Readings listings
THURSDAY 9/22
STACEY LEVINELevine is one of the most talented fiction writers in this city. Frances Johnson, her long-awaited new novel, is moody, mannered, and small. She gets from A to B with startling originality. And she's not afraid of volcanoes. One afternoon soon I plan to read the whole thing in a sitting. Bailey/Coy Books, 414 Broadway E, 323-8842, 6:30 pm, free.
TERRY BROOKSThe fantasy writer reads from Straken (High Druid of Shannara, Book 3), and then "Terry will read from his next book in progress, just to drive the audience crazy." University Book Store, 4326 University Way NE, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
BAXTER BLACKHey Cowgirl, Need a Ride? is by the author of Hey, Cowboy, Wanna Get Lucky? Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3333, 7 pm, free.
SALMAN RUSHDIE See review, above. Town Hall Seattle, 1119 Eighth Ave, 652-4255, 7:30 pm, $5.
ERNESTINE BRADLEYThe scholar of German and comparative literature (and the wife of former presidential candidate Bill Bradley) reads from The Way Home: A German Childhood, an American Life. Elliott Bay Book Company, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
PATRICIA FARGNOLIThe poet (who used to be a psychotherapist) reads from her latest collection, Duties of the Spirit. Open Books: A Poem Emporium, 2414 N 45th St, 633-3978, 7:30 pm, free.
JOHN WRIGHTAnother book of poetry from another doctor, this one called The Beginning of Love. Ravenna Third Place, 6504 20th Ave NE, 525-2347, 7:30 pm, free.
FRIDAY 9/23
KEVIN O'BRIEN, TERRY BROOKSO'Brien reads from The Last Victim (a thriller) and Brooks reads from Straken (High Druid of Shannara, Book 3) (fantasy). Barnes & Noble Pacific Place, 600 Pine St, 264-0156, 12:30 pm, free.
K. M. SOEHNLEINYou Can Say You Knew Me When is a novel involving New Jersey and the death of someone's dad. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 6:30 pm, free.
ANGELA FOUNTAS, ANNE LIU KELLOR, MALIHA MASOODThe editor of and contributors to Waking Up American: Coming of Age Biculturally read their stuff. University Book Store, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
ELLIOTT HESTERAdventures of a Continental Drifter: An Around-the-World Excursion into Weirdness, Danger, Lust, and the Perils of Street Food takes place on six continents and involves, to take an example anecdote, cow poachers. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free. (Also 9/25 at Third Place Books, 366-3333, 4 pm, free.)
LYDIA MILLETMillet reads from Oh Pure and Radiant Heart, which I've heard is great (and apocalyptic, literally). Ravenna Third Place, 525-2347, 7:30 pm, free.
SATURDAY 9/24
LISA KUSELIn Hat Trick, two old friends meet up after 20 years in Zanzibar. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 2 pm, free.
GEORGE W. AGUILAR SR.The Kiksht Chinook elder reads from When the River Ran Wild!: Indian Traditions on the Mid-Columbia and the Warm Springs Reservation. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 4:30 pm, free.
MEGAN SKINNERSkinner talks about Essence of the Tarot. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 6:30, free.
MARK ANDERSONAnderson reads from "Shakespeare" by Another Name: The Life of Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford, the Man Who Was Shakespeare, one of many books arguing that Shakespeare isn't who you think. Novelist Sarah Smith calls Anderson's book "without exaggeration... the most important Shakespeare biography of the past 400 years." Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30, free.
SUNDAY 9/25
HAROLD BOWES, JOHN BURGESS, REBECCA LOUDONBowes reads from his first collection of poems, If Nothing Else. Burgess reads from Punk Poems. Loudon reads from Tarantella. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 3 pm, free.
MONDAY 9/26
TERRY PRATCHETTThe fantasy novelist and satirist reads from Thud! UW Kane Hall 130, 634-3400, 7 pm, $3. (Also 9/27 at Third Place Books, 366-3333, 6 pm, free.)
ARIEL LEVYLevy reads from Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture. University Book Store, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
AN UNCENSORED CELEBRATIONDramatic readings (by Book-It actors) of books historically threatened with censorship (stuff by Toni Morrison, Dr. Seuss, etc.). Intiman Theatre, 201 Mercer St, 624-2184, 7 pm, free.
DAVID RAKOFFThe essayist and This American Life contributor reads from his new book of adventures Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, the Torments of Low Thread Count, the Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems. Elliott Bay Book Store, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
JONATHAN KOZOL"You go into these deeply segregated schools and you do your best... to disconnect the present from the past," writes Kozol in the introduction to his book The Shame of the Nation: The Restoration of Apartheid Schooling in America. "Try as I do, however, as the years go by, I find that act of disconnection very, very hard. I walk into a class of 25 or 30 students and I look around me at the faces of the children... and I cannot discern the slightest hint that any vestige of the legal victory embodied in Brown v. Board of Education... has survived within these schools and neighborhoods. I simply never see white children." Town Hall Seattle, 652-4255, 7:30 pm, $5–$10.
TUESDAY 9/27
ROBERT HICKSThe Widow of the South is a debut novel about the Civil War. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 6 pm, free.
ANTHONY DOERRAbout Grace is a novel about a guy (last name Winkler) whose dreams come true. University Book Store, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
JOHN GRAHAMGraham reads from Stick Your Neck Out: A Street-Smart Guide to Creating Change in Your Community and Beyond. Town Hall Seattle, 652-4255, 7 pm, $7–$10.
ELISSA RAFFAFreeing Vera is a novel that deals with lesbianism, shitty parents, and adulthood. Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Ave, 322-7030, 7 pm, free. (Also 9/28 at Ravenna Third Place, 525-2347, 7:30 pm, free).
CANDACE BUSHNELLA fancy (and expensive) soiree with the author of Sex and the City. For the price of admittance you get a copy of her new book, Lipstick Jungle, and hors d'oeuvres. W Hotel, 1112 Fourth Ave, 632-2419, 7 pm, $45.
PAUL ORFALEACopy This! is about the opening of a small copy shop in 1970 called Kinko's. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 7:30 pm, free.
PAUL ANDERSONHunger's Brides is a "dizzying debut" and a "mega-magnum opus" (Booklist) of a novel, set in Mexico, involving elements of the life and work of the poet Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. Elliott Bay Book Company, 6240-6600, 8 pm, free.
WEDNESDAY 9/28
DAVID MILLERThe UW architecture professor reads from Toward a New Regionalism: Environmental Architecture in the Pacific Northwest. Rainier Square, Atrium, 1333 Fifth Ave, Suite 300, 667-9184, 5 pm, free (tickets required).
PAMELA PAULPaul reads from Pornified: How Pornography Is Transforming Our Lives, Our Relationships, and Our Families. University Book Store, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
CRAIG LESLEYThe Portland novelist reads from Burning Fence: A Western Memoir of Fatherhood. Central Library, Microsoft Auditorium, 1000 Fourth Ave, 386-4636, 7 pm, free.
KIM NICHOLSON, JUSTINE WALSHNanny Wisdom is a book of wisdom by two nannies. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 7 pm, free.
GREG ATKINSONEntertaining in the Northwest Style is a cookbook by one of the area's most respected chefs. Normally we don't list cookbooks in the readings calendar, but there will be samples. Free samples. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 7 pm, free.
JANE SMILEYThe Pulitzer-winning novelist read 100 novels by other people (old stuff, new stuff) and wrote a book about it, called 13 Ways of Looking at the Novel. Nancy Pearl interviews. Town Hall Seattle, 652-4255, 7:30 pm, $5.
DAVID ROTHKOPFThe academic and former member of the Clinton administration talks about Running the World: The Inside Story of the National Security Council and the Architects of American Power. Town Hall Seattle, downstairs, 652-4255, 7:30 pm, $5.
