Description
Let’s talk about joy! Join us the evening of Sunday, Feb. 18 as we celebrate the latest release from the prolific and ever-amazing writer, Chelene Knight. Her new book, Let It Go: Free Yourself from Old Beliefs and Find a New Path to Joy, is a candid and essential book that will guide the reader to carve a new path to joy as unique as each individual.
Let It Go draws on personal experience and the advice of leaders from various Black communities to share hard-won tools for joy-discovery — tools such as how to say no with love; how to call back activities that feel good; how to reshape communication with those closest to you; how to revise language; and most of all, how to learn to let go to redefine what we think joy is.
Organized around the seasons and the natural cycle of reflection and renewal, Let It Go showcases, through conversation and solitary reflection, the broad spectrum of Black realities and reveals the colourful kaleidoscope of joy and your own ways to find it.
In this free event, Knight will be joined by the wonderful poet (and Upstart & Crow staffer) Franz, in a conversation about the origins of the book, how joy manifests in our lives, and how to move through the world while being more deliberate about how we release energy and cultivate joy.
Please register for your spot on our Eventbrite page, as capacity is limited. We will have books for sale and signing!
More about Chelene Knight:
Chelene Knight is the author of the novel Junie, which was longlisted for the inaugural Carol Shields Prize for Fiction; the memoir Dear Current Occupant, winner of the 2018 Vancouver Book Award and longlisted for the George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature; and Braided Skin. Her essays have appeared in multiple Canadian and American publications. Previously the managing editor at Room magazine and the director of the Growing Room Festival in Vancouver, Knight has also worked as a poetry professor at the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia and as a literary agent at the Transatlantic Agency. Knight has now founded her own literary studio, Breathing Space Creative, through which she’s launched the Forever Writers Club, a membership for writers focused on creative sustainability; the Thrive coaching program; and the Rise author care program.
More about Upstart & Crow:
Located on Granville Island, Upstart & Crow is a literary arts studio for curious readers and creative storytellers alike. We are international in our outlook, and local in our sensibilities. We create opportunities to surface new talent and champion bold ideas through events, workshops, literary launches, unique partnerships — and yes, we also sell books!
Health precautions:
We want this event to be fun and safe. Masks are welcome, though we won’t enforce them. We hope that folks who come will be vaccinated and boosted and will stay home if they feel ill.
Accessibility:
The main studio of our shop is accessible for folks with mobility aids. There is a washroom on the main floor available for attendees.
Questions: hello@upstartandcrow.com
Let It Go
“Let It Go excavated pieces of my insides that I didn’t know even existed. The way Chelene Knight weaves her narrative while guiding us––her friends, not merely readers––to explore, unlearn, and rethink our experiences and futures is truly refreshing. . . . I am so grateful that Let It Go came into my life when it did. A true North Star.” — Matthew R. Morris, author of Black Boys Like Me
