DOUGLAS COUPLAND
"Oh, this guy again?" Coupland makes a bid to outstretch the shadow of Generation X with his latest, the tale of a Canadian school shooting, called Hey Nostradamus! University Bookstore, 4326 University Way NE, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
ANTHONY DOERR
Doerr's highly regarded debut, The Shell Collector, anchors its characters in the natural world--you know, all Circle of Life and whatnot. Barnes and Noble, 2700 NE University Village, 517-4107, 7 pm, free.
RUPERT ISAACSON
London-born author Isaacson recounts his travels among the impoverished Bushpeoples of southern Africa in The Healing Land: The Bushmen and the Kalahari Desert. Elliott Bay Book Company, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
IT'S ABOUT TIME READING SERIES
A monthly open discussion on the writer's role in society. This month features Frances McCue, Marsha Major, Nancy Dahlberg, and L. A. Herberlein. Ravenna Third Place Books, 6504 20th Ave NE, 525-2347, 7:30 pm, free.
FRIDAY 7/11
JOANNE KYGER
Woman of wispy words, Kyger reads from her most recent poetry collection, As Ever. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 8 pm, free.
SATURDAY 7/12
ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE
A group of female activists looking to head to the Middle East this fall has commissioned a fundraiser in an evening of spoken word and music featuring Kathy Kelly, Haithem El-Zabri, and Jessica Andersen. Freehold Theater School, 1525 10th Ave, 7 pm, $20.
SUE HENRY
More secrecy in the snow with the award-winning Henry, in her latest Alaskan mystery, Death Trap. Seattle Mystery Bookshop, 117 Cherry St, 587-5737, noon, free. Also Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3333, 6 pm, free, and University Bookstore, 634-3400, Sun, 7 pm, free.
STEVE KEEN, PAUL OMEROD
Two of my personal favorite computational economists, Keen and Omerod, join forces for something of an economics dream team (!), with Keen discussing the provocative Debunking Economics and Omerod his Butterfly Economics. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
SUNDAY 7/13
JAMES GRIPPANDO
Churn, churn, churn: Grippando harvests another forest for a by-the-book mystery about murder, an inheritance, and more murder, entitled Last to Die. Seattle Mystery Bookshop, 587-5737, noon, free.
MONDAY 7/14
NEIL GORDON
The author of Sacrifice of Isaac juxtaposes the revolution of '60s radicalism with the devolution of '90s complacency in The Company You Keep, the tale of a former militant turned family man whose past comes back to haunt him. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
STEPHEN S. HALL
New York Times Magazine contributor Hall combines original research and timely studies to investigate the battle over genetic human life extension in Merchants of Immortality. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
TUESDAY 7/15
LINDA GREENLAW
During my years as a tyrannical infant, my mother was careful to keep close watch on my hands as she carted me through grocery stores, knowing from experience that my sticky little fingers would often be the cause of outlandish purchases. One such acquisition was a large decorative rubber lobster stolen from the seafood department, who quickly became my closest companion. My commitment to Mr. Pincher is evidenced in the bulk of my baby photos, which so often find the rubber monster clutched to my chest. This has absolutely nothing to do with Linda Greenlaw's The Lobster Chronicles. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
GREGORY McDONALD
From the mind that brought us Fletch, McDonald unearths a minor character absent for a few brief decades for Flynn's World, his latest. Seattle Mystery Bookshop, 587-5737, noon, free.
* CHINA MI:VILLE
See Stranger Suggests, page 19. UW Campus, Kane Hall, Walker-Ames room, 7:30 pm, free.
JOHN ZILLY
Zilly presents Beyond Mount Si, his latest charting the hiking paths of Western Washington. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
WEDNESDAY 7/16
ANTONIO DAMASIO
Neuroscientist Damasio waxes scientific on some nonsense about the brain's connection to emotions, through the historical lens of philosopher Baruch Spinoza. UW Campus, Kane Hall, Room 130, 634-3400, 7:30 pm, free.
DANIEL IMHOFF
Reason number 81 why I am a bad person: I quite audibly yawn every time I'm faced with a reading by an author trying to save the world. Case in point: Imhoff's Farming with the Wild discusses his work to restore wild habitats near farmlands. Yawn. And I'm deeply, deeply sorry. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 5:30 pm, free.
LAURA MORIARTY, CAROLYN PARKHURST
Two writers from back East share their latest--with Dogs of Babel (about a man trying to talk to dogs) and The Center of Everything (about a small town in Kansas), respectively. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
* TYPING EXPLOSION
The women with the most enviable shtick in the city are impossible to avoid these days, what with performances, a documentary, and now their very own subtly subversive touch-typing manual, Typo. Welcome the gals home from their recent trip to the 2003 Venice Biennial for the publication party. Bailey/Coy Books, 414 Broadway E, 323-8842, 7 pm, free.
POETRY/OPEN MICS
HEAVENS OPEN MIC--A little slice of, um, poetry. Sat July 12 at 5 pm. Heavens on Second, 1914 Second Ave, 443-9373, free.
HOMELAND--Words. So many words. Tuesdays at 7 pm. Caffe Vita, 1005 E Pike St, 709-4440, free.
POETWEST--Featuring Susan Harmon, Lisa Noble. Thurs July 10 at 7 pm. Lux, 2226 First Ave, 682-1268, free. Also Sun July 13 at 7 pm, featuring Murray Gordon, Joel Kabakov, Paul Nelson, Penny Cafe, 1707 NW Market St, 682-1268, free; Mon July 14 at 7 pm, Ravenna Third Place Books, 682-1268, free; Tues July 15 at 7 pm, featuring J. Glenn Evans, Barnes & Noble, University Village, 525-4568, free.
SCRATCHING POST--Poetry open mic, all ages. Thursdays at 8 pm, signup at 7:30 pm. Mr. Spot's Chai House, 5463 Leary Ave NW, 297-2424, free.
SEATTLE POETRY SLAM--Open mic and slam with Karen Finneyfrock. Wednesdays at 8 pm. Bad Juju Lounge, 1518 11th Ave, 709-9951, $4.
WOMEN'S POETRY NIGHT--Spoken word from the fairer sex. Thursdays at 8 pm. The Bar, 1525 E Olive Way, 322-1788, free.
