MARK DUNN
Dunn, the fanatical logophile responsible for the literary feat that is last year's Ella Minnow Pea (the "novel in letters" that playfully deteriorates as it alphabetically deconstructs), returns with his soon-to-be-released Welcome to Higby. Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, 366-3333, 7:30 pm, free.
NEILE GRAHAM AND JAMES GURLEY
Poets Graham and Gurley read from their latest--in Gurley's case, the T. S. Eliot-prize-winning Human Cartography. Frye Art Museum, 704 Terry Ave, 622-9250, 7 pm, free.
REBECCA GODFREY
Today brings your chance to meet the author of "the 21st century's Bell Jar" (Godfrey's debut novel, Torn Skirt), before she puts her head in an oven. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 6:30 pm, free. Also University Bookstore, 4326 University Way, 634-3400, Fri Oct 18 at noon, free.
DEBORAH MEIER
Meier's In Schools We Trust is the latest in a long string of school-reform tomes that preach this personal-relationship kind of education--the kind that is undoubtedly responsible for late-night "extracurricular activities," and the high turnover rate of high school art teachers. University of Washington, Kane Hall, Room 130, 7 pm, free.
ANNA QUINDLEN
Pulitzer Prize winner and Oprah's Book Club-recommended author Quindlen returns with the tale of an orphan (of the sun-will-come-out-tomorrow! variety) in Blessings. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
FRIDAY 10/18
WINONA LaDUKE
... and remember, no reading with former Green Party vice presidential candidate LaDuke would be complete without the requisite vegan appetizers and fairly traded organic coffee. Café Ambrosia, 2501 Fairview E, 325-7111, 7 pm, $5-$10.
SATURDAY 10/19
DEBORAH BACHARACH, DIANA MA, MELANIE NOEL, SUSAN RICH
Four local poets get all toga and olive leaf on our asses as they debut works in the vein of mythology. Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Ave, 322-7030, 7:30 pm, free.
J. A. JANCE
Northwest Bookfest welcomes the beloved Ms. Jance--the woman responsible for all those "rookie gumshoe cracks the impossible murder case" novels that your stepmother likes so much. Sand Point Magnuson Park, 7400 Sand Point Way NE, 378-1883, free.
DONALD MICHAEL KRAIG
Let's get tantric! Kraig signs Modern Sex Magick, and teaches you how to seal the fate of your enemies through tarot. Edge of the Circle Books, 701 E Pike St, 3 pm, free signing, with tarot class Sat at noon, $50.
NORTHWEST BOOKFEST
See preview this issue. Sand Point Magnuson Park, 7400 Sand Point Way NE, 378-1883, Sat-Sun Oct 19-20, 10 am-6 pm, free. See nwbookfest.org for more information.
SUNDAY 10/20
I'll take the fat one if you take the skinny one.
MONDAY 10/21
AMIR ACZEL
Just in time for Halloween comes Aczel's lucid exploration of the uncanniest element of quantum mechanics: entanglement--the law that Einstein himself called "spooky." Two particles that can be linked, regardless of distance over space and time, to affect each other's basic makeup "with infinite velocity by an unknown means." BOO! University of Washington, Kane Hall, room 110, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
CRAIG CHILDS
Literary escapism for stymied office drones from this self-proclaimed "adventurer," who has managed to make a comfortable living out of fresh air and campfires while his audience slaves in disaffection. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
DANIEL ELLSBERG
In June of 1971, former advisor to the U.S. State and Defense Departments Ellsberg released 7,000 pages of confidential government documents (exposing misleading information reported to Americans about the war in Vietnam) to the New York Times. And Turncoat McTraitor has the gall to call himself a patriot. In this time of national crisis, it's imperative that we show unflinching support of our national government. So, my fellow countrymen, I say bring tomatoes. University of Washington, Kane Hall, Room 130, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
LORIAN HEMINGWAY
There's no celebrity curse quite like paternity. Such is the double-edged sword of Ms. Lorian Hemingway--that's right, you guessed it, Papa's granddaughter--who has put keys to paper, and, of course, the editors have bitten. And regardless of what she's written, if you're a big enough Ernie fan, you'll bite too. Third Place Books, 366-3333, 7 pm, free.
SCENT OF CEDARS
Join the authors, editor, and publisher of Scent of Cedars, a Pacific Northwest literary anthology, for a discussion of its publication process. Richard Hugo House, 322-7030, 7 pm, free.
MARTIN CRUZ SMITH
I can't state this as an absolute fact, but if I'm not entirely mistaken, I believe that (in their unvarying love of suspense) nearly every press release the Seattle Mystery Bookshop has ever sent to our crumbling offices has been concluded with an intriguing question mark. This week's: "Martin Cruz Smith signs December 6 his new thriller. A Westerner living in Japan, who is trusted by neither side in the tensions, is frantic to catch a plane on 12/6/41. What does he know?" Seattle Mystery Bookshop, 117 Cherry St, 587-5737, noon, free.
TUESDAY 10/22
WILLIAM RORABAUGH
Rorabaugh signs his tribute to the most overrated decade of the 20th century in Kennedy and the Promise of the Sixties. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
DR. JAMES WHORTON
UW professor discusses the history of rolfing and other unfortunately named pseudo-medical procedures in Nature Cures: The History of Alternative Medicine in America. University Bookstore, 634-3400, 4 pm, free.
WEDNESDAY 10/23
* DOROTHY ALLISON
1992's Bastard Out of Carolina made her rich and famous, but Dorothy Allison had already earned her place among the greats with Trash, her first collection of stories, highlighted by the breathtaking "River of Names." Originally published by Firebrand in 1988, Trash has just been snazzily re-released by Plume, and tonight Allison will read and sign the brand-new Trash at Bailey/Coy Books, Seattle's de facto Dorothy Allison Fan Club for the past decade and a half. Bailey/Coy Books, 414 Broadway E, 323-8842, 7 pm, free.
EJOVI NUWERE
Signs Hacker Cracker: "An autobiography of a boy, raised in the ghetto, who became a computer expert by age 13--and his evolution into a gifted hacker at the top of a dangerous underground world of crime." University of Washington, Kane Hall, Walker-Ames room, 634-3400, 7 pm, free.
WORLD OF ISLAM
The Seattle Arts and Lectures committee presents Wednesday University, an extended education program open to the public, with courses meant to foster "intellectual stimulation" (Rrraaoooowww!). This fall's focus continues with its second installment, as explored by University of Washington faculty member Jere L. Bacharach, is a study of them wacky Islamic fundamentalists. Henry Art Gallery, 15th Ave NE & NE 41st St, 543-2280, 7:30 pm, $70. Through Dec 14.
