Elliot Ackerman, a highly decorated veteran whose “Dark at the Crossing” is one of five finalists for the 2017 National Book Award for fiction, will read excerpts from the book at Fredonia on Monday, Oct. 30, at 3 p.m., in the Kelly Family Auditorium in the Science Center.
“Dark at the Crossing” is a timely new novel of humanity and tension within a contemporary love story set on the Turkish border with Syria. The Washington Post praised the book for transporting readers into a world few Americans know. “Promises to be one of the most essential books of 2017,” predicted Esquire magazine.
Mr. Ackerman’s campus visit is a rare opportunity to see a National Book Award finalist shortly before the National Book Foundation awards ceremony. A question and answer session, to be followed by a book signing, is also planned.
Ackerman is also the author of the critically acclaimed novel “Green on Blue,” which take place in Istanbul, where Ackerman has covered the Syrian Civil War since 2013. Articles by Ackerman have been published in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New Republic and The New York Times Magazine. He is a former White House Fellow and U.S. Marine, serving five tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan and awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star for Valor and the Purple Heart.
The program, free and open to the public, is sponsored by the Department of Political Science and International Affairs, the Honors Program, the Department of English Mary Louise White Fund, established through the Fredonia College Foundation, and the campus Veterans Affairs Office.
