A new fiscal year means new members for The Westport Library Board of Trustees, with Christy Charise, James Corgel, Darcy Travlos, and Ashley Zwick all joining the board for the 2025-26 term.
There is also a new face at the helm, with current Board of Trustees Senior Vice President Robert Boroujerdi succeeding Pat Wieser as the board’s president. Wieser will remain on the board as a member, and Krishna Patel will succeed Boroujerdi as senior vice president.
The other officers for the 2025-26 term are Treasurer Ben Chan, Secretary Sheri Gordon, Finance Committee Chair Scott Bennewitz, Governance and Nominations Committee Chair Martina Sze, and Development Committee Chair Mark Silverstein.
The Westport Library’s upcoming fiscal year runs July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026.
Boroujerdi is a former Partner at Goldman Sachs and later joined Third Point LLC, an institutional asset manager, as the head of markets. He is an active investor and advisor across public and private markets. He and his family live in Westport.
“We’re incredibly fortunate to have such a remarkable library at the heart of our town,” Boroujerdi said. “Alongside my fellow board members, I’m honored to help steward this shared resource — a gift we all benefit from and help shape. The Library truly stands as a reflection of our community itself: curious, welcoming, and always learning.”
Those cycling off the board are longtime contributors Andrea Berkely, Randy Herbertson, Celeste La Croix, Jay Norris, and Andrew Wilk.
“We look forward to the new ideas and energy that we know this outstanding group of new board members will bring, but we’ll of course miss seeing our longtime board members at our regular meetings,” said Westport Library Executive Director Bill Harmer. “The great news is that they’ll stay on as patrons and volunteers, and we look forward to working with everyone — new and old — for this coming term and in the many years to come.”
Here’s a closer look at the board’s newest members:
Christy Charise started her career at Goldman Sachs, leaving to pursue her MBA at Cornell, where she was selected as one of 26 Park Leadership fellows in her business school class (a fellowship recognizing professional and academic excellence). After completing her MBA, Charise joined Bain & Co. as a strategy consultant in their New York office, spending time in both the general practice and their private equity group. She subsequently joined the Connecticut-based boutique consultancy Casey Quirk, focusing on strategy work for public and private asset managers and hedge funds. In 2009, Charise and her husband co-founded Saugatuck Financial, where she led the daily operations and growth initiatives for more than a decade. She continues to lead various aspects of the practice, including business development, marketing, and strategic initiatives.
Charise holds a BS from Cornell and an MBA from the Johnson School at Cornell. She loves living in Westport with her husband, Justin, and two children, Austin and Ashley. Aside from spending time with family and friends and their two mini-goldendoodles (Pineapple and Bailey), Charise loves traveling, cooking, and a good cup of coffee.
James Corgel is an experienced business executive who has been involved with several nonprofits in leadership and team roles since his retirement. His focus has largely been education, management excellence, and career development. Corgel retired in 2013 after an extensive career at the IBM Corporation, where he served in a number of key general manager roles with global responsibility. He was appointed a member of IBM's Integration and Values team in 1997, a senior management group responsible for strategy implementation.
Corgel graduated from Notre Dame in 1973 and earned his MBA from the university in 1975. He is a member of the University of Notre Dame Advisory Councils and a board member of the Graduate Studies and Research Advisory Council. He also was named chairman of the Undergraduate Experience Advisory Council and continues to serve on the board. In addition, Corgel is a board member of Earthplace, serving as board chairman from 2020 to 2022, and was a board member of the American Management Association from 2003 to 2013. Corgel and his wife, Chris, have lived in Westport for more than 35 years.
Darcy Travlos is a capital markets specialist, investor, and entrepreneur with deep experience across technology, media, industrial, and consumer sectors. A former investment banker and equity research analyst, she has advised more than 200 companies and led more than 70 technology and consumer-related transactions. She was one of the most-read contributors to Forbes.com and has appeared on CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox Business, and national radio. Her forward-thinking work in digital media was featured in The Economist, and she is widely recognized for identifying early investment opportunities in transformational technologies.
Travlos holds an MBA in finance from The Wharton School at Penn and a BA in economics from Brown, where she received the Financial Executives Award for academic achievement and the Brown Bear Award, the university’s highest volunteer honor for outstanding personal service. She has served on Brown’s board of governors, the Brown Club of Fairfield County, the Fairfield Theater Company board, and the Greater Philadelphia Venture Group. Travlos moved to Westport in 2000 with her daughter and now lives with her black labrador, Robert. She is also a member of the Library’s Verso advisory board and enjoys travel, tennis, and long walks with Robert.
Ashley Zwick has more than 20 years of experience in the nonprofit and education sectors. She currently serves as the executive director of the Tuck Initiative on Workplace Inclusion at Dartmouth and teaches courses on social impact at NYU. As a strategist and connector, Zwick is driven by a passion for solving big problems and creating opportunities that empower as many people as possible to lead lives of abundance. In every role she holds, her focus is on building inclusive teams and people-centered organizations to create a more just world.
When Zwick moved to Westport in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, she had one non-negotiable: to live within walking distance of The Westport Library. Fortunately, she and her family of passionate readers found a home on Evergreen Avenue — and to this day, the Library remains her favorite part of living in Westport.
L to R: Olufunke Grace Bankole, Nicole Cuffy, and Jennifer Haigh
The Edge of Water by Olufunke Grace Bankole, O Sinners by Nicole Cuffy, and Rabbit Moon by Jennifer Haigh are the finalists for the 2025 Westport Prize for Literature, awarded annually to honor an original work of literary fiction that is both relevant and timeless.
This year’s winner will be announced in late summer/early fall and honored at The Westport Library on Thursday, November 6. The conversation with the winning author will be moderated by The Yale Review editor Meghan O’Rourke.
This is the third year for the $10,000 prize, whose inaugural grant was awarded in 2023 to renowned novelist Zadie Smith for The Fraud, which was named as one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, and The Independent. The 2024 recipient was Alejandro Puyana, honored for his acclaimed debut novel, Freedom is a Feast.
The Edge of Water is the first novel for Bankole, the Nigerian American writer and Harvard Law School graduate whose work has appeared in various literary journals, including Ploughshares, Glimmer Train Stories, AGNI, Michigan Quarterly Review, New Letters, The Antioch Review, and Stand magazine. She won the first-place prize in the Glimmer Train Short-Story Award for New Writers and was the Bread Loaf-Rona Jaffe Scholar in Fiction at the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference.
Prior to O Sinners, Cuffy wrote Dances, which was longlisted for the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel. Cuffy, who has an MFA from The New School and is a lecturer at the University of Maryland and Georgetown University, has also been published in the New England Review; The Masters Review, Volume VI (curated by StoryFest 2024 keynote speaker Roxane Gay); Chautauqua; and Blue Mesa Review.
Haigh is the author of seven best-selling works of fiction. Her first, Mrs. Kimble, won the PEN Hemingway Award for debut fiction, and her book prior to Rabbit Moon, Mercy Street, was named a Best Book of 2022 by The New Yorker and won the Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award. Haigh is a Guggenheim fellow and graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.
“Once again this year the community response to this project has been fantastic!” said Candice Savin, chair of the Westport Prize for Literature steering committee. “I am so pleased with the quality of the submissions this year. The prize is attracting impressive literary talent. No doubt the winner in conversation with Meghan O’Rourke on November 6 will be a very special evening at The Westport Library.”
Submissions for the 2025 prize were read and vetted by a team of volunteer readers — numbering nearly 50 for this year — with the best-reviewed manuscripts advancing to the jury that will select this year’s winner.
The jurors for 2025 are playwright and author Tommy Greenwald, book blogger and aggregator Suzanne Leopold, publishing industry veteran Erica Melnichok, The Lifeboat author Charlotte Rogan, and nonfiction writer and former Book of the Month Club judge Nina Sankovitch.
The Edge of Water by Olufunke Grace Bankole
In Ibadan, Nigeria, a mother receives a divination that foretells danger for her daughter in America. In spite of this warning, she allows her to forge her own path, and Amina arrives in New Orleans filled with hope. But just as Amina begins to find her way, a hurricane threatens to destroy the city, upending everything she’d dreamed of and the lives of all she holds dear. Years later, her daughter is left with questions about the mother she barely knew, and the family she has yet to discover in Nigeria.
“An artfully constructed, beautifully told, and utterly moving book. A thrilling debut.” —Jami Attenberg, author of A Reason to See You Again
O Sinners by Nicole Cuffy
Faruq Zaidi, a young journalist processing the recent death of his father, a devout Muslim, takes the opportunity to embed himself in a cult known only as “the nameless,” because its members refused to label themselves. Based in the California redwoods and shepherded by an enigmatic Vietnam War veteran named Odo, “the nameless” adhere to the 18 Utterances, including teachings such as “all suffering is distortion” and “see only beauty.” Faruq, skeptical but committed to unraveling the mystery of “the nameless,” extends his stay over months, as he gets deeper into the cult’s inner workings and alluring teachings. But as he gets closer to Odo, Faruq himself begins to unravel, forced to come to terms with the memories he has been running from while trying to resist Odo’s spell.
“A gorgeously written literary excavation of belonging and belief.” —Emma Donoghue, The Boston Globe
Rabbit Moon by Jennifer Haigh
Four years after their bitter divorce, Claire and Aaron Litvak get a phone call no parent is prepared for: their 22-year-old daughter Lindsey, teaching English in China during a college gap year, has been critically injured in a hit and run accident. At a Shanghai hospital they wait at her bedside, hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. The accident unearths a deeper fissure in the family: the shocking event that ended the Litvaks’ marriage and turned Lindsey against them. Estranged from her parents, she has confided only in her younger sister, Grace, adopted as an infant from China. As Claire and Aaron struggle to get their bearings in bustling, cosmopolitan Shanghai, the newly prosperous “miracle city,” they face troubling questions about Lindsey’s life there, in which nothing is quite as it seems.
“Capturing both the possibilities of reinvention and the scars carried from a traumatic past, Haigh's searing novel examines the interplay between choice and chance.” —Booklist
Friday, June 27; Doors/DJ (Tim “Journeys by DJ” Fielding): 6 pm; Show: 7:30 pm
From honoring the legendary Keith Richards in March, to breaking the record for World’s Loudest Library during four unforgettable days of VersoFest 2025 in April, The Westport Library has had a rockin’ spring season.
Now, Verso Studios and DinkinEsh Presents are kicking off the summer with Mystic Bowie's Talking Dreads for a can’t-miss Reggae Dance Party on Friday, June 27.
The show will take place in the Library’s Trefz Forum. Doors open at 6 pm, featuring a live DJ set from Tim “Journeys by DJ” Fielding to get the groove going. Mystic will take the stage at 7:30 pm. Tickets are priced at $37.50 and are available for purchase here.
Prepare to hit the dance floor with classic Talking Heads songs reimagined through the pulse of roots reggae, ska, and lover’s rock. Not your typical cover band, Mystic Bowie’s Talking Dreads’ infectious island rhythms transform new wave anthems like “Psycho Killer” and “Burning Down the House” into funky Caribbean bangers — applauded by Chris Frantz, drummer for Talking Heads, as “a total home run!”
Known as the “Head Dread” of the Talking Dreads, lead singer Mystic Bowie traces his passion for the Talking Heads back to his early days performing at hotels in Jamaica, when he heard “Wild Wild Life.” In 1996, he joined Tom Tom Club, the side project of Talking Heads’ founding members — and Fairfield County residents — Frantz and Tina Weymouth. For nearly 20 years, he performed alongside them on vocals, making an appearance on their 2000 album The Good, the Bad, and the Funky.
Since debuting the Talking Dreads in 2015, Mystic has performed across North America, dazzling longtime Talking Heads fans and winning new ones along the way.
“Talking Dreads is much more than a cover band,” Mystic said. “I am very much drawing on my own musical culture and history to make these amazing songs my own, while at the same time preserving the integrity of the Talking Heads songs. I’ve always felt that reggae’s dance-inspiring, feel-good vibe is universal, as are many of the band’s songs.”
The Talking Dreads debut features an amazing lineup of legendary reggae figures, including singer Freddie McGregor, whose recording career dates back to his 1980 album Bobby Bobylon; ska guitar master Ernest Ranglin, who has worked with Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, and Monty Alexander; singer and Soul Train Award nominee Tarrus Riley; and saxophonist Dean Fraser. The sole non-Jamaican featured in their debut ensemble is Cindy Wilson of the B-52s, harkening back to the new wave heyday in a dreamy, soulful rendition of “Heaven.”
“Talking Dreads’ sound is tight,” applauded Frantz. “We had a blast the night of the show and we walked away with a definite bounce in our step.”
In their first single off their 1979 album Fear of Music, “Life During Wartime,” the Talking Heads declared, “This ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco” — but with Mystic Bowie’s Talking Dreads, it absolutely is.
Starting that party will be ace DJ Tim “Journeys by DJ” Fielding, who opened for Gang of Four during VersoFest 2025. A graduate of the Balearic school of DJing, Fielding is one of the key figures behind two of London’s most storied clubs: The Brain and The End. The founder of Brainiak Records (which released the world’s first album of live electronica bands, Live at the Brain) and of seminal imprint Journeys by DJ (the first legit series of DJ-mix CDs), Fielding produced legendary works by DJs including John Digweed, Paul Oakenfold, Farley & Heller, Coldcut, and Gilles Peterson, reflecting his own eclectic taste and broad range in music.
“I tend to play the smaller rooms,” said Fielding, “but they are usually packed with smiling faces, and people who are seriously getting down.”
The Artists Collective of Westport will explore the inner world of physical, metaphysical, and emotional spaces through the visual arts with an all-member show at The Westport Library this summer.
The Artists Collective of Westport’s two-part exhibition will encompass all three of the Library’s galleries — Interiors: A Look Inside in the Sheffer Gallery and South Gallery, and Piece by Piece in the Jesup Gallery.
The two exhibits will open Friday, June 6, and run through Tuesday, July 29, with the artist’s reception and reveal of Piece by Piece to be held on Friday, June 6, from 6 to 8 pm.
For Interiors, each of the Artists Collective members were invited to display a work in the medium of their choice that explores what “interiors” means to them. Contributors this year include Bonnie Edelman, Lynn Carlson, Peggy Dembicer, and Ros Shaffer, as well as Norm Siegel, Suzanne Benton, Julie Leff, Diane Pollack, Miggs Burroughs, Kat Evans, Niki Ketchman, and more.
Piece by Piece is a 6-foot by 8-foot art installation composed of the work of 48 Artists Collective members. Each artist received a 12-inch by 12-inch blank panel along with a 12-inch square section randomly selected from a well-known modern painting. The artists created their individual piece, replicating a part of the larger painting in their own style, without knowing what the final painting will look like until it is revealed at the opening reception.
Each 12-inch by 12-inch “piece” of Piece by Piece will be available for purchase starting the night of the reception. Each square will be $100, with 50% of the proceeds supporting the Library’s art programs and 50% going to the artist. The additional artworks on display in the Sheffer and South Galleries will also be available for purchase, with a percentage of the proceeds also going to benefit the Library’s art programming. Additional exhibit support is provided by The Drew Friedman Community Arts Center.
“Now in its fourth year, this multi-gallery exhibit with over 100 artists participating showcases the robust visual arts community flourishing in Westport today and continues to be an important and exciting collaboration between the individual artists, the Library, and the community at large,” said Carole Erger-Fass, the Library’s exhibit curator.
The Artists Collective of Westport is a nonprofit organization composed of 150 local artistswho have joined forces to discuss, create, and develop dynamic experiences for the Fairfield County community. The collective is open to all active artists in pursuit of expanding their careers and in developing a strong, diverse arts community.
Summer is right around the corner, and The Westport Library is once again turning up the heat on reading with the return of our Kids’ Summer Reading Program and Adult Summer Reading Challenge! Whether you’re a seasoned challenger or a first-time reader, there’s plenty of fun for people of all ages in this year’s ultimate page-turning season.
Kids’ Summer Reading Program
From June 1 through September 1, kids of all ages are invited to participate in our Summer Reading Program, sponsored by the Bridgeport Islanders.
Join the club and read anything, anytime, anywhere all summer long. Hone literary skills while earning free books and a chance to win a special prize! Every minute counts, and every reader wins.
Register online and log your minutes read. Each registered reader will be given a bingo card to fill out as they read.
Read and log 500 minutes to choose and take home a free book from our prize cart. Earn another free book for every 1,000 minutes logged OR for scoring a “bingo” on a bingo card. Complete the entire bingo card and be entered into a special drawing to win four tickets to the Bridgeport Islanders’ opening game this October!
Adult Summer Reading Challenge
The 9th Annual Adult Summer Reading Challenge is back and better than ever, running June 2 through August 29.
If you’ve participated in our past reading challenges, you’ll be familiar with the rules — and if this is your first time joining us, we're thrilled to have you!
Between longtime bookworms, returning champions, and challenge newcomers alike, enjoy 25 brand new categories that will inspire your reading list. Brave them all or just one — as long as you have fun reading.
The rules are simple and there are only two:
Once you've finished a book that fits a category, you can submit it through the form on our website. Track your progress on our leaderboard, where you can follow the challenge’s rankings and see what other participants are reading.
You can also join your fellow readers in our Westport Reading Challenge Facebook Group to talk books, share recommendations, and stay motivated throughout the challenge. Connect with a good book — and your community!
If you’re still unsure about joining in on the summer fun, trust the reviews from our past year’s participants:
"It was really gratifying to see what everyone has read and to challenge myself to read as much as my friends!"
"This challenge was very impressive! I loved that you could see other people's suggestions."
"I look to see what is suggested by the library as well as what other participants are reading. I am continuing to read the authors I have discovered as a result."
Step out of your comfort zone and ignite your love for reading this summer!
Read With Us!
From picture books to beach reads, to epic journeys and everything in between, The Westport Library challenges you to find your new favorite book this summer. Don’t miss out on the fun!
Formed in 2002, the (almost) all-physician rock band DNR has been a community favorite for two decades, playing rock and roll staples from the 1960s and 70s, including the music of Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, and the Beatles.
On Saturday, June 14, they’ll bring their vintage rock sensibilities to the Trefz Forum for a special fundraiser benefiting The Westport Library. The show kicks off at 7 pm.
Click here to buy your $40 ticket to this can’t-miss event — and support the Library in doing so!
In this special performance at the Library, DNR will talk about their history between songs and share some behind-the-scenes stories.
The band has previously performed at The Levitt Pavilion and has donated its time at many charitable events, including fundraisers for pancreatic and breast cancer, ALS, and the Norwalk Hospital.
“DNR is a Westport treasure,” said Westport Library Executive Director Bill Harmer. “They’re a great group and an great show. We can’t wait to have them rock the forum, and we very much appreciate their support in helping us raise the money we need to provide free and low-cost programming to our community year-round.”
The Westport Library annually hosts more than 1,000 free programs, bringing together a remarkable 85,000-plus individuals — three times Westport's population — and offering a multitude of offerings for patrons of all ages. Westport provides 77% of the Library’s funding. That leaves 23% that the Library must fund itself, through a mix of generous donations, individual contributions, and fundraisers like this one.
“As a Library, we strive each and every day to provide free and engaging programming for our patrons,” said Robin Powell, Westport Library development director, “and the vast majority of our offerings are hosted at no charge. We want to continue to provide those programs, but we need your support to do so. That’s what makes fundraisers like this one so wonderful — it will be a great show, and you support the Library by attending. It’s a win-win!”
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DNR Rocks the Forum: A Benefit for The Westport Library
Saturday, June 14
7 pm
BUY TICKETS
Grammy-nominated artist, trailblazing singer-songwriter, and Westport resident Sophie B. Hawkins will be showcasing her new original musical drama Birds of New York in an exclusive script-in-hand performance at The Westport Library on Monday, June 9, at 6:30 pm.
The event will take place in the Library’s Trefz Forum. Tickets are $40 and available for purchase here.
True to the trademark authenticity and soulfulness that has defined her diverse career, this special performance offers an early look at Hawkins’ playwriting debut, with original music, wholehearted storytelling, and emotional depth that promises to resonate with fans and theater lovers of all ages.
Currently in development, Birds of New York is directed by acclaimed Broadway and West End choreographer/director JoAnn M. Hunter (School of Rock, Bad Cinderella, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) and features an ensemble of Broadway and local talent, including actors Liz Larsen, Carlos Velasquez Escamilla, Sarah Stiles, Ren King, and Alysha Umphress.
Birds of New York brings to life the story of an estranged daughter who returns home to New York City with her 7-year-old son to reconnect with her dying father. Amid the tensions of old conflicts with her mother and sister, she seizes on the opportunity to create a new family. When a painful childhood memory resurfaces, it sets the stage for forgiveness, healing, and redemption.
This performance comes in tandem with Hawkins’ 2025 tour celebrating the 30th anniversary of her second album, Whaler. An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, producer, and performer, Hawkins is best known for her platinum debut album Tongues and Tails and timeless hits like “Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover” and “As I Lay Me Down.” Her most recent album, Free Myself, was released in 2023 to international acclaim.
Hawkins’ multifaceted career has defied genre and industry expectations, with six studio albums, multiple awards, sold-out concerts, and songs featured in movies and on television — from recent hits Stranger Things, Euphoria, Ozark, and PEN15, to landmark series such as Beverly Hills 90210, Dawson’s Creek, The L Word, and more. Her memorable onscreen appearances include the celebrated NBC series Community, the acclaimed documentary film The Cream Will Rise, and a critically lauded performance as Janis Joplin in the nationally touring play Room 105.
“One thing I’ve heard from people is that my songs have been like teachers to them, and helped them along on their journey," Hawkins said. “I hope my music helps people feel more connected to their own heart. I hope it brings them closer to whatever makes them feel special and valuable. That’s what the music I love most has always done for me.”
The Westport Library Medical Series returns on Tuesday, June 3, with Dr. Lisa Phuong and Dr. Jeanne Capasse visiting the Library’s Trefz Forum to discuss the exciting progress in the diagnostics and therapeutics of breast cancer.
Phuong is a board-certified medical oncologist at Nuvance Health; she will discuss the medical aspects of breast cancer care. Capasse, a board-certified breast surgeon specializing in breast cancer at Nuvance Health, will focus on surgical approaches and reconstructive surgery of patients with breast cancer.
The Westport Library Medical Series is presented by Andrew Wilk, the five-time Emmy Award winner and former producer of Live from Lincoln Center, and will be moderated by longtime Westport internist Dr. Robert Altbaum.
After the talk, there will be time provided for questions from the audience.
The event is free to attend. Click here to register.
The Westport Library Medical Series is an opportunity for the community to learn about important medical issues, aiming to provide both practical and thought-provoking information that can help individuals navigate the complex world of medicine.
The topic for this year's series is cancer, a word that strikes fear and anxiety in everyone. Fortunately, there have been remarkable advances in the field of oncology. We are witnessing a revolution in cancer care that is allowing patients to live longer, healthier, and even experience cures from previously fatal cancer.
The first event in this year’s series took place on Tuesday, April 22, and focused on advances in cancer research. The guest was Dr. Richard Frank, system chief for clinical and translational cancer research at Nuvance Health, who discussed how chemotherapy, targeted DNA treatment, and immunotherapy have transformed the cancer treatment landscape. (Click here to watch the full recording.)
The third and fourth sessions will both be held in the fall, focusing on prostate and urological cancer and advances in lymphoma and leukemia, respectively. More information on those two events will be coming soon.
About the Speakers
Lisa Phuong is a medical oncologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. She completed her internal medicine residency at the University of Connecticut, and her hematology/oncology fellowship at Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, N.Y. Phuong incorporates evidence-based medicine, clinical research, and compassionate care into her daily practice at the Whittingham Cancer Center in Norwalk. She helps patients understand the biology of their disease, as well as treatment options based on the most recent research developments and clinical studies. She also believes it is important to address patient challenges, including treatment-related side effects, financial concerns, and the psychological and emotional impact of being diagnosed with cancer.
Phuong is the principal investigator of several clinical trials investigating new drugs, including targeted therapies and immunotherapies for breast cancer. She has had several peer-reviewed articles and abstracts published, as well as poster presentations at national cancer conferences. Phuong is an active member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Jeanne Capasse is a surgeon specializing in breast diseases and a medical director of the Smilow Family Breast Health Center in Norwalk. A native Westporter, Capasse received her bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering at Cornell University, followed by her medical degree at Weill Cornell in New York. She has been practicing in Norwalk for 30 years.
In addition to caring for and educating patients regarding breast health issues, her passions include skiing, crossword puzzles, travel, and spending time with family.
Robert Altbaum is a recently retired physician who practiced as an Internist in Westport for 40 years. He graduated from New York University, followed by Harvard Medical School, and completed his residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and Yale University. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Geriatrics.
For the past 40 years, he has enjoyed caring for the people of Fairfield County in the group practice, Internal Medicine Associates of Westport. He was awarded Fairfield County and Connecticut’s Top Doctor award for 24 consecutive years.
Currently retired, he continues to teach medical residents at Norwalk Hospital and coordinates the Andrew Wilk Westport Library Medical Series. He also plays in the (nearly) all-physician rock band DNR, which will be performing a fundraising concert at the Library on Saturday, June 14; purchase your tickets here.
Event Information at a Glance
Andrew Wilk Presents The Westport Library Medical Series: Advances in Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
Tuesday, June 3
7 pm
Trefz Forum, The Westport Library
The Westport Library, the Westport Center for Senior Activities, and Meryl Moss Media Group are proud to announce that Tony Sanches, Steve Karp, Jim Alkon, William Field, Martin Erdheim, and Holly Goss Betts have been named the winners of the inaugural Jackie Robinson Essay Contest.
The essay contest, open to area residents age 60 and over and organized by the Library’s Common Ground Initiative, asked its submitters to answer the following question in 800 words or less: “Jackie Robinson stands as an icon of equality and civil rights. What does that say about the power of his legacy, of the place of sports in our culture, and about our modern-day society?”
Sanches took first place in the contest with his essay “Life Lessons,” earning a Jackie Robinson Baseball Hall of Fame 1962 Induction limited edition, full size 34-inch career stat bat.
Karp was this year’s runner-up with his essay, “42 and Me,” with Alkon taking third place for his submission, “His Courage Taught Baseball to be Color Blind.” Karp’s second-place prize was a Highland Mint Jackie Robinson Hall of Fame plaque, with Alkon receiving a Highland Mint silver photo coin.
The additional award-winning essays for 2025 were Field’s “The Meritocracy of the Locker Room: Jackie Robinson’s Halo Looms Large,” Erdheim’s “Jackie Was America’s Dream,” and Goss Betts’ “Jackie Robinson Moved Boulders.”
“The essays submitted for our inaugural contest were a joy to read,” said Bill Harmer, Westport Library executive director. “They were thoughtful, thought-provoking, and routinely excellent. It was a real challenge to narrow it down to just six recipients. Our congratulations to the winners and our sincere thanks to everyone who took part in the contest. We can’t wait for next year!”
Left: Second-place finisher Steve Karp, age 12 (center) and his brother meeting Jackie Robinson in Stamford; Right: Tony Sanches with his winning prize outside the Westport Center for Senior Activities.
In addition to Harmer, the judges for the inaugural essay contest were freelance journalist and author Jill Amadio, Westport-based journalist Robin Chung, Westport Library Marketing and Communications Director EJ Crawford, Common Ground Initiative committee member Ifeseyi Gayle, writer and former Westport poet laureate Diane Lowman, and author Michaela MacColl.
Playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier on April 15, 1947, becoming the first African American to play Major League Baseball in the modern era. He went on to enjoy a Hall of Fame career that included more than 1,500 hits, 137 home runs, and 197 stolen bases.
Robinson later became the first African American to hold an officer-level position at a major corporation, served as an advisor to top politicians, actively promoted economic empowerment by co-founding a bank and a housing development company, and was a key figure in advancing equal justice and first-class citizenship from the 1950s until his death in 1972. (Information courtesy the Jackie Robinson Museum.)
Pulitzer Prize winner Richard Russo, the critically revered and publicly adored author of Nobody’s Fool, Empire Falls, Bridge of Sighs, and additional award-winning best-sellers, will be making a special appearance at The Westport Library on Monday, June 2, at 7 pm to discuss his newest book of essays, Life and Art.
Russo will be in conversation with Suzanne Leopold, the creator of SuzyApproved.com, a platform for Leopold’s book reviews, and SuzyApprovedBookTours.com, where she aggregates her community of bloggers across social media platforms to support authors with book launches.
Tickets for Russo’s appearance are $28 and include a copy of Life and Art. Click here to buy tickets; you can purchase either one or two seats plus a copy of Life and Art for the $28 cost.
Russo is the author of nine novels, most recently Somebody's Fool, Chances Are…, Everybody’s Fool, and That Old Cape Magic. He has also written two collections of short stories and a memoir, Elsewhere. He is perhaps best known for his trilogy of novels set in the fictional town of North Bath: Nobody’s Fool (1993), Everybody’s Fool (2016), and Somebody’s Fool (2023). Nobody’s Fool was made into a film starring Westport’s own Paul Newman along with Buce Willis, Jessica Tandy, and Melody Griffith.
“Nobody does small-town life better than Richard Russo,” said The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a review, with The New York Times Book Review noting that “Russo is one of the best novelists around.”
In 2002, Russo received the Pulitzer Prize for Empire Falls, which, like Nobody’s Fool, won multiple awards for its screen adaptation. And in 2023 his novel Straight Man was adapted into the television series Lucky Hank starring Bob Odenkirk. Russo also received France’s Grand Prix de Littérature Américaine in 2017.
Said the Pulitzer committee in recognizing the author: “Richard Russo … has demonstrated a peerless affinity for the human tragicomedy, and with this stunning new novel he extends even further his claims on the small-town, blue-collar heart of the country.”
Life and Art is a collection of 12 essays that reflect on life, art, how they inform each other, and how the stories we tell ourselves about both shape our understanding of the world around us. In “The Lives of Others,” he considers the fact that writers use people, insisting that what matters, in the end, is how and for what purpose. In “Stiff Neck,” he writes of the fault lines exposed within his own family as his wife’s sister and her husband develop COVID. In “Triage,” he details the terror of seeing his 7-year-old grandson in critical condition. And in “Ghosts,” he revisits Gloversville, the town that gave rise to the fictional North Bath of his novels, and confronts the specter of its richly populated past and its ghostly present.
“Russo’s fans will savor this,” said Publishers Weekly.
Leopold is an active book reviewer and promoter of authors. SuzyApproved.com has more than 10,000 followers on Twitter, and Leopold also posts regularly to Facebook and Instagram. A 20-year Westport resident, she served as a juror for the 2024 Westport Prize for Literature.
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Author Talk: Pulitzer Prize-winning Author Richard Russo on His New Essay Collection, Life and Art
Monday, June 2
7-8:30 pm
Trefz Forum, The Westport Library
Jerry Craft (left) and Kwame Alexander (at lectern) met with more than 250 students in The Westport Library's Trefz Forum.
The J vs. K Book Tour took The Westport Library by storm Wednesday morning, May 7, with #1 New York Times best-selling authors and Newbery Award winners Kwame Alexander (The Crossover) and Jerry Craft (New Kid) taking over the Library’s Trefz Forum to celebrate comics, creativity, and the magic of collaboration.
J vs. K is the latest book project from Alexander and Craft, a hilarious illustrated story that features two talented fifth graders — one a writer, the other a drawer — going head-to-head in a creative competition for the ages. As part of the book launch, the two superstar writers are traveling the country via a special J vs. K tour van, making stops in a variety of venues to talk to elementary- and middle school-age students.
Wednesday at the Library, they entertained a packed Trefz Forum full of young faces — nearly 300 in all — from Dunbar School in Bridgeport, ESL students from Central High School in Bridgeport, Marvin Elementary in Norwalk, and Wooster Middle School in Stratford.
Alexander and Craft talked about their journeys from learners to readers to writers, their time in grade school, overcoming adversity, the power of collaboration, and their favorite books, engaging the assembled students throughout with calls-and-responses, giveaways, selfies, and more. Both men emphasized that reading should be fun, noting that many of the books they had to read when they were younger were often too long and didn’t reflect their experiences.
“So, when I grew up, I decided I wanted to write the books I wanted read when I was a kid,” said Craft, recounting how he self-published his first graphic novel with the help of a how-to book he borrowed from the Norwalk Library.
Alexander told a similar story of how he had to self-publish his first book after a number of rejections. He encouraged students to do what they love, and above all else, to believe in themselves.
“You can’t allow your career to be determined by other people’s no’s,” said Alexander. “You have to say yes to yourself.”
Wednesday’s book tour event was organized in coordination with Bryan Ripley Crandall, director of the Connecticut Writing Project, which endeavors to serve teachers of writing at all grade levels, with the goal of improving student achievement by improving the teaching of writing and improving in Connecticut schools.”
About J vs. K
J and K are the most creative fifth graders at Dean Ashley Public School (DAPS). J loves to draw, and his wordless stories are J-ENIUS! K loves to write, and his stories are K-LASSIC!! Both J and K are determined to win the DAPS annual creative storytelling contest or at least get in the Top 5. And when they find out that they are both entering The Contest, it’s the beginning of one of the most intense rivalries the world has ever seen. It’s artist vs. writer, with plenty of shady double crosses as J and K plot their way to the top.
“I love this book so much,” Alexander said Wednesday morning to the assembled students, who received autographed copies of the book following the authors’ talk.
Added Craft, address the crowd: “Our book birthday was yesterday, so you’re some of the first people to read this book.”
About Kwame Alexander
Alexander is an Emmy Award-winning producer of The Crossover, his Newbery Medal-winning novel turned Disney+ TV series, the creator of the new animated PBS special Acoustic Rooster’s Barnyard Band, and the host of America’s Next Great Author, the first reality television show for writers (produced by Libby and Kanopy and premiering in 2026).
Alexander is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of 44 books, including Why Fathers Cry at Night, How Sweet The Sound, J vs. K, and the just-released motivational primer for graduates, creatives, and professionals entitled Say Yes.
A recipient of the 2025 NAACP Image Award, Alexander is also the Michael I. Rudell Artistic Director of Literary Arts for Chautauqua Literary Arts. He regularly shares his passion for literacy, books, and the craft of writing around the world, including in Ghana, West Africa, where he opened the Barbara E. Alexander Memorial Library and Health Clinic. His mission is to change the world — one word at a time.
About Jerry Craft
Craft is the New York Times best-selling author and illustrator of the graphic novels New Kid, Class Act, and School Trip. New Kid is the only book in history to win the John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children’s literature (2020), the Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature (2019), and the Coretta Scott King Author Award for the most outstanding work by an African American writer (2020).
In his latest book, Craft has teamed up with fellow Newbery winner Alexander to bring you J vs. K. Craft was born in Harlem, grew up in the Washington Heights section of New York City, lived in Norwalk, and now travels the world telling kids and their families about the importance of reading.
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Photos by KT Kaminski/The Westport Library
Mark your calendar for The Westport Library Big Spring Book Sale, to be held Friday, May 16, through Monday, May 19, on the Library’s main level.
Once again, the Westport Book Sale offers something for everyone, from toddlers to adults, with thousands of gently used books in more than 50 categories of nonfiction and fiction, including Noteworthy, antiquarian books and vintage children’s books. Plus a huge assortment of DVDs, CDs, vintage vinyl, ephemera, and a large selection of framed artworks, from small desktop pieces to large wall pictures.
Related: Biannual Westport Library Book Sale Creates Opportunity, Celebrates Community
The book sale hours, with free admission, are as follows:
* On Friday morning, May 16, from 8:45 am to 12 pm, the Book Sale will be open only to patrons who purchase an Early Access ticket in advance. Early Access tickets are available online, through eventbrite.com, at https://Spring2025BookSale.eventbrite.com.
For more information, visit the book sale website.
Of special interest for this sale:
A link to our Featured Specials list is available on the Book Sale’s website, at www.westportbooksaleventures.org/our-events; this list will be updated periodically during the weeks leading up to the sale. Featured Specials are first being offered only at the Spring Book Sale and have not previously been listed in the book sale's eBay store.
To volunteer at this sale, please send an email to Judi Lake at volunteers@westportbooksales.org.
Can’t make the sale? Visit the nonprofit Westport Book Shop open year-round at 23 Jesup Road, right across Jesup Green from the Library, or shop any time 24/7 on the Book Sale’s eBay store at ebay.com/str/westportbooksalesct.
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Event Information
Westport Library Big Spring Book Sale
Friday, May 16 – Monday, May 19
The Westport Library
