April 3, 2008
|  |  | phone: 541-754-7668 address: 227 SW 2nd Street, Corvallis, OR
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| | Five Good Books
| | | | Another World Instead: The Early Poems of William Stafford, 1937-1947
Wit's End
The Forgery of Venus
A People's History of American Empire: A Graphic Adaptation
Unaccustomed Earth
| | Another World Instead: The Early Poems of William Stafford, 1937-1947 William Stafford, edited by Fred Marchant
As a conscientious objector during World War II, William Stafford was assigned to work in camps, becoming an exile within his own country. This remarkable collection of early poems, nearly all of them never before published, reveals the first decade of Stafford’s writing life. Edited by the poet Fred Marchant, one of the first marine officers honorably discharged as a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War, Another World Instead tells the story of a committed pacifist living in a time of war, and of a writer beginning his life as a poet. Hardcover, $24.00
Publisher: Graywolf Press, ISBN-13: 9781555974978
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Karen Joy Fowler
In a change of pace from her best-selling The Jane Austen Book Club, Fowler has written a mystery that's barely a mystery, but rather an absorbing and funny novel. Rima Lanisell is visiting her estranged godmother, a very private author of the wildly successful mystery series. As Rima pursues and discovers the truth behind the novels, Fowler analyzes our modern-day relationship to novels and the relationship between authors and their readers. Hardcover, $24.95
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA), ISBN-13: 9780399154751
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Michael Gruber
Bestseller Gruber ( The Book of Air and Shadows) probes the boundaries between sanity and madness in his literate thriller. When a talented commercial artist accepts a commission to fix a ruined masterpiece in a Venetian palazzo, he gets drawn into an bizarre world where his own identity is confused and the forged art he produces is genuinely magnificent. Gruber writes passionately and knowledgeably about art and its history, and about the shadowy lines that blur reality and unreality. Hardcover, $24.95
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers; ISBN-13: 9780060874483
| | | | | | A People's History of American Empire: A Graphic Adaptation Howard Zinn, Mike Knopacki, Paul Buhle
Since its publication in 1980, A People’s History of the United States has sold more than 1.7 million copies, become required classroom reading, and generated a revolution in the way history is told. Now Howard Zinn, historian Paul Buhle, and cartoonist Mike Konopacki have collaborated to present a portion of the classic in a dazzling new form. Narrated by Zinn, this version opens with the events of 9/11 and then jumps back to explore the cycles of U.S. expansionism from Wounded Knee to Iraq. The book also follows the story of Zinn, the son of poor Jewish immigrants, from his childhood in the Brooklyn slums to his role as one of America’s leading historians. Paperback, $17.00
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Inc.; ISBN-13: 9780805087444
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Jhumpa Lahiri
One of the few first-time authors to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction for her short story collection, Interpreter of Maladies, Jhumpa Lahiri has captivated fans and critics with her rich portrayals of Indian and Indian-American culture. These eight stories are longer and more emotionally complex than any Lahiri has yet written, taking take us from Cambridge and Seattle to India and Thailand as they enter the lives of families, friends and lovers. Hardcover, $25.00
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group; ISBN-13: 9780307265739
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| For Young Readers
| | | | | My Dog May Be a GeniusJack Prelutsky, illustrations by James StevensonAges: 5 - 10 Have you ever encountered an underwater marching band, a pig in a bathing suit, a pet orangutan, or a witch in a hardware store? Have you ever sat with a skunk in a courtroom, shopped for a dinosaur, or conversed with a Bupple, a Wosstrus, a Violinnet, or a Celloon? If not, here's your chance. The collection showcases Prelutsky’s crisp and deceptively simple rhymes, reminding us of why he is the nation’s first Children’s Poet Laureate. "The reigning czars of silliness have once again teamed up to bring readers an irresistible collection of poems that will have tongues twisting, imaginations soaring, and sides aching with laughter. The result is genius, indeed." - Publisher's Weekly.
 Hardcover, $18.99
Publisher: HarperCollins; ISBN-13: 9780066238623
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| Music
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Kathy Mattea $16.95
Genre: Pop/Folk
Unassuming, gripping, and informed by experience, Kathy Mattea's journey back to her West Virginia roots is a tale told darkly, exploring the hardship, tenacity, and endurance of mining families. Mattea covers these songs (by Jean Ritchie, Utah Phillips, Darrell Scott and more) with controlled fury and heightened empathy for lives at risk.
| In the Name of Love: Africa Celebrates U2 Various Artists $18.95
Genre: World/Ethnic
Bands with African roots place their own spin on familiar tunes by U2. Contributors include Angelique Kidjo, Les Nubians, Cheikh Lo, and more.
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Van Morrison $13.95
Genre: Pop/Folk
Like his previous album, Keep It Simple often steers into R&B and country territory. This is lived-in, soulful music, the kind that can only be made after years of playing the classics.
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Miles Davis $11.95
Genre: Jazz
In this re-mastered reissue of a 1954 album. Davis is joined by Sonny Rollins, Thelonius Monk, Horace Silver, and others.
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The Wood Brothers $17.95
Genre: Pop/Folk
The Wood Brothers are Chris Wood (of Medeski, Martin, and Wood) and his brother Oliver. While their music takes occasional instrumental side-trips, Loaded retains their folk/blues emphasis. Guests include Frazey Ford (Be Good Tanyas) and singer Amos Lee.  Recommended if you like: Ray Lamontagne, M Ward
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| | Special Events
| | | | | Poetry Reading
Sunday April 6, 3pm in the Grass Roots loft.
A celebration of new releases from Traprock books featuring readings by Paula Lowden, Erik Muller, and Linda Gelbrich.
- Paula Lowden's new chapbook from Traprock Books is This Narrow Place We Navigate. Paula, a lifelong Oregon resident, is a massage therapist in Portland. Her work has appeared in The Oregonian and Verseweavers, the publication of the Oregon State Poetry Association.
- Erik Muller is a Eugene resident and publisher of Traprock Books. Erik will read from his new book For All I Know. He has been writing appreciations of Oregon poets, including Richard Dankleff and Paulann Petersen.
- Linda Gelbrich is a long-time Corvallis resident and, counselor in Integrative Medicine. Her poems often have themes related to the natural world, where she finds inspiration, healing, and renewal. Her work has been included in several publications including The Sun, ArtSpirit, To Topos, Verse Weavers, Riven, and River Songs. She has written two chapbooks, Looking For Poems, and Westward Images ( a collaborative project with her husband, Keith that combines his photography with her poems).
Melissa Haggins, Patchwork of the Soul: A Quilt of Healing and Wholeness
Sunday May 10, details TBD
Larry Weinstein, Grammar for the Soul: Using Language for Personal Change
Saturday May 17, details TBD
Jo Dereske, author of the Miss Zukas mysteries
Saturday May 24, details TBD
Molly Gloss, The Hearts of Horses
Wednesday June 4, Corvallis Arts Center, details TBD
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| Reading Group News
| | | | | Next meeting: Tuesday May 6, 6:30-8:00 pm, in the Grass Roots loft.
Book: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak No experience or membership necessary: first-timers always welcome! Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence by stealing until she encounters something she can’t resist – books. With the help of her foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors and with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.  Paperback, $11.99
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
ISBN-13: 9780375842207
On sale for $10.19 until May 6.
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| On Our Nightstands
| | | | |  Here's what we've been reading this week.
Sandy:
The Angels Knocking on the Tavern Door: Thirty Poems of Hafez
Robert Bly and Leonard Lewisjohn
Hardcover, $22.95
Tiffany:
Chosen Forever: A Memoir
Susan Richards
Hardcover, $23.00
To be released on June 1; Tiff is reading an advanced copy.
Melody:
Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex
Mary Roach
Hardcover, $24.95
To be released on 4/7.
Deborah:
The Beauty of the Husband: A Fictional Essay in 29 Tangos
Anne Carson
Paperback, $13.95
Anna:
The Eyre Affair : A Thursday Next Novel
Jasper Fforde
Paperback, $14.00
Linda:
Dreams From My Father: A Story Of Race And Inheritance
Barack Obama
Paperback, $14.95
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