At JACCC Aratani Theater: George Saunders presents Vigil

• Copies of Vigil distributed at this event will be pre-signed by George Saunders.

• A personalization line will follow after the event concludes.

• The author will only be personalizing the copy of Vigil bundled with your ticket; no backlist or other books.

• Photos are OK.

This event is presented in partnership with the Library Foundation of Los Angeles

Skylight and ALOUD proudly present an evening with celebrated, award-winning author George Saunders, discussing his new novel Vigil!

An electric novel from the #1 New York Times best-selling, Booker Prize-winning author of Lincoln in the Bardo, taking place at the bedside of an oil company CEO in the twilight hours of his life, as he is ferried from this world into the next.

Not for the first time, Jill “Doll” Blaine finds herself hurtling toward earth, reconstituting as she falls, right down to her favorite black pumps.  She plummets towards her newest charge—yet another soul she must usher into the afterlife—and lands headfirst in the circular drive of his ornate mansion.

She has performed this sacred duty 343 times since her own death.  Her charges, as a rule, have been greatly comforted in their final moments. But this charge, she soon discovers, isn’t like the others. The powerful K.J. Boone will not be consoled, because he has nothing to regret.  He lived a big, bold, epic life, and the world is better for it. Isn’t it?

Vigil transports us, careening, through the wild final evening of a complicated man. Visitors begin to arrive (worldly and otherworldly, alive and dead), clamoring for a reckoning.  Birds swarm the dying man’s room; a black calf grazes on the loveseat; a man from a distant drought-ravaged village materializes; two oil-business cronies from decades past show up with chilling plans for Boone’s postdeath future. 

With the wisdom, playfulness, and explosive imagination we’ve come to expect, George Saunders takes on the gravest issues of our time—the menace of corporate greed, the toll of capitalism, the environmental perils of progress—and, in the process, spins a tale that encompasses life and death, good and evil, and the thorny question of absolution.

George Saunders is the author of thirteen books, including the novel Lincoln in the Bardo, which won the Man Booker Prize, and five collections of stories, including Tenth of December, which was a finalist for the National Book Award, and the recent collection Liberation Day (selected by former President Obama as one of his ten favorite books of 2022). Three of Saunders’s books—Pastoralia, Tenth of December, and Lincoln in the Bardo—were chosen for The New York Times’s list of the 100 Best Books of the 21st Century. Saunders hosts the popular Story Club on Substack, which grew out of his book on the Russian short story, A Swim in a Pond in the Rain. In 2013, he was named one of the world’s 100 Most Influential People by Time. He teaches in the creative writing program at Syracuse University.

Featuring special readings from the book by:

Stephen Root, one of today’s most prolific character actors, has built a career in creating memorable characters in film, television, theatre and animation.

Recent credits include, THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE, BOMBSHELL, FOUR GOOD DAYS w/ Glenn Close, SEBERG w/ Kristen Stewart, And an EMMY nomination for his work on HBO’s BARRY. While most recognized for portraying the character Milton in the cult favorite OFFICE SPACE, Root has an impressive and extensive list of film credits. This list includes the Academy Award nominated film SELMA, J. EDGAR, THE LONE RANGER, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU?,THE COMPANY YOU KEEP, THE CONSPIRATOR, DODGEBALL: A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY, CEDAR RAPIDS, LEATHERHEADS, RED STATE, along with such animation favorites as RANGO, ICE AGE and FINDING NEMO.

Judy Greer has had a prolific career in both film and television, appearing in nearly two- hundred roles to date including the Blumhouse reboot of Halloween, directed by David Gordon Green, starring alongside Jamie Lee Curtis and the sequel, Halloween Kills. Greer also stars in Eric Larue, Michael Shannon’s directorial debut released by Magnolia Pictures. Indiewire describes it as a “standout film with a career-best performance from Greer.” Her independent film Aporia debuted to critical acclaim at the Fantasia International Film Festival with a 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating. In television, she has most recently wrapped the second season of The Last Thing He Told Me, opposite Jennifer Garner. She can currently be seen on the Apple TV+ series Stick opposite Owen Wilson and Stick season 2 set to premiere this April 2026. She was nominated for an Astra TV award for her work on the HBO limited series White House Plumbers opposite Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux for director David Mandel. She also received a Hollywood Critics Association nomination in 2022 for her role as “Leah Askey” in NBC’s The Thing About Pam. For her most recent work in film, Judy can be seen in the Stephen King adaptation The Long Walk from director Francis Lawrence released theatrically September 2025.

Please note: All copies of Vigil distributed at the event will be pre-signed by George Saunders.