The Bird King: G. Willow Wilson with N.K. Jemisin

From a co-creator of the Ms. Marvel comic book series, the story of a fantastical quest through the Iberian peninsula and beyond at the height of the Spanish Inquisition.

Inspired in part by the Sufi poem The Conference of the Birds, The Bird King is set in Iberia at the height of the Spanish Inquisition. Fatima, the sultan’s last remaining concubine, is entertained by her best friend, Hassan, the palace mapmaker, who possesses a secret gift—the ability to make maps of places he’s never seen, and bend reality with his pen and paper. But when a party sent on behalf of the new Spanish monarchy arrives to discuss the sultan’s surrender, Fatima fears they will catch wind of Hassan’s magical ability, mistake it for sorcery, and punish him for threatening their Christian values. 

In a leap of faith, the two escape the palace walls, leaving behind all that Fatima has ever known, to embark on a fantastical quest across the Iberian peninsula and out into the sea in search of safety and the mythical island of The Bird King. G. Willow Wilson will speak about writing The Bird King, and the power of imagining different worlds with Hugo Pize-winning author N.K. Jemisin.

FIRST COME, FIRST SEATED
For free events, we generally overbook to ensure a full house. Priority will be given to those who have registered in advance, but registration does not guarantee admission. All registered seats are released shortly before start time, and seats may become available at that time. A standby line will form one hour before the program.

PRESS 
Please send all press inquiries (photo, video, interviews, audio-recording, etc.) at least 24-hours before the day of the program to Sara Beth Joren at sarabethjoren@nypl.org. For all other inquiries, please contact publicprograms@nypl.org.

ASL interpretation and real-time (CART) captioning available upon request. Please submit your request at least two weeks in advance by emailing accessibility@nypl.org.