Former first lady, Bev Anderson Manley, ex-wife of late Prime Minister Michael Manley and author of The Manley Memoirs will make a guest appearance on July 19, at the Harlem Book Fair. 

The 10^th anniversary staging of the Harlem Book Fair will be at the Schomburg Centre for Research in Black Culture in New York, between July 18 and 20.  Mrs. Anderson-Manley, who is a talks show host, will be joined broadcast journalist, Cliff Hughes, for a candid discussion on the recently published book. 

This will be her first appearance in New York to discuss the publication, and it will be televised nationally across the United States. The Manley Memoirs  recounts the author’s life from childhood to her marriage to Manley, and her political awakening and embroilment in the ideological differences of the 1970s, which led to her estrangement from her husband. 

Jointly staged by the Centre and Black Book Review (BBR), the Harlem Book Fair, is the largest national exhibition of African-American books, which provides a platform designed to align African-American authors, poets and performers with the communities they have served over the past decade.      

The organizers expanded this year’s staging to include members of the wider African-Diaspora, outside of the United States, and collaborated with the Jamaican Consulate in New York to incorporate Mrs. Anderson-Manley in the activities.  Other highlights of the Harlem Book Fair, include the Wheatley Awards on July 18 at the Schomburg Centre; and nationally televised panel discussions, performances, and readings by authors, poets, musicians and storytellers. 

The Jamaican Consulate will also use the occasion to announce a special project - “Literary Salon,” scheduled for August 29. Literary Salon will provide a unique, intimate atmosphere for new writers to connect with members of the Jamaican Diaspora through their work.