Skip to main content
This website uses a variety of cookies, which you consent to if you continue to use this site. You can read our Privacy Policy for details about how these cookies are used, and to grant or withdraw your consent for certain types of cookies.

Author Panel: Historical Fiction

July 24, 2024, 12:30pm–1:45pm

Admired and best-selling authors offer advice and discuss their latest books. 

Historical Fiction

Ann Hood, The Stolen Child

Marjan Kamali, The Lion Women of Tehran

Iris Mwanza, The Lions' Den

Hosted by Ilana Levine, Little Known Facts with Ilana Levine

Ann Hood is the author of a dozen books of memoir and fiction, including the best-selling novels The Book That Matters Most and The Knitting Circle, and editor of the anthologies Knitting Yarns and Knitting Pearls. She lives in Providence, Rhode Island, and New York.

Marjan Kamali, born in Turkey to Iranian parents, spent her childhood in Kenya, Germany, Turkey, Iran, and the United States. She holds degrees from UC Berkeley, Columbia University, and New York University. She is the 2022 recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Award. She is the author of The Lion Women of TehranThe Stationery Shop, and Together Tea. Marjan lives with her husband in the Boston area. They have two children.

Iris Mwanza is a Zambian American writer. As Deputy Director the Gender Equality Division of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, she leads strategy and investment for the Women in Leadership portfolio, and she has previously worked as a corporate lawyer in both Zambia and the US. Mwanza holds law degrees from Cornell University and the University of Zambia, and an MA and PhD in International Relations from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

As an actress, Ilana Levine has performed on stage and screen to critical acclaim. On Broadway, Ilana is best known to musical theater fans for her comedic turn as "Lucy Van Pelt" in the Broadway revival of, You're A Good Man Charlie Brown. Ilana also starred in the Broadway productions of Jake's Women, Wrong Mountain and The Last Night Of Ballyhoo.  She has performed on the Tony Awards. Her ability to portray characters with raw honesty, humor, and pathos, has sustained her career as an actress for over 25 years.  She first appeared on the scene in the HBO series Tanner ’88 directed by Robert Altman and quickly was plucked by Vanity Fair journalist James Wolcott as an “up and comer to watch.”  Seinfeld fans recognize her from the infamous episode "The Contest."  She has appeared in many television shows and films including Divorce, Law and OrderTanner on TannerDamagesThe JobCashmere MafiaConfessions of a Shopaholic, Kissing Jessica SteinGiganticIra and AbbyFailure to LaunchThe Nanny DiariesFriends With Kids and Five Flights Up. As a voice over artist she has done commercials and audio books. For the past three years Ilana has been cited as a “Twitter Influencer To Follow”.  She resides in Brooklyn, New York  with her husband, actor Dominic Fumusa, her two children, and their dog, Lola.