Book Talk & Signing: “Zealot”
Featured writers: Reza Aslan
In conjunction with the AWM’s special exhibit American Prophets: Writers, Religion, and Culture, religion scholar and author Reza Aslan explores the life of Jesus of Nazareth through the lens of the era in which he lived. Zealot yields a fresh perspective on one of the greatest stories ever told even as it affirms the radical and transformative nature of Jesus’ life and mission.
This program is presented as part of the American Writers Museum’s special exhibit and programming series American Prophets: Writers, Religion, and Culture, a powerful exhibit that takes you on the ultimate exploration through spirituality and storytelling. American Prophets is now on display at the AWM. American Prophets is supported by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. through its Religion and Cultural Institutions Initiative.
Book signing times (all signings take place in the First Floor Lobby of the library)
🖊️Reza Aslan: 12:00 – 12:20
About the writers:
REZA ASLAN is a renowned writer, commentator, professor, Emmy- and Peabody-nominated producer, and scholar of religions. He is the author of numerous internationally bestselling books, including the #1 New York Times Bestseller Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, currently in development at Fremantle Media with Pablo Larrain attached to direct. A former Truman Capote Fellow in Fiction at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and recipient of the prestigious James Joyce Award, Aslan has helped craft the mythologies for Hollywood’s most acclaimed franchises, including Dune, Game of Thrones, and The Leftovers. In addition to his writing and production work, he has served as host and executive producer of CNN’s Believer and Rough Draft with Reza Aslan, and co-hosts the podcast Metaphysical Milkshake alongside Rainn Wilson. His latest book, An American Martyr in Persia, was nominated for the PEN/Jacqueline Beograd Weld Award. Born in Iran, he lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their four children.
Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth
by Reza Aslan
Sifting through centuries of mythmaking, Reza Aslan sheds new light on one of history’s most enigmatic figures by examining Jesus through the lens of the tumultuous era in which he lived. Balancing the Jesus of the Gospels against the historical sources, Aslan describes a man full of conviction and passion, yet rife with contradiction. He explores the reasons the early Christian church preferred to promulgate an image of Jesus as a peaceful spiritual teacher rather than a politically conscious revolutionary. And he grapples with the riddle of how Jesus understood himself, the mystery that is at the heart of all subsequent claims about his divinity.