Barbara Cole
Executive & Artistic Director, Just Buffalo Literary Center
James McBride with George Caldwell, Charles Brown and Preston Brown
James McBride
Moderated by Barbara Cole
Kleinhans Lobby
JAMES McBRIDE is a New York Times bestselling author, musician, and screenwriter. His landmark memoir, The Color of Water, rested on the NYT bestseller list for two years and explored McBride’s search for identity as the son of a white Jewish woman and a black man. It is considered an American classic and is read in schools and universities across the United States. His debut novel, Miracle at St. Anna, was translated into a major motion picture, directed by American film icon Spike Lee. It was released by Disney/Touchstone in September 2008. James wrote the script for Miracle at St. Anna and co-wrote Spike Lee’s 2012 Red Hook Summer. His novel, Song Yet Sung, was released in paperback in January 2009. His novel The Good Lord Bird about American revolutionary John Brown is the winner of the 2013 National Book Award for Fiction, and has been adapted by Ethan Hawke and Jason Blum into a Showtime series bearing the same name. His 2020 novel Deacon King Kong tells the story of a 1969 shooting in Brooklyn and the strange intersections of the lives of the characters involved in the shooting. Deacon King Kong was a NYT bestseller, winner of the National Book Award, and named a favorite book of the year by both Oprah Winfrey and President Barack Obama.
McBride’s latest novel, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, tells the story of small-town secrets and the people who keep them. McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community—heaven and earth—that sustain us. The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store was a runaway NYT bestseller and was named Best Book of the Year by NPR, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, TIME Magazine, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.
James is also a former staff writer for The Boston Globe, People Magazine, and The Washington Post. His work has appeared in Essence, Rolling Stone, and The New York Times. His April 2007 National Geographic story entitled “Hip Hop Planet” is considered a respected treatise on African American music and culture.
James toured as a saxophonist sideman with jazz legend Jimmy Scott, among others. He has also written songs (music and lyrics) for Anita Baker, Grover Washington Jr., Purafe, Gary Burton, and even for the PBS television character “Barney.” (He did not write the “I Love You” song for “Barney,” but wishes he did.) He received the Stephen Sondheim Award and the Richard Rodgers Foundation Horizon Award for his musical Bo-Bos, co-written with playwright Ed Shockley. His 2003 “Riffin’ and Pontificatin’” Musical Tour was captured in a nationally televised Comcast documentary. He has been featured on national radio and television in America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. He often does his readings accompanied by a band.
James is a native New Yorker and a graduate of New York City public schools. He studied composition at The Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio, and received his Masters in Journalism from Columbia University in New York at age 22. He holds several honorary doctorates and is currently a Distinguished Writer in Residence at New York University.
In the fall of 2016, President Barack Obama awarded McBride the 2015 National Humanities Medal “… for humanizing the complexities of discussing race in America. Through writings about his own uniquely American story, and his works of fiction informed by our shared history, his moving stories of love display the character of the American family.”
BARBARA COLE is the Executive & Artistic Director of Just Buffalo Literary Center.
A 2011 fellow in Poetry from the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), Cole received her M.A. in Creative Writing from Temple University in Philadelphia and Ph.D. in English with a specialization in Poetics from the University at Buffalo.
Just Buffalo Literary Center’s mission is to create and strengthen communities through the literary arts. And for more than 45 years, we have brought the world’s greatest writers to Buffalo, hosted poetry events and readings, and supported the development of young writers.
We believe in the love of reading, the art of writing, and the power of the literary arts to transform individual lives and communities.
Just Buffalo is a registered 501-c-3 non-profit organization, and your donation is tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
Your generous gift to Just Buffalo Literary Center can help write the next chapter! Make a donation online today.
At Just Buffalo Literary Center, we believe in the transformative power of the literary arts
to bring people together, and this year has proven just how vital that connection is. In 2024, with the generosity of individuals like you, we:
• Marked the 10th anniversary of Just Buffalo’s Writing Center
• Hosted one of our most impactful BABEL seasons yet
• Captivated audiences with groundbreaking Silo City performances
• Provided 75+ free after-school writing workshops for youth
• Put 500+ free books into the hands of our community
• Lit up the night sky with poems by local writers
• & so much more!
But none of this would be possible without your support! Please give to Just Buffalo today & together we will build connections, build community, and build the future—one story at a time!
All year-end contributors will be recognized in print and on the screen at BABEL.
Host Your Next Private Event AND Support Just Buffalo at the Same Time!
Just Buffalo Literary Center is located in the heart of downtown Buffalo along the literary corridor. Our beautifully renovated space is available for private rental to host writing workshops, author events, poetry readings, professional development retreats, book launches, and more.
Just Buffalo’s Writing Center is seeking functional manual typewriters for our youth ambassadors to compose Made-to-Order poems.
Interested in donating? Please email us at jbwc@justbuffalo.org.
Just Buffalo Literary Center’s programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
Allan & Melissa Baumgart
Mark Chason & Mariana Botero Chason
Robert J. & Martha B. Fierle Foundation
Elsie P. & Lucius B. McCowan Private Charitable Foundation
Julian R. & Varue W. Oishei Foundation
The Corinne and Victor Rice Charitable Foundation
*Humanities New York funding awarded but canceled due to federal uncertainties
The Literary Leadership Circle is a distinguished group of supporters who have made a commitment of $5,000 or more over 3 years to support Just Buffalo Literary Center’s work.
Allan & Melissa Baumgart
Mark Chason & Mariana Botero Chason
Corinne F. Rice
Paul A. Battaglia
A&L Silverstein Foundation
John Spears
Dianne Bennett & William Graebner
Sandra Block, M.D. & Patrick Long
Kanika & Spencer Durland
Geri Grossman in loving memory of Jimmie Gilliam
Thomas & Sharon Hewner
Lynda G. Kaszubski
Kevin & Janet O’Leary
John N. Lipsitz & Maria Scrivani
Elizabeth Pascal & Family
Susan & Robert Stephenson
Anne & Dave Taylor
Just Buffalo Literary Center gratefully acknowledges the following individuals who generously gave to support our mission & the BABEL Author series.
Melissa & Allan Baumgart
Mark Chason & Mariana Botero Chason
Corinne F. Rice
Paul A. Battaglia
Gillian M. McCain
Susan & Robert Stephenson
Connie Arena
James & Pamela Bachwitz
Dianne Bennett & William Graebner
Sandra Block, M.D. & Patrick Long
Sabina Daley Deaton
Mary Frances & James Derby
Adele & George DeTitta
Kanika & Spencer Durland
Fisher Family Fund at the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo
Geri Grossman in loving memory of Jimmie Gilliam
Alice & Jeremy Jacobs, Jr.
Lynda G. Kaszubski
John N. Lipsitz & Maria Scrivani
Victoria & James Newman
Michelle Parrish
Elizabeth Pascal & Family
Robert D. Pohl
Claire S. Schen & Gregory S. Cherr
Caren & Stuart Shapiro
Simple Gifts Fund
John Spears
Anne & Dave Taylor
Michael C. Angelucci
Andrea Blakeslee
Kenneth A. Boos
Katie Campos
Barbara Carr
Diana Cihak
Anne E. Conable
Maura Crawford
Miriam and Peter Dow
Margaret Evans
Richard J. Finn
Donald and Deborah Houck
Linda Johnson
Bonnie Kane
June & Philip Knoerzer
Laura K. Lutcha
Susan A. Mann Dolce
Mine Dosluoglu
Claity Massey
Pauline Muto
Gina O’Neill
Jennifer Read & Craig Colder
Georgeann W. Redman
Leslie R. Stehlin
Carolyn Hoyt Stevens
Maureen Thiel
Rachael Webb
Barbara Wolff-Reichert
Cindy Abbott Letro
Michelle Biggar
Mary Catherine Bukowski
Joan M. Bukowski
Arlene Burrows
Kim Chinquee
Kasele Deitz
Anne Desrochers
Amy Downing
Ellen Goldstein & Mitch Flynn
Gigi Ford
Elisabeth Gerber
Colleen Glahe
F. William Gray
Tonya Griffin
Megan Howe
Mary Hunt
Cheryl Jackson & Ed Cardoni
Julie Kirsch
Susan B. Lee
Albert V. Lowman Jr.
Rebecca McCauley
Janice McCullough-Howe
Tina Mogavero
Kristin Monago
Patricia Mulcahy
Mary Jo Pfeiffer
Tonya Plank
Elizabeth Randell
Debbie Reger
Mary S. Richert
Miriam Tharnish
Liana Vardi
Margarita M. Vargas
Kimberly R. Wolf
Jane Yoon
Judy S. Zeckhauser
Karen & Les Hoffman
Lisa C. Lafferty
Laura Mangan
Marissa Morris
Sarah Owens
Erwin Rakoczy
Randy Rucinski
Mary E. Saxe
Charlotte Tahk
Mary S. Weber
Tiffany Marble & Barbara Meyer
Michael Angelucci
James Bachwitz
Sandra Block
Kanika Durland
Collin Gehl
Geraldine Grossman
Thomas Hewner
Jeannine Higgins
Gwen Ito
Pauline Muto
Shasti O’Leary Soudant
Lorna Perez
Elizabeth Pascal
Barbara Cole
Noah Falck
Lynda Kaszubski
Myari Ware
Nishant Batsha
Maria Scrivani
Anne Y. Taylor
Alexa Wajed
Katie Williams
Sage Enderton
Kerry Reynolds
Maya Simmons
Kathleen Kearnan
Julian Montague
Misha Russo
David Cloyd
Zelda Abramovich
Daliah Alsayadi
Rosemary Bodine
Athena Clabeaux
Michael DeLaPlante
Rebekah Lafferty
Zeki Ozay
Wan’ye Rhodes-Carter
Leni Schlageter
Keira VanDerBeck
Nicholas Kogut
Kyle Marler
T.J. Borden
Megan Stewart
Kim Sholly
Jared (JB) Benjamin
Kathy Boni
Helen Brady
Kimberley Burg
Deborah Ebel
Kathie Evans
Laura Grube
Matt Hogan
Stacey Kartub
Joan King
Cynde McCloskey
Kate Stapleton Parzych
Joan Pfalzer
Erwin Rakoczy
Simone Riter
Cecelia Rosiek-Bauer
Mary Scalzi
Tammy Stawisuck
Robin Tashjian
Scott Thomas
Pat Weissman
APB Speakers International
Drew Sullivan
Brandi Grimsley
Riley Sullivan
Robin Lenhard
Buffalo & Erie County Public Library
Buffalo Seminary
City Honors High School
Hutchinson Central Technical High School
Lafayette High School
Leonardo daVinci High School
Jess Basil
Adam Cady
Dan Hart
Nicholas Kogut
Brian Seibel
I.A.T.S.E Local 10
Joyce Carolyn
Buffalo Toronto Public Media
Challenger Community News
Jim Cielencki
Anne Conable
Pat Cray
Leah Hamilton
Govindan Kartha
Sophia Maggio
Mike McKay
Danielle Merlino
Oliver’s Catering
Nancy J. Parisi
Step Out Buffalo
ON SALE NOW!
This limited-edition anthology features a poem from each poet who has read in those historic grain silos over the past ten years, including such literary luminaries as Ocean Vuong, Maggie Smith, Jericho Brown, Morgan Parker, Hanif Abdurraqib, Vievee Francis, and a slew of others.
For 50 years, Just Buffalo Literary Center has brought the world’s most celebrated authors to Buffalo, hosted poetry events and readings, and supported the development of young writers.
We believe in the love of reading, the art of writing, and the power of the literary arts to transform individual lives and communities.
Whether you’re a new friend or a familiar face, we’re so glad you’re here. Follow us on social media to discover just how much is happening @justbuffalolit
