Portland Book Events: September 7-13

From what I could find (please contact me if you have an event you would like me to add to this or future schedules), the local book events for the week of September 7, 2009 through September 13, 2009 are:

Monday September 7-

If you know of an event occurring Monday please contact us.

Tuesday September 8-

Reading & Signing with Bill Cotter and Annie La Ganga (Reading Frenzy, @7:00pm): Authors Bill Cotter and Annie La Ganga host an evening of fun and literature! With prizes! Treats! Gifts! Readings! Hugs! Beer!

Fever Chart (McSweeney’s, 2009) contains the following:

• Nekkidness.
• Imperfect doctoring.
• Semi-prophetic nosebleeds.
• Serial misreadings of subtle indicators.
• World-champion grilled-cheese sandwiches.
• What we heard the night all the mosquitoes came to Harry’s prune-ale to die.
• A homicidal Bostonian dwarf.
• Double cowardice, neat.
• They say no one who gets close can avoid falling in love with Omar Sharif.
• Lo, all our rusting morals!
• Plus a free walking tour of Crescent City femininity, from switchblade gutter-punks to absentee Ecuadorians to fearless but sleepy cigarette girls whose true love smells of unfired clay and carrot cake.

Stoners and Self-Appointed Saints (Red Hen Press, 2009) is a memoir told in a collage of monologues and poems about awkward grieving, bad judgment, and important stoners. Through lyrical passages, conversational stories, diary excerpts (and one silly sonnet) an artist’s life is revealed. A range of voices that are funny, depressed, deluded, idealistic, cynical, wise, compassionate, and warmly bitchy tell the story of a person determined to make a good life out of her creative mistakes, family traumas, and clumsy relationships. Stoners and Self-Appointed Saints is the first book written by Annie La Ganga that she didn’t print and staple together herself.

Science Fiction Book Group (Powells Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, @7:00pm): This month we welcome author Lilith Saintcrow to our discussion of her book Night Shift.

Amir Aczel Reading (Powells City of Books, @7:30pm): From Amir Aczel, author of Fermat’s Last Theorem, comes Uranium Wars: The Scientific Rivalry That Created the Nuclear Age (Palgrave MacMillan), the spellbinding story of how a humble grey element brought the world to the brink of nuclear destruction.

Wednesday September 9-

Title Wave Used Bookstore Grand Reopening (Title Wave Used Bookstore, @10:00am): Join us for cake, punch and door prizes!

Elizabeth Nielsen-Sheller (Lake Oswego Library, 12:00pm): Myths, Marriage, and Murder: The Literature Behind the Great Operas. From its inception, opera was meant to embody the influential literature of its time. Composers drew from the most shocking stories of scandal, political intrigue, forbidden love, and haunting deaths–anything for a big audience, much like blockbuster films today. Literature affected both scope and form of opera, influencing the way composers thought about music. Join Opera Theater Oregon’s Executive Director, Elizaebeth Nielsen-Sheller, in peeling back the layers of several masterworks.

Soapstone Raffle Drawing (Broadway Books, @7:00pm): Tonight the winning tickets of the Soapstone raffle will be drawn. Although you need not be present to win, come anyway and celebrate with us the ongoing work that Soapstone has done for so many years by providing a space for women to write. We’ll stay open until 8 pm and 20% of all sales during that final hour will be donated to Soapstone.

Milwaukie Poetry Series (Milwaukie Ledding Library, @7:00pm): John Morrison will present the first reading. Mr. Morrison, who currently teaches poetry at Portland Community College, earned his MFA from the University of Alabama. His book, Heaven of the Moment, won the Rhea & Seymour Gorsline Poetry Competition. His poems have appeared in the Cimarron Review, Poetry East, Southern Poetry Review, and Caffeine Destiny among other national journals. One critic noted that “whether [Morrison] reflects on his past as a day laborer and youthful romances, or early fatherhood and watching his parents grow old, he always finds the magical in the ordinary and the thoughtfulness in seemingly unimportant moments.”

Willa Schneberg Reading (Barnes & Noble Vancouver, @7:00pm): Author and poet Willa Schneberg will make an upcoming special appearance featuring her book Storytelling in Cambodia. From 1992-1993, she worked for the U.N. in Phnom Penh. Schneberg’s book links haunting, beautiful pieces describing the country from its mythic times to its first free elections.

Thomas Frank Reading (Powells Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, @7:00pm): From Thomas Frank, author of the landmark bestseller What’s the Matter with Kansas?, comes The Wrecking Crew (Metropolitan), a jaw-dropping investigation of the decades of deliberate — and lucrative — conservative misrule.

Recipe for America (Powells City of Books, @7:30pm): A call to action for those who are concerned about what they eat and the health of the planet, Jill Richardson’s Recipe for America: Why Our Food System Is Broken and What We Can Do to Fix It (Ig Publishing) shows how sustainable eating nourishes our bodies, our economy, and our environment, and how it is the best hope for the future of food in America.

Selden Edwards presents The Little Book (Annie Bloom’s Books, @7:30pm): In Selden Edwards’s debut novel, The Little Book, Wheeler Burden is a famous American rock star who inexplicably finds himself in 19th century Vienna. There, he acquires an archrival, a captivating lover, and a mentor named Sigmund Freud. But the truth at the center of his time traveling remains a stubborn mystery that will take months of exploration and a lifetime of memories to unravel and will, in the end, reveal nothing short of his eccentric family’s unrivaled impact upon the very course of the coming century.

Thursday September 10-

Entertainment For People (The Woods, @7:00pm): A night of really fun stuff, music included. Cold Beer and Naughty Wine will be served. FEATURING: DAN KENNEDY, longstanding contributor at McSweeneys.net, author of “Loser Goes First” and “Rock On: An Office Power Ballad”; BETH LISICK, super hilarious co-founder of San Francisco’s Porch Light storytelling series; auGi, performer (including Mortified) and star of the upcoming perfectly cast one man show, SexyNurd; FOGATRON, vocal synthesizer, sound mimic, and beatbox mastermind; and EASTLAND ACADEMY, a funny, smart sketch comedy duo

TICKETS ON SALE NOW AT WWW.BACKFENCEPDX.COM

Deadly Diversions Mystery Book Group (Powells Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, @7:00pm): This month’s mystery book group meets to discuss Ken Bruen’s The Guards. Join us!

The Healing of America (Powells Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, @7:00pm): In The Healing of America (Penguin Press), New York Times-bestselling author T. R. Reid shows how all the other industrialized democracies have achieved something the U.S. can’t seem to do: provide health care for everybody at a reasonable cost.

Calamity: The Heppner Flood of 1903 (Powells City of Books, @7:30pm): In 1903, a flash flood overwhelmed the banks of Willow Creek, killing more than 200 people and destroying much of a small but prosperous farming and trading town in northeastern Oregon. In Calamity (University of Washington Press), Joann Green Byrd describes the flood and its aftermath, and tells the history of the individuals involved.

Gaylon Ferguson Reading (Powell’s Books on Hawthorne, @7:30pm): In Natural Wakefulness (Shambhala), Gaylon Ferguson encourages us to assess our “spiritual progress” with honesty and without judgment. He provides exercises and practical advice on how to see your sticking points and get past them.

Mattox Roesch presents Sometimes We’re Always Real Same-Same (Annie Bloom’s Books, @7:30pm): Sometimes We’re Always Real Same-Same is the debut novel from Mattox Roesch.

Cesar, a seventeen-year-old former gang banger, is in the middle of nowhere, Alaska, because his Eskimo mother has moved home. He’s convinced that he’s just biding his time ’til he can get back to LA. His charmingly offbeat cousin, Go-boy, is equally convinced that Cesar will stay. And so they set a wager. If Cesar is still in Unalakleet in a year, he has to get a copy of Go-boy’s Eskimo Jesus tattoo.

This is a novel about a different Alaska than many of us have read about in the past, about a different kind of wilderness and survival. As Cesar (who later assumes his Eskimo name, Atausiq) becomes connected to the community and to Go-boy, the imprint he bears isn’t Go-boy’s tattoo but the indelible mark of Go-boy’s heart and philosophy, a philosophy of hope that emphasizes our similarities to one another as well as a shared sense of community, regardless of place. As Go-boy says to Cesar, “Sometimes we’re always real same-same.”

Friday September 11-

Mark Teague (A Children’s Place Bookstore, @4:00pm): Mark Teague has delighted young readers with more than 20 picture books, and he has written many of them himself, including ACP’s pick Funny Farm. He is also the illustrator of Cynthia Rylant’s beloved Poppleton series for beginning readers and the best-selling books by Jane Yolen, How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight and How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon. His newest book, The Doom Machine will be available in October.

Mensch Festival of Music and Art (Pacific University, Lawn Marsh Hall, @6:00pm): The MENSCH Festival of Music and Art is a two-day music and arts festival designed to promote civic awareness of various issues through music, art, displays, booths, installations, and demonstrations.  This year’s focus for MENSCH is global and local sustainability.  Mensch is a German word for a fundamentally decent, upright, caring and globally aware human being, and these are the qualities the festival fosters.  It is a positive, artistic expression of personal and communal responsibility and commitment to the life of the planet.

MENSCH provides a variety of Pacific and community groups, clubs, and organizations a platform to express their commitment to sustainability and a space for staff, students and community members to gather, mingle, have a good time, and gain awareness of ecological issues while listening to great music.  Some of the groups performing are BLUE SCHOLARS, SNUBB FAM, THE CHENGS, TALKDEMONIC and WILLIAM “LAMZ” HARRIS.  Open mic session, Saturday 1:00 – 3:00, and Slam Poetry, Saturday 5:00 – 7:00.

Any organization or group that wishes to participate will be provided an outdoor 10′ by 10′ square.  The square may be used for a variety of purposes.   A group can express itself artistically by installing, hanging, or performing art germane to the sustainability theme of the MENSCH Festival.  The square can also be used to provide an interactive social or learning experience.  For example, a group might wish to organize a hands-on short lesson on canning fruit or planting vegetables.  Local non-profit organizations that share the mission of CGE and the festival are encouraged to provide booths to distribute information and fund-raise if they wish.  Those who have a space must commit to staffing it the entire duration of the festival.

Come, join us, have fun and be a MENSCH!

John Geiger Reading (Powells City of Books, @7:30pm): John Geiger’s The Third Man Factor (Weinstein Books) is an extraordinary account of how people at the very edge of death experience the sense of an unseen presence beside them, encouraging them to survive. Fascinating for any reader, The Third Man Factor at last explains this secret to survival, a Third Man who — in the words of famed climber Reinhold Messner — “leads you out of the impossible.”

Writers Reflect on 9/11 (Powell’s Books on Hawthorne, @7:30pm): At this collective reading, we’ll reflect on the tragic events of September 11, 2001, and discuss the ways people were moved to restore the beauty and bring healing in the face of community tragedy.Local authors Tom Spanbauer, Sara Guest, Colin Farstaad, Kevin Meyer and Tami Lynn Kent will read from their work.

Animal Aid Fundraiser w/ Garth Stein Reading & Signing (Furever Pets, @8:00pm, $25): Our [Roberta and Sally from Broadway Books] friend Symon Lee, who owns Furever Pets just down the street, is hosting a fundraiser at his store for Animal Aid, a nonprofit organization that works to relieve and prevent the suffering or death of our non-human friends from accident, starvation or disease. We’re proud to be involved in this evening’s festivities. The event is called ’Telling Tales’, and Garth Stein, the author of the huge bestseller The Art of Racing in the Rain, will be there to read from his book and sign copies. We’ll be selling Garth’s book, and many other local merchants will also be present with food, wine, music, goodie bags for all attendees, and door prizes. A percentage of all sales will be donated to Animal Aid. Tickets for this event ($25, or more if you wish to make a larger tax-deductable donation) are available at Broadway Books and Furever Pets.

Saturday September 12-

Market Day Poetry Series (St. John’s Booksellers, @12:00pm): Today’s reading is hosted by Christopher Luna, the poetry czar of Vancouver USA.  Chris is a poet, collagist, reading host and graduate of Naropa College of Disembodied Arts.

Mensch Festival of Music and Art (Pacific University, Lawn Marsh Hall, @12:00pm): The MENSCH Festival of Music and Art is a two-day music and arts festival designed to promote civic awareness of various issues through music, art, displays, booths, installations, and demonstrations.  This year’s focus for MENSCH is global and local sustainability.  Mensch is a German word for a fundamentally decent, upright, caring and globally aware human being, and these are the qualities the festival fosters.  It is a positive, artistic expression of personal and communal responsibility and commitment to the life of the planet.

MENSCH provides a variety of Pacific and community groups, clubs, and organizations a platform to express their commitment to sustainability and a space for staff, students and community members to gather, mingle, have a good time, and gain awareness of ecological issues while listening to great music.  Some of the groups performing are BLUE SCHOLARS, SNUBB FAM, THE CHENGS, TALKDEMONIC and WILLIAM “LAMZ” HARRIS.  Open mic session, Saturday 1:00 – 3:00, and Slam Poetry, Saturday 5:00 – 7:00.

Any organization or group that wishes to participate will be provided an outdoor 10′ by 10′ square.  The square may be used for a variety of purposes.   A group can express itself artistically by installing, hanging, or performing art germane to the sustainability theme of the MENSCH Festival.  The square can also be used to provide an interactive social or learning experience.  For example, a group might wish to organize a hands-on short lesson on canning fruit or planting vegetables.  Local non-profit organizations that share the mission of CGE and the festival are encouraged to provide booths to distribute information and fund-raise if they wish.  Those who have a space must commit to staffing it the entire duration of the festival.

Come, join us, have fun and be a MENSCH!

Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black (Powells Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, @2:00pm): In The Wyrm King (Simon and Schuster), the last installment of Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles, Nick and Laurie face their final challenge as the dragon-like Hydra threaten to destroy Florida. Can Arthur Spiderwick’s Field Guide help them, or are they on their own?

Back-to-School with Red (Powells City of Books, @4:00pm): Join local authors Kirsten Oldroyd, Jasmine Sennhauser, Jordyn Turney, and editor Amy Goldwasser of Red: Teenage Girls in America Write on What Fires Up Their Lives Today. This special back-to-school event features the talented teen girl winners of the personal essay contest Red All Over: Portland. Join us for readings, signings, and a first-hand discussion of what it really means to be a teenage girl today.

Sunday September 13-

Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi (A Children’s Place Bookstore, @12:30pm): Creator’s of the Spiderwick Chronicles, Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi are coming to ACP to celebrate The Wyrm King, the final installment of the series. In the final installment of “Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles,” Nick and Laurie had thought they solved their giant problems when they drove all the giants into the sea. But now, the Grace kids have come back to tell them they may have more trouble coming their way!

Holly Black is also the author of Tithe, Valient, and Ironside, a modern faerie tale series. Tony DiTerlizzi is also the author and illustrator of Kenny and the Dragon–one of our top picks!

Powell’s to Pearl Walking Tour with Laura Foster (Powells City of Books, @2:00pm): Walk There!: 50 Treks in and around Portland and Vancouver (Metro) is Laura Foster’s new guide to great places to walk in the Portland-Vancouver area. Each walk comes alive with colorful anecdotes, historical perspective, and descriptions of native flora and fauna. Meet at the Orange Room information desk, where the tour will begin.

Author Series at The Cafe featuring Jeremy Benjamin (The Clearing Cafe, @4:00pm): The latest from author Jeremy Benjamin is a collection of short stories entitled If I Catch You Reading This (Inkwater Press) that range from supernatural to science fiction to absurdist humor.  Featuring world-weary strippers, fractured office politics, amusing yet disturbing visions of the future, and lavish descriptions of things we won’t mention here, Benjamin invites us into a world we’re not sure we want to enter.  Yet as with most things we’re told not to do, it’s the mystery and excitement of possibly getting caught that beckons us in to sneak a peak.

Exterminating Angel Press Launch Reading (Powell’s Books on Hawthorne, @4:00pm): Celebrate the launch of Exterminating Angel Press and its first two titles! Mike Madrid’s The Supergirls is a much-needed alternative history of American comic-book superheroines — from Wonder Woman to Supergirl and beyond — exploring where they fit in popular culture and why.

In Jam Today, Tod Davies offers her secrets for cooking without recipes, advising readers to keep it simple and have fun.

Gerald Elias presents The Devil’s Trill (Murder By The Book, @5:30pm): Violinist, music professor, composer, and conductor. And now author. For someone who has played with the Boston Symphony and now makes music in Utah, refined pursuits we posit, it seems odd that Gerald Elias’s thoughts have turned to … murder. Or maybe not. Apparently, according to the dust jacket, we can “peek into the underworld of classical music, with its backstabbing teachers and performers, venal patrons, and shady violin dealers.” Oh, my! There’s more to Vivaldi than meets the eye.

Violin teacher, Daniel Jacobus, is accused of stealing the rare Piccolino Stradivarius. When he’s not being grumpy or chain-smoking, he can be downright unpleasant. Nevertheless, he has some stalwart supporters who will try to unravel the accusation against him

The Devil’s Trill may be music to your eyes.

For further events check out the links to the community calendars for Tri-County area Libraries: Washington County, Multnomah County, Clackamas County.