AHMED RASHID
Pakistani author and journalist Rashid comes to Seattle to give us the skinny on the Taliban and Islamic fundamentalism. His books (Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia; Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia) are taken seriously by all sorts of serious people who know lots of things about faraway places like Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan (where a sister city of Seattle, Tashkent, is the capital), Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. Kane Hall, room 130, UW campus, 7 pm, free. Required tickets available at Elliott Bay Book Company, 101 S Main St, 624-6600.
SUSAN J. BRISON
The philosopher Brison reads from Aftermath: Violence and the Remaking of a Self, which is a retelling of being raped, beaten, and recovering from the horrible experience. University Bookstore, 4326 University Way NE, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
LAURIE R. KING
King has penned yet another Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes mystery. In this book, Holmes and Russell have barely returned from the last mystery when something unexpected happens. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3333, 6:30 pm, free.
GARY LEMONS, MELINDA MUELLER, MOLLY TENENBAUM
Lemons, Mueller, and Tenenbaum have all published serious work, and tonight they will offer a serious reading. The poets who appear at Open Books usually have impressive credentials. Open Books, 2414 N 45th St, 633-0811, 7:30 pm, free.
FRED LUSKIN
Luskin, who is the director and co-founder of the Stanford University Forgiveness Project, which is affiliated with Oxford University's Pardon Me Center, will read from his new book, Forgive for Good. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
* ENGEL and KURT LANG
Seattle authors Lang and Lang read (with slides) from their book Etched in Memory: The Building and Survival of Artistic Reputation. Howard S. Becker calls the book "a real masterpiece of the sociology of art." Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 3 pm, free.
ROBIN MORGAN
New York-based cultural critic Morgan will speak about The Demon Lover: The Roots of Terrorism, a book she wrote in 1989 that has, with good reason, returned to the public's short attention span. As you would expect, the prophetic book is now sandwiched between a new introduction and a new afterword. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 5 pm, free.
ELLIOTT HESTER
Veteran flight attendant and travel columnist Elliott Hester will read and sign Plane Insanity: A Flight Attendant's Tales of Sex, Rage and Queasiness at 30,000 Feet. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
SUNDAY 3/31
* JOHN OLSON, ALLISON DURAZZI, BRIAN PINSKER
Poet, author, and literary critic John Olson reads with slam poet Allison Durazzi and writer Brian Pinsker. Jo Miller and Nova Devonie will provide music. Titlewave Books, 7 Mercer St, 282-7687, 7:30 pm, free.
* JORIE GRAHAM
Our arts intern Colin Booy just won't stop saying wonderful things about this poetry series. This week Colin says, "Jorie Graham's poems scatter themselves across the page like bright bits of shattered glass. It's a heady mix of observation, narrative, feeling, and idea (even if you don't know what's what), and I really wonder how she goes about reading them." ACT Allen Theatre, 700 Union Street, 292-7676, 7:30 pm, $14.
ALAN MORINIS
Vancouver author and film producer Morinis reads and signs Climbing Jacob's Ladder: One Man's Journey to Rediscover a Jewish Spiritual Tradition, which is a memoir based on a spiritual journey. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 5 pm, free.
WILLIAM WITHERUP READS JAMES B. HALL
Seattle poet William Witherup reads with his one-time teacher James B. Hall. Mr. Hall is over 80, and very much alive. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm.
TUESDAY 4/2
RONALD WRIGHT
Wright, who wrote Stolen Continents and Time Among the Maya, is here to sign and read his new novel, Henderson's Spear. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 5:30 pm, free.
MARNIE MUELLER
Mueller's new novel, My Mother's Island, is a painful account of a difficult journey made by two complicated women who must bring their problematic relationship to a close. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
SHEILA NICKERSON
Nickerson reads from Midnight to the North. The book offers the untold tale of Tookoolito, an Inuit woman who saved the lives of white explorers during the Polaris Expedition in 1871. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
* PETER WARD and DON BROWNLEE
Ward and Brownlee's lecture "The Ends of the World: Astrobiology and Armageddon" will be about why a giant meteorite may one day destroy Earth. Kane Hall, room 130, UW campus, 7 pm, free. Call 543-3839 to reserve a seat.
DAVID MASIEL
Masiel is here with a harrowing novel about stormy seas called 2182 kHz. Elliott Bay Book Company, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free.
