Special Events Announced for 43rd Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair

The Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair has announced special events and programs at this year's fair; kicking off with an Opening Night celebration on Friday, Nov. 15 from 4-8pm; and featuring talks with MFA curator Meghan Melvin on the exhibition "Kay Nielsen's Enchanted Vision" (Saturday, Nov 16 at 2:30pm), and a two-part exploration looking at the explosion in the collecting and creation of graphic novels and comic books in the 20th & 21st centuries, highlighted by a panel discussion led by noted scholar Hillary Chute with local authors Tim Finn, Liz Prince, and Nick Thorkelson (Sunday, Nov. 17 at 1pm & 2pm). As always, the popular Free Expert Book Appraisals return on Sunday, Nov 17 from 1-3pm.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 15

Opening Night | 4:00pm-8:00pm

Get a first look at items for sale at the 2019 fair! The opening night of the Boston Book Fair is a special event that benefits the Antiquarian Booksellers' Benevolent Fund. It provides an opportunity to browse the collections of U.S. and international dealers (before everyone else!) and to mingle with other bibliophiles, collectors, museum curators, and curious special collections librarians. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at the event or online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/43rd-boston-book-fair-opening-night-tickets-67582961457

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16

Getting Started in Family History

Alice Kane, American Ancestors and New England Historic Genealogical Society | 12:30pm Exhibit Hall Theater

Genealogy is one of the most valuable pursuits in which you can participate. Learning about who you are and uncovering the stories of your ancestors can be a rewarding and even life-changing experience. But, how do you get started? You may have inherited family papers or research from a relative, have dabbled on genealogical websites, or have already found a few records of interest. What's next? Learn to navigate the first steps in tracing your genealogy and understand what records and sources can shed light on your family's story.

Established in 1845, American Ancestors and New England Historic Genealogical Society is the nation's founding genealogical organization and the largest Society of its kind in the world. Educating, inspiring, and connecting people to their family history across America and beyond, through their scholarship, collections, and expertise; the organization's eight-story library and archive (99-101 Newbury Street, Boston) offers the largest collection of original family history papers in the country, including 28 million diaries, letters, photographs, and other manuscripts spanning the fourteenth century to the present.

NOTE: The Genealogical Society will be distributing free one-day passes to the American Ancestors Research Center to Fair attendees at the talk.

Enduring Enchantment: The Illustration Art of Kay Nielsen (1886-1957)

Meghan Melvin, Curator of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston | 2:30 pm | Exhibit Hall Theater

Meghan Melvin, curator of Boston's MFA exhibition Kay Nielsen's Enchanted Vision: The Kendra and Allan Daniel Collection, reexamines the celebrated artist's original illustration art through an extensive private collection of Nielsen's masterful drawings and watercolors. Her recent research on Nielsen seeks to broaden the understanding of this influential artist's working methods and his diverse sources of inspiration. On exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston through January 20, 2020.

Ticknor Society Collectors' Roundtable | 4:00 pm Exhibit Hall Theater

The Ticknor Society's Collectors Roundtable has been a regular feature at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair for over a decade. This year's panelists include authors discussing their personal collections.

Paul Di Filippo, science fiction writer, "Fifteen Thousand Volumes of Fantastika"

Todd Hearon, poet, "The Poet's Hand: A Collection of Signed and Rare Volumes from Pope to the Present"

Christopher F. Minty, historian, "Paper Trail Curiosities"

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 17

FREE Appraisals

Expert Book Appraisers | 1:00-3:00 pm Main Entrance

Attendees can bring their own books, manuscripts, and ephemera for free expert appraisals. Located just outside the main entrance to the exhibit hall.

Beyond Words: The Wordless Novel in the first half of the 20th Century: Frans Masereel, Lynd Ward, Otto Nuckel, Milt Gross, Helena Bochorakova-Dittrichova and Lawrence Hyde

Ken Sanders, Ken Sanders Rare Books | 1:00 pm Exhibit Hall Theater

Proprietor of Ken Sanders Rare Books and Dream Garden Press, Ken Sanders has been involved in the antiquarian book trade for fifty years. He purchased his first copy of Gods' Man by Lynd Ward in 1965 at the age of 14. His press commissioned underground cartoonist Robert Crumb to illustrate Edward Abbey's The Monkey Wrench Gang, in 1985.

The Graphic Revolution: Exploring the Comics Culture

Panel discussion moderated by Hillary L. Chute, with Tim Flynn, Liz Prince & Nick Thorkelson | 2:00 pm Exhibit Hall Theater

Hillary Chute, Distinguished Professor of English and Art + Design at Northeastern University is author of Why Comics? From Underground to Everywhere (HarperCollins), Disaster Drawn: Visual Witness, Comics, and Documentary Form (Harvard UP), Outside the Box: Interviews with Contemporary Cartoonists (U of Chicago P), and Graphic Women: Life Narrative and Contemporary Comics (Columbia UP); Associate Editor of Art Spiegelman's MetaMaus (Pantheon); and a comics and graphic novels columnist for the New York Times Book Review.

Tim Finn owns and operates the brick and mortar Hub Comics in Somerville's Union Square, and is a professor of animation, animation history, and comics at Lesley Art + Design in Cambridge. Tim is also 200+ interviews and 18 chapters into writing the definitive history of G.I. Joe, a coffee table art book for both hardcore fans and casual pop culture aficionados

Liz Prince is the award-winning author of the graphic memoir Tomboy, the creator of the comics series Coady and the Creepies, and is a contributor to many comic anthologies. She lives in Maine with her 2 cats, 2 toads, and 1 husband. Liz's first graphic novel, Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir, was released in 2014 by Zest Books, to critical acclaim, and has since been published in French, Spanish, Korean, and was adapted as an audiobook.

Nick Thorkelson is a Boston-area cartoonist, graphic designer, animator, musician, and painter. He was a political cartoonist for the Boston Globe and has contributed stories to a number of comics anthologies including The Beats and Studs Terkel's Working (with Harvey Pekar), Fortune Cookies (editor/cartoonist), as well as Bohemians, Radical Jesus, and Yiddishkeit. His book-length comics biography, Herbert Marcuse, Philosopher of Utopia, appeared in April 2019 and he is working on two more GNs, a memoir about the end of the 'sixties and a graphic bio of the 19th Century British designer, poet, and socialist William Morris.