American Library in Paris de Groot Visiting Fellow Rasheed Newson will be in conversation with Marlon James at the Miami Book Fair on November 22, 2026 at 1:30 PM EST!
Rasheed Newson’s There’s Only One Sin in Hollywood: A Novel tells the story of the well-planned arrival in Hollywood in the late 1950s of Xavier C. Barlow. Magnetic and seductive, he is the studio’s bet to challenge Sidney Poitier. Years later, Aaron Touissant, the studio’s man to help stars stay in the closet, is ready to expose the culprits behind Barlow’s death.
Marlon James’ The Disappearers: A Novel is the story of eight gay men in 1980s Kingston, Jamaica, who begin rehearsals for a play. Though strangers to one another, they share an inescapable truth: They live in a world that refuses to accept them. One night, the men are savagely beaten and one of them is killed. As the survivors face the hatred and contempt the violence has laid bare, some seek retribution – and some disappear.
Moderated by Camonghne Felix, poet, essayist, and National Book Award finalist.