Ships at a Distance

Zora Neale Hurston

Watch event again now

This event took place on 28 October 2020

Watch the video

Ships at a Distance
Zora Neale Hurston

Watch event again now

This event took place on 28 October 2020

‘There are years that ask questions and years that answer.’ – Zora Neale Hurston

Over a career that spanned more than 30 years, Zora Neale Hurston published four novels, two books of folklore, an autobiography, numerous short stories, and several essays, articles and plays. Today, her work unites readers across the world, yet she died penniless, buried in an unmarked grave.

Black Girl’s Book Club co-founders Natalie Carter and Melissa Cummings-Quarry – who cite Neale Hurston as the ‘the patron saint of Black women’ – chair a conversation with poets Jackie Kay and Salena Godden about Hurston’s writing life, and how she has become regarded one of the most significant Black woman writers of the 20th century.

Presented in association with the Royal Society of Literature. This event was part of Unfinished Business: The Fight for Women's Rights, a UK-wide exhibition by the British Library and public libraries.

Speakers