Summary: In 1989, author Will Weaver received the Minnesota Book Award for Best Fiction for A Gravestone Made of Wheat & Other Stories. Sixteen years later screenwriter and director Ali Selim adapted the title short story from this collection to create the critically acclaimed movie, Sweet Land. In this unique installment of Talk of the Stacks moderated by The Rake's Cristina Cordova, Selim and Weaver will discuss fiction writing, film making, and the process of adapting a short story to a feature-length movie. Will Weaver writes for adults and young adults. His novels and short stories have earned praise from reviewers coast to coast for their realism. Weaver’s debut novel, Red Earth, White Earth, was produced as a CBS television movie and several of the stories were performed on National Public Radio. Formerly an English professor at Bemidji State University, Weaver was described by the Los Angeles Times as a writer of uncommon natural talent. Saint Paul resident Ali Selim (son of a German-American mother and an Egyptian-born father) has been directing advertising commercials since 1989. Selim has received the Gold Lion, advertising’s most coveted award from Cannes Advertising Film Festival. Ad Week magazine listed Selim in the top 1% of most sought after directors in the country and the Star Tribune named him the Minnesota Artist of the Year in 2006. Recorded live on March 28, 2008 from the Minneapolis Central Library's Pohlad Hall. The Talk of the Stacks is presented by The Friends of the Minneapolis Public Library and US Trust.
