LitCity Event Recap: Above the East China Sea Austin Release
by Jessica Weems
Last Thursday,The Writing Barn attended Sarah Bird’s book release party for Above the East China Sea at Austin’s coveted Book People. It was a full house! Excited Bird fans eagerly awaited Sarah’s signature and all hoped she would do a short (or long!) reading.
Before Sarah spoke, guests lined up to try the very tasty Japanese cuisine and sake (The Dojo, Texas Sake Company, and Paula’s Texas Spirits) brought in to honor the setting of the book. The food was a hit, and the line never seemed to shorten. Once people had eaten their weight in the awesome apps, Sarah made her way to the podium.To kick off her speech, Sarah took note of how the event that night was “the wedding she never had.” She then gave a heartfelt thank you to her devoted fans, family, friends, and fellow authors in attendance, including, Carol Dawson, Spike Gillespie, Margo Rabb, Cynthia Leitich Smith, Owen Egerton, Stephen Harrigan, Elizabeth Crook, and more! She also gave a huge shout-out to the great city of Austin, her home and source of inspiration as a writer.
Sarah was funny, gracious, and perfectly genuine when she discussed how her previous novels would later help define her tone and style for Above the East China Sea. She was confident and poised, even through a coughing fit where she was saved by an icy blue cough drop handed to her by a fan. She welcomed the audience like old friends and talked about her book like her child.
Sarah read from two passages. She began with a section that was as much sad as was comical and truthful. But nothing could have prepared her readers for the passage she read next. It was the opening of the book, and under her voice and the severe silence of the room, her words came alive. You could tell by the end, with the quiet gasps in the audience, that the book was nothing less than brilliant. It was a wonderful and special experience to be part of!
The Writing Barn both thanks and congratulates Sarah Bird on her amazing new novel, Above the East China Sea.
What the critics are saying…
“…the rare tome that has the goods for both popular and critical acclaim at the highest level. . . Bird should be a literary household name.” –Dallas Morning News
“…ambitious and rewarding . . .a powerful sense of history and place.” –PW
“… a rich and engrossing achievement.” –Library Journal
“Bird’s most powerful novel yet.” –Ben Fountain