March 15, 2004 Herman Wouk to Speak at the Library of Congress

Herman Wouk, one of America's best-known and most popular novelists, will discuss his writing career and his new novel, "A Hole in Texas" (Little, Brown, 2004) with journalist William Safire at the Library of Congress at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21, in the Montpelier Room, sixth floor, Madison Building, 101 Independence Avenue S.E., Washington, D.C. This event is free and open to the public. No tickets are required.

Wouk describes "A Hole in Texas," his 12th novel, as "a short, funny book on a deadly serious theme, the interface between science and politics." The novel is set in the midst of Congress' 1993 curtailment of the Superconducting Supercollider in Texas, which would have become one of the largest physics experiments of all time.

"We are delighted to once again host Herman Wouk at the Library of Congress," said Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. "In 1995, on the occasion of Herman's generous donation to the Library of the manuscripts of his novels "Winds of War" and "War and Remembrance," we sponsored a symposium at the Library on the historical novel. In the company of many distinguished writers and historians, we discussed the many ways in which Herman has shaped the historical novel as we know it today." The presentations and discussions from that symposium were published in 1999 by the Center for the Book.

The April 21 colloquy of author and journalist is part of the Center for the Book's "Books & Beyond" author series, which highlights new books of particular relevance to the Library of Congress. The event is co-sponsored by the Library's Science, Technology and Business Division, which assisted Wouk in his research for "A Hole in Texas."

The Center for the Book was established in 1977 to use the Library of Congress' resources to stimulate public interest in books and reading. For information about the center and the activities of its affiliates in all 50 states and Washington, visit the center's Web site at www.loc.gov/cfbook.