Fiona Sze-Lorrain will read from her recent book of poetry, My Funeral Gondola, at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21, in a free reading at Prairie Lights Books in downtown Iowa City. The reading also will be streamed live on the University of Iowa Writing University website.

Sze-Lorrain is the author of Water the Moon and Silhouette/Shadow: The Cinematic Art of Gao Xingjian. She co-edited the anthologies On Freedom and Sky Lanterns, and has published translations of Chinese poets as well as contemporary American and French authors. Co-founder of Vif editions, and an editor at Cerise Press, she writes and translates in English, French, and Chinese. Sze-Lorrain is a zheng concertist, and has performed worldwide. She lives in Paris and New York.

Stephanie Papa wrote for The Rumpus, “Sze-Lorrain's pieces exude a compelling wonder and fragility. The poet succeeds in a challenging venture, achieving poems so meditative yet unafraid. My Funeral Gondola seems to be urging us to look in the darkness for the light, something mysterious and luminous behind a heavy curtain.”

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to attend this reading, call Jan Weissmiller at Prairie Lights in advance at 319-337-2681.

For a UI arts calendar and details about upcoming events visit the Arts Iowa website.