Western Washington University

02/18/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 02/18/2026 15:28

Speaking Truth in Dangerous Times

Speaking Truth in Dangerous Times

A special presentation and workshop featuring award-winning author and illustrator Eugene Yelchin

February 18, 2026

Eugene Yelchin presentation and workshop

Friday, Feb. 27

10:30 a.m. - noon

Reading Room (Wilson 4th Floor Central)

Free and open to the public

Advanced registration is required

Western Libraries will host award-winning author and illustrator Eugene Yelchin on Friday, Feb. 27, from 10:30 a.m. to noon, for a special presentation and workshop in the Reading Room (Wilson 4th Floor Central).

Yelchin will speak about his latest graphic-novel memoir, "I Wish I Didn't Have to Tell You This," exploring his experiences as a young artist growing up in the former Soviet Union and reflecting on how we speak and write truth during dangerous times.

The presentation will be followed by an interactive zine-making workshop where participants are encouraged to experiment with visual storytelling. Workshop participants will consider how identity shapes the ways truth is presented and disseminated and explore how zines have historically functioned as underground information currents. They will also have the option of submitting their work to be added to the zine collection at Western Libraries.

This event is free and open to the public, but advanced registration is required.

Eugene Yelchin is a Russian-American author and illustrator known for award-winning books for young readers, including the Newbery Honor title Breaking Stalin's Nose and the National Book Award-finalist The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge. His latest graphic memoirs trace a life in fragments - from doodles beneath a kitchen table to navigating underground art and state surveillance - showing how illustration and storytelling can serve as tools of resistance, memory, and the circulation of truth.

For more information or to request disability accommodation, please contact Gabriela Martinez at [email protected].

Western Washington University published this content on February 18, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on February 18, 2026 at 21:28 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]