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January 27, 2010
Author Michael Bobelian Promotes His New Book, Children of Armenia, in a Series of Book Readings Hosted By AGBU
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Michael Bobelian with members of the AGBU Young Professionals of Northern California during the book reading event in the Bay Area. -
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Michael Bobelian speaking about his book "Children of Armenia" during an event at the AGBU Alex Manoogian Center in Toronto. The book reading was jointly organized by AGBU Toronto and The National Association for Armenian Studies and Research.
Throughout the fall of 2009, author Michael Bobelian travelled around cities in the US and Canada for a series of book readings hosted by various AGBU chapters. He was on tour promoting his new book, "Children of Armenia: A Forgotten Genocide and the Century-Long Struggle for Justice." The book explores the events of 1915 and the social and political issues that followed. The author discusses the struggles for justice and what he believes has caused the Armenian Genocide to fade from public consciousness and often go unrecognized. Michael Bobelian is a lawyer and journalist by training, and is the grandson of genocide survivors.
Bobelian toured around California, visiting chapters in Glendale-Pasadena, Fresno and San Francisco. He also gave book readings in Chicago and Toronto. Each of the informative readings and lectures was followed by a question-and-answer session, book signing, and a reception for the author and attendees. The crowds at most of the readings were made up of a mixed but mostly older audience, while the San Francisco reading attracted a significantly younger and more diverse group of attendees.
The author has been emphasizing the importance his younger audience has on the Genocide's acknowledgement and the future of Armenia. "For Armenian readers, I want them to learn about a history that we're largely ignorant about. Young Armenians, born after the 1960's, don't really know how the recognition movement began and how this campaign for justice began. We have inherited not only the scars of the genocide but a campaign for justice from previous generations. We deserve to know the origins and evolution of this campaign," he said in an October interview. Bobelian also talked about the importance of non-Armenians starting to take an interest in this issue. "A lot of people I ran into while writing this book would ask me why Armenians still persist since it's been almost one hundred years since the genocide took place. I want them [non-Armenians] to understand and appreciate that it still matters. Even today, these issues of denial and impunity resonate not only for Armenians but for genocides across the world."
The book had already generated positive reviews on its own since its release in September, though the book readings at the various chapters greatly helped in getting more people interested. The author was humbled by not only the successful turnouts at each book reading but also by the overall enthusiasm for the book. He thanked AGBU and its chapters for working so hard to put these events together. "I am extremely grateful that the AGBU chapters were willing to host me. People made a big effort to get the word out and to give me a platform to speak and share my work. It's very challenging to reach a broad audience, and AGBU did an excellent job of bringing people in, particularly with the younger generation." He added, "It's very difficult for a young author to get the word out about a new book, and publishers don't really help with marketing. AGBU and the local organizations really did a superb job with that."
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