2011 Illinois Authors' Dinner

The Illinois Library Association (ILA) is delighted to welcome Michael Cunningham, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Hours, to the 2011 Illinois Authors’ Dinner. The Dinner will be held on Tuesday, October 18, at the Hotel InterContinental O'Hare from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. A cocktail hour will be held from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m.

Michael Cunningham was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1952 and grew up in La Canada, California. He received his B.A. in English Literature from Stanford University and his M.F.A. from the University of Iowa.  His novel A Home at the End of the World was published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux in 1990 to wide acclaim.  Flesh and Blood, another novel, followed in 1995.  He received the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award for his novel, The Hours.  He has written one nonfiction book, Land's End: A Walk Through Provincetown.  He is also the author of Specimen Days (June 2005). His new novel, titled By Nightfall, was published in October 2010 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

Cunningham’s work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, The Paris Review, and other publications. His story “White Angel” was chosen for Best American Short Stories 1989, and another story, “Mister Brother,” appeared in the 2000 O. Henry Collection.

Michael Cunningham is the recipient of a Whiting Writers Award (1995), a Guggenheim Fellowship (1993), a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship (1988), and a Michener Fellowship from the University of Iowa (1982).   He is currently a senior lecturer in the English department at Yale University.

A book signing will follow Michael Cunningham’s presentation.

Night Owl Book Discussion of By Nightfall
Join fellow conference attendees on Tuesday, October 18, from 9:00 to 10:00 p.m. at the ICE Bar in the InterContinental Hotel for an informal discussion of Michael Cunningham’s book By Nightfall. Share your thoughts about the intriguing characters in this novel, written by the Illinois
Authors’ Dinner featured speaker. Enjoy this opportunity to unwind over a good book at the end of your day. No RSVPs necessary — just stop by!

Honor your Local Authors at the ILA Annual Conference!

The Illinois Authors’ Dinner is a great way to honor our local authors.  Libraries are encouraged to sponsor an author at the event.  Authors will receive a complimentary one-day conference registration on Tuesday, October 18, be recognized in the dinner program, and introduced at the event.  Each author will host a table during dinner, and up to four seats can be reserved for sponsoring libraries or companies.

A cocktail hour will be held from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m., during which authors will be available for book signings. Book sales will be provided by after-words bookstore. 

To sponsor an author, please fill out and return the form below by September 19, 2011.  Authors and libraries that are confirmed by September 19 will be listed in the conference program book; all authors and libraries will be included in the event program.  Author photographs and information on their work must be emailed to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by September 19, 2011.

DOWNLOAD AUTHOR REGISTRATION FORM HERE

Honored Illinois Authors