Pulitzer finalist Ed Park in town for UB’s Exhibit X Fiction Series

It’s a homecoming for Buffalo-born author and Princeton University writing professor Ed Park, whose 2023 novel “Same Bed Different Dreams” won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and was among the year’s Pulitzer finalists.

Park will be at Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center, 341 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, at 7 p.m. Oct. 8 as part of the English department’s Exhibit X Fiction Series, which for more than 15 years has been showcasing the work of innovative writers through classroom instruction, conversation and author readings.

The event is free and open to the public.

Park, a founding editor of The Believer and former literary editor of The Village Voice, will discuss his latest novel, “Same Bed Different Dreams,” as well as his forthcoming debut story collection, “An Oral History of Atlantis.” He also co-edited “Buffalo Noir,” part of a series of anthologies now in its 20th year from Akashic Books that features noir-based fiction set in a distinct neighborhood, city or region.

“The Exhibit X Fiction Series celebrates fiction that breaks the mold in some way,” says Christina Milletti, associate professor of English, College of Arts and Sciences, and one of the series’ coordinators. “We feature writers whose novels not only astonish, rouse and remind readers that fiction can be more than just an interesting story (although we love a good story), but also demonstrate how powerful narratives can sway our imaginations, even challenge the way we think about the world.”

Exhibit X is equal parts classroom instruction and community partnerships.  Students meet celebrated contemporary writers while engaging with Buffalo’s thriving arts and cultural scene.

Prior to each author’s visit, UB instructors teach that guest’s work in the department’s fiction and literature courses. As part of Exhibit X, Milletti hosts a salon, which is open to all UB students, that also takes place at Hallwalls at 5:30 p.m., immediately preceding the guest’s talk.

“Ed Park was raised in Buffalo, and you can tell the city is still paying rent in his imagination,” she says.

And a compendium of Buffalo culture artifacts in the book stands as evidence.

“It’s for the most part a novel that explores big questions, like “What is history?” and gives a short course on American imperialism with specific attention to Korea’s role on the global stage while also indicting the algorithms that limit our understanding the world around us,” she says. “Buffalo is the dream landscape against which many of the novel’s themes are worked out.”

“Same Bed Different Dreams” is a cabinet of curiosities, according to Milletti.

“Come join us at Hallways for Exhibit X and you’ll see exactly what I mean,” she says.