Canin isn't the kind of author who'll be found crushed to death when his mammoth shelf of awards collapses under its own weight. That's fine—book awards are ridiculous, anyway—but people need to pay attention to his body of work; all his novels are well-constructed, entertaining, and satisfying. Canin allegedly decided to become a writer after reading a Saul Bellow novel. That inspiration has never been more obvious or compelling than in his new novel, America America, a study of Nixon-era politics and morality. (Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3333. 7 pm, free.)