welcomes novelist and journalist Omar El Akkad to Buffalo on Thursday, Nov. 10, for a lecture and conversation at Kleinhans Music Hall, continuing the 2022-23 BABEL Author Series. The event begins at 8 p.m., with doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase at justbuffalo.org.

“El Akkad’s background in global reporting, matched with his novelist’s eye for detail and ear for beauty and lyricism, make for stunning, urgent storytelling,” said Barbara Cole, Just Buffalo’s artistic and associate executive director. “His novels grapple with some of the most important issues facing us as global citizens – climate change, fascism, the safety of refugees – through characters so complex and compassionately drawn. We’re thrilled to welcome him to Buffalo.”

El Akkad is an author and journalist. He was born in Egypt, grew up in Qatar, moved to Canada as a teenager, and now lives in the U.S. In the past decade-plus, he has reported on major global events, including the U.S. war in Afghanistan, the Arab Spring and the Black Lives Matter movement. His work earned a National Newspaper Award for Investigative Journalism and the Goff Penny Award for young journalists. He is the author of two novels, “American War” and “What Strange Paradise,” and winner of literary awards including the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Kobo Emerging Writer Prize.

Tickets, which also include a virtual link for the option to watch from home, are available to the general public for $40; $35 with library card; $10 with student ID. Patron VIP tickets, which include an author reception before the event, are $100.

For tickets or more information, visit justbuffalo.org or call 716-832-5400.

Kleinhans Music Hall is located at 3 Symphony Circle

Just Buffalo Literary Center’s mission is to create and strengthen communities through the literary arts. For more information, visit justbuffalo.org.