Sanctuary, with Uwem Akpan and Brad Kessler

Yaddo luminaries Brad Kessler and Uwem Akpan on empathy across boundaries, essential storytelling, the paradox of sanctuary, and the decade it takes to get it right. Kessler, “a consistently impressive writer,” (PW) is the prize-winning author of the memoir Goat Song and three novels—Birds in Fall, Lick Creek and his latest, North. Akpan, whose powerful bestseller Say You’re One of Them covered human-trafficking, prostitution and genocide through the eyes of children, returns with New York, My Village, an exuberant, LOL-funny novel that follows a Nigerian editor to NYC’s heart of darkness. Contributing artists: Joseph Keckler, Damu the Fudgemunk.