Fiction

The Post-Modern World (2009): Los Angeles Times Festival of Books

By: Todd Hasak-Lowy, Lee Konstantinou, Fiona Maazel, Jerry Stahl

Narrated by: Jim Ruland

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books began in 1996 with a simple goal: to bring together the people who create books with the people who love to read them. The festival was an immediate success and has become the largest and most prestigious book festival in the country, attracting more than 130,000 book lovers each year.

Jim Ruland is the organizer of Vermin on the Mount, an irreverent reading series held in Los Angeles' Chinatown. He is also the author of the short story collection "Big Lonesome." Ruland lives in California with his wife.

Todd Hasak-Lowy received his PhD in comparative literature from UC Berkeley. Currently professor of Hebrew language and literature at the University of Florida, he is the author of the story collection "The Task of This Translator" and his new novel is "Captives."

Lee Konstantinou fled the corporate world to join a doctoral program in the English department at Stanford University. His novel "Pop Apocalypse" is newly published.

Fiona Maazel, a resident of Brooklyn, N.Y., is winner of the 2009 Bard Fiction Prize and was honored as one of the National Book Foundation's Five Under 35 of 2008. "Last Last Chance" is her debut novel.

Jerry Stahl has written extensively for film and TV, most recently for the hit series "CSI." His work includes the memoir "Permanent Midnight," which was adapted into a movie starring Ben Stiller. Stahl's most recent novel is "Pain Killers."

©2009 Los Angeles Times (P)2009 Los Angeles Times