The Fall 2025 Zalaznick Reading Series concludes with Katie Kitamura
Thursday, November 13, 5pm
Rhodes-Rawling Auditorium, Klarman Hall KG70

Katie Kitamura is a novelist, critic, and author of the 2021 National Book Award longlister and instant bestseller, Intimacies. In this electrifying story, an interpreter has come to The Hague to escape New York and work at the International Court where she is drawn into simmering personal dramas and an explosive political controversy. A woman of quiet passion, she confronts power, love, and violence, both in her personal intimacies and in her work at the Court. Hailed as a “gorgeous, destabilizing meditation on the power differentials built into language” by Raven Leilani, Intimacies was a finalist for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize and made countless best book lists, including one of The New York Times’ “10 Best Books of 2021,” and Barack Obama’s favorite books of the year.  In France, it won the Prix Litteraire Lucien Barriere, was a finalist for the Grand Prix de l’Heroine, and was longlisted for the Prix Fragonard.

Kitamura’s newest release, Audition, is an irresistibly engaging, masterfully crafted novel featuring Kitamura’s signature beguiling style readers know and love her for. Following the story of two people meeting for lunch—an elegant and accomplished actress in rehearsals for an upcoming premiere, and a man who is attractive, troubling, and young enough to be her son—Audition leads readers to question whether we ever really know the people we love.

Kitamura’s previous work, A Separation, is a searing, suspenseful story of intimacy and infidelity that propels us into the experience of a woman on edge with exquisitely cool precision. A PBS NewsHour/ New York Times Book Club Pick, Elledescribed A Separation as “combining Elena Ferrante-style intricacies with the tensions of a top-notch whodunit.” A Separation was a finalist for the Premio von Rezzori and a New York Times Notable Book.

In her fascinating talks on the nuances of language and prose, Kitamura reveals the process behind her bestselling fiction with universities, libraries, book festivals, and more. She delves into her experience growing up in a dual-language household to explore themes of identity, the American immigrant experience, and autobiography and the self.

In addition to Audition, Intimacies, and A Separation, Katie Kitamura is also the author of Gone to The Forest and The Longshot, both finalists for the New York Public Library’s Young Lions Fiction Award. Her work has been translated into 21 languages and is being adapted for film and television. She is a recipient of the Rome Prize in Literature, as well as fellowships from the Lannan, Santa Maddalena, and Jan Michalski foundations. Kitamura’s writing has appeared in The New York Times Book Review, The Guardian, Granta, and more. She teaches in the creative writing program at New York University. 

For more information on Speaker, please visit www.prhspeakers.com.

Reception and book signing to follow in the English Lounge, 258 Goldwin Smith Hall

We are proud to partner with Buffalo Street Books at this event. Buffalo Street Books is Ithaca’s only non-profit independent bookstore, dedicated to serving its community through books and literary programming. Katie Kitamura's books are available online, in store, and on site at the reading. Show your student ID at BSB and get 10% off every day!

FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Masking is encouraged.

We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. To be respectful of those with allergies and environmental sensitivities, we ask that you please refrain from wearing strong fragrances. The venue is wheelchair accessible and equipped with assistive listening technology. If you need additional accommodations to participate in this event, please contact us as soon as possible.

For more information about this event visit english.cornell.edu/zalaznick or email englishevents@cornell.edu. 

This event is presented by the Department of Literatures in English / Creative Writing Program at Cornell University.