Now a staple in the library&rsquo\;s annua l calendar\, the Midwest Literary Walk draws visitors from near and far. T his single-day event features nationally recognized authors giving intervi ews or presentations at venues within walking distance of one another in C helsea's historic downtown. This year&rsquo\;s Walk offers attendees the c hance to see one of Chelsea&rsquo\;s most iconic venues and experience a p lay reading at the Purple Rose Theatre\, while engaging with the actors an d playwrights. \;Lit Walk is intended to be a celebration of literatur e\, reading\, and the Chelsea community\, removing barriers between everyd ay people and fantastic literature and authors. All three author talks are open to the public with no admittance charge. \;
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Books
by Lit Walk authors can be borrowed from the library in print\, ebook\, or
audiobook formats. Additionally\, our fantastic Indie bookstore\, Serendi
pity Books\, will also offer print copies for sale during the event. Each
author talk concludes with a book signing. \;
Purple R ose Theatre Company Concert Reading
\n10am | Purple Rose Th eatre | \;137 Park St. \;| \;Registration required
\nJoin us for the 2026 Purple Rose Theatre Company New Works Comedy Fest! Enjoy s cenes performed from several plays written by Michigan playwrights includi ng a featured new work by Founder and Artistic Director Jeff Daniels! PRTC artists will perform readings of scenes and acts from various plays and g ive the audience an opportunity to share feedback with the actors and sele ct playwrights*. Please \;register through the library&rsquo\;s event calendar \;to attend in-person at the theatre or enjoy a Zoom webinar. Doors open at 10am\, reading begins approximately 30 minutes after doors open.
\n*Please note: While one of Jeff Daniels' plays will be featu red in the reading\, a professional schedule conflict prohibits him from b eing present at the event. \;
\n
Chris La Tray | fo
rmer Poet Laureate and award-winning Memorist
1pm | Main Street Church | 320 N. Main St.
\n
Chris La Tray is a Mé\
;tis storyteller and enrolled member of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa
Indians. In addition to serving as Montana&rsquo\;s Poet Laureate from 20
23-2025\, he is also the recipient of the Montana Book Award\, the High Pl
ains Book Award\, and Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction of the Year selection
. Becoming Little Shell is a memoir combining the story of the Li
ttle Shell Chippewa Tribe\, the history of the Mé\;tis people\, and
La Tray&rsquo\;s own search to find a place with them. Robin Wall Kimmerer
(Braiding Sweetgrass) calls it &ldquo\;a story as strong and bea
utiful as a Mé\;tis sash\, a story of identity\, kinship and the jou
rney toward justice.&rdquo\;
Carmen Bugan | George O
rwell Prize Fellow
3pm | First Congregational Church of C helsea | 121 E. Middle St.
\n
Born in Romania\, Dr. Carmen Buga
n is a prize-winning poet and writer based in Chelsea\, MI. She won the Br
ead Loaf Nonfiction Prize\, received a Poetry Book Society Special Commend
ation\, was a finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize\, and was named
2018 Helen DeRoy Professor in Honors at the University of Michigan. She i
s on the faculty of the Oxford Writing Mentors\, the Poetry School in Lond
on\, and the International Women Writing Guild. \; Her poems and memoi
r draw inspiration from her family&rsquo\;s oppression and rebellion in 19
80s Romania.
Nathan W. Pyle | New York Times Best selling Author and Cartoonist
\n4:30pm | Chelsea First Unit ed Methodist Church | \;128 Park St.
\n
Nathan Pyle has spe
nt the last decade making art for the Internet and his creations have take
n the world by storm. He is the author of comic collections Strange Pl
anet\, Stranger Planet\, NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette\, and 99 Stories I Could Tell\, as well as children&rsquo\;s b
ooks such as Tuck Me! Strange Planet began as a webcomic
series\, was published as a graphic novel\, and was adapted into an Apple
TV series in 2023 with Pyle as Executive Producer. Pyle&rsquo\;s work pok
es and prods the social traditions we take for granted and shines a light
on how weird they really are\, from singing happy birthday to feeling like
we need to tidy up our apartment before guests arrive. \; When asked
why he creates his cartoons\, Pyle replied &ldquo\;I want to celebrate hum
anity! I think that so much of what we are doing here is meaningful and ab
surd simultaneously.&rdquo\; (NPR interview with Liz Metzger). \;
Thank you to all who make the Chelsea District Library&rsquo\ ;s Midwest Literary Walk possible\, including The Friends of the Chelsea D istrict Library\, Serendipity Books\, and the Chelsea Area Chamber of Comm erce.
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