A growing bilingual author series in North Philadelphia is getting its biggest name in its over thirty year history this Friday evening. Taller Puertorriqueño in North Philadelphia will be host to Dominican-born and central New Jersey-raised Junot Díaz, fresh off winning the Pulitzer Prize earlier this year for his debut novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Oscar Wao drew almost unanimous praise upon its release for its combination of the sensibilities of comic books, science fiction, literary fiction, and New Jersey Latino immigrant communities. Díaz had even considered releasing a more multimedia-oriented product, inspired by his childhood love of comic books, before deciding to keep the story bound to a more old-fashioned ink and paper novel.

Taller Puertorriqueño has been important in the arts scene for the Latino community in North Philadelphia since its founding in 1974, but most significantly as a visual arts space. Friday’s Díaz event represents the first truly A-list literary talent for Taller Puertorriqueño’s author series. “This is definitely one of the biggest events we’ve had in the last five years,” said Rafael Zapata, Board Chair at the Taller Puertorriqueño in North Philly and Dean and Director of the Intercultural Center at Swarthmore College. “It’s also one of the largest events we’ve had in the history of the organization with regards to writers.” Previous writers in the series have had more limited regional fame, both in the United States, and in Mexico and South America, according to Celia Santiago, who manages Taller’s Julia de Burgos bookstore.

She said that Oscar Wao has sold exceptionally well there in both its English and Spanish-language edition. “I’ve been selling that book in English big time but also in Spanish. This is the third time that I’ve ordered his books, so it’s been a great success.”

The bookstore — the only bilingual bookstore in the tri-state area, according to Santiago — has been the engine behind the growing author series, which has featured authors who publish in both Spanish and English. The Q&A sessions are frequently bilingual affairs, as most authors are comfortable in fielding questions in both languages. The Díaz event, Santiago said, will be no exception, as his readers may have read his work in either language. Díaz is fluent in English and Spanish, and though his book was originally published in English in the fall of 2007, Vintage released a Spanish version this September, which has also sold briskly. His reading on Friday night, however, will only be in English.

Zapata helped arrange to bring Díaz to the city through their own twelve year friendship. “I don’t think I would have been comfortable asking him to do this if I didn’t know him,” Zapata said. “He’s been very active in the Latino community in New York, where we both come from.” Swarthmore’s William J. Cooper Foundation is helping fund the North Philadelphia event, as well as a reading at Swarthmore’s Lang Performing Arts Center.

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The details:

Taller Puertorriqueño

VIP Reception and Fundraiser, 2721 N. 5th Street, Julia de Burgos Bookstore, 6 to 7 pm, $60

General reading and book signing, 2557-59 N. 5th Street, Roberto P. Hernández Theater, 7:30 pm (doors open at 7 pm), $10 in advance, $12 at the door

For ticket information contact Yoland Jimenez-Colon at 215.423.6320 or yjcolon@tallerpr.org

Swarthmore College, Lang Performing Arts Center, 500 College Avenue, Swarthmore, PA 19081

Reading and book signing, 12:30 pm, free of charge