The 20th Annual PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles National Literary Awards will take place on Saturday, December 11, 2010, at the Oakland Public Library, Rockridge Branch, 5366 College Avenue from 2 to 5 p.m. The ceremony, which will be followed by a reception and book signings, is free and open to the public. Former state Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata will be the keynote speaker. PEN Oakland, founded in 1989, is a chapter of PEN International, founded in 1921. Dubbed "the blue collar PEN" by the New York Times, PEN Oakland annually sponsors the PEN Oakland-Josephine Miles Book Awards, named for the late poet and faculty member of U.C. Berkeley's English Department. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the awards.
Each year PEN Oakland presents an award to outstanding book titles published in the previous year.
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