The Milton Public Library is holding a contest for their One Book, One Milton event.
It’s a new twist to an event that aims to bring popular authors in for discussions on their books. The author this time around is Canada Reads winner, Samra Habib, and her book ‘We Have Always Been Here’. She was nominated to the CBC contest by Canadian actor, Amanda Brugel.
CBC describes the book as, “an exploration of faith, art, love, and queer sexuality, a journey that takes her to the far reaches of the globe to uncover a truth that was within her all along.”
The contest will require you to take photos of what identity means to you. You can take the pictures anywhere in Milton, but the MPL has offered a mural that has been put up outside Milton MP Adam van Koeverden’s office as a backdrop for your submissions. The mural was made for Culture Days, in partnership with Arts Milton and pflag Halton.
The Library’s Manager of Public Services, Lee Puddephatt, says the photo contest will join nicely with what Habib has done in her career.
Habib’s photography project is one that focused on the identity muslim people in the LGBTQ+ community. You can learn more about the project here.
Puddephatt says it’s a very layered contest for people to sink their teeth into.
The contest is open to interpretation. It adopts the title of Habib’s book, ‘We Have Always Been Here’, and Puddephatt says they want to find out what identity looks like to you. Visit the site of the mural and capture in a photo in whatever shape or form identity looks like to you.
Once you have taken your photo, you can share it on social media using the #WeHaveAlwaysBeenHere, and you will be submitted to the contest. You can also submit it through the Milton Public Library’s website here.
The photo contest is running until December 1st. The 1st place prize recipient will receive a Fujifilm Instax Mini camera, as well as a copy of Habib’s book. 2nd and 3rd place will also receive a copy of the book. There are three judges for the event: Tamara Lopez, host of the MPL’s “Fairy T” Storytime series; Aiden Lee, a 16-year old local abstract painter, and myFM’s Cameron Wilkinson.
The Milton Public Library says it is still working on some other events, including author visits. It will host a socially distant author event at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 15th (celebrating National Coming Out Day, which is on the 11th) with Brian Bradley and his new book, ‘Outrageous Misfits’. The book is set to be officially launched on October 24th, so it’s a chance to get a sneak peak at it. The MPL says Outrageous Misfits, “reveals the life and legacy of one of the world’s most popular female impersonators, Craig Russell, and the birth of drag on international stage.” No registration is required.
Habib’s One Book, One Milton virtual event will take place on January 11th, 2021.
