Literopolis: This Week’s Literary Events in Portland, Jan. 19-25

Monday, January 19, 2015

Emily Goldman, GoLocalPDX Contributor

Photo Credit: iStock (cropped)

This week is going to be another jam-packed week in Portland’s literary scene.

Something else to look forward to on Saturday January 24 is the launch of the first annual National Readathon Day, a fundraiser sponsored by the National Book Foundation and the publisher Penguin Random House in which readers can pledge to participate in a nation-wide reading marathon from noon-4 pm and create a donation page encouraging others to make contributions to support their efforts. All the money raised will go towards supporting the National Reading Foundation’s educational programs such as BookUp.

Also in case you missed it, Literary Arts has announced their finalists for the 2015 Oregon Book Awards and Literary Fellowship recipients. Click HERE to see what books written by Oregon authors in 2014 made the cut.

And now, without further ado—

On Tuesday, Ali Berman will be at Broadway Books reading from her recently published book Choosing a Good Life: Lessons from People Who Have Found Their Place in the World which explores how several people from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, talents, and challenges were able to achieve peace with their lives and surroundings and how we as readers can learn by example. 1714 NE Broadway St., 7-8 pm, FREE

Seth Grahame-Smith, the author of the successful historical fiction-vampire mash-up Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter will be at Powell’s at Cedar Hills on Tuesday with the follow-up The Last American Vampire, which spans everything from Jack the Ripper to the 1937 Hindenburg Crash to the JFK assassination. 3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd., 7 pm, FREE.

Also on Tuesday at Powell’s City of Books, David Shields and Caleb Powell will be presenting their deconstruction of the Q&A format I Think You’re Wrong: A Quarrel in which they argue and pontificate on everything and anything and testing what it means to make art out of life and what the boundary is between fact and fiction. 1005 W. Burnside St., 7:30 pm, FREE

On Wednesday, Glyph Café & Arts Space presents their monthly Mountain Writers Series. This month, award-winning poet Clem Stark will be reading some of his poetry accompanied by the Fisher Pot Musicians Jon Broderick and Jay Speakman. 804 NW Couch St., 7 pm, $5 donation

It’s Annie Blooms Books’ turn to celebrate William Stafford’s birthday on Wednesday, an event hosted by William Stafford Board member Susan McKee Reese. Featured readers include Susan DeFreitas, Barbara Drake, Lisa Galloway, Tom Hogan, Sulima Malzin, and Shelley Reece. Come for the readings, stay for the birthday cake. 7834 SW Capitol Hwy, 7 pm, FREE

Also on Wednesday, Phil & Kaja Foglio will be at Powell’s Books at Cedar Hills presenting Agatha H. and the Voice of the Castle, their third installment of the Girl Genius novels, inspired by the Hugo Award-winning webcomic of the same name. 3415 SW Cedar Hills Bld., 7 pm, FREE.

NPR education blogger Anya Kamenetz will be at Powell’s City of Books on Wednesday with her new book The Test, an exploration of the institutionalization of standardized testing in American public schools, their deleterious effect on learning, and what can be done about them. 1005 W. Burnside St., 7:30 pm, FREE

Miranda July. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons (cropped)

Thursday is going to be a busy day. First off, Glyph Café & Arts Space will be having a Featured Writer Reading with novelist and poet Kaia Sand, whose work focuses on creating poetry in non-textual contexts. Her literary art pieces have been on display at Glyph since the beginning of the month. 804 NW Couch St., 5:30-7:30 pm, FREE

Second on Thursday, Annie Blooms’ Books presents Cindy Brown and her first book in a series of cozy mystery novels Macdeath in which actor Ivy Meadow who’s cast in a circus-themed production of Macbeth seeks to solve the mystery of a murdered cast member on opening night. O’Connor’s “The Vault”, 7850 SW Capitol Hwy, 7 pm, FREE

At Another Read Through, local author Anne Hendren will be reading from her novel A Dream of Good and Evil about an architect struggling with whether to design a prison and so use her skills in a morally repugnant manner and attempting to solve a murder mystery. 3932 N. Mississippi Ave., 7-8pm, FREE

Finally on Thursday at Powell’s City of Books, actor, writer, director, performance artist, and all-around media sensation Miranda July will be promoting her debut novel The First Bad Man about a fragile woman named Cheryl who, in taking in her boss’ fully-grown, selfish and bullying daughter Clee, has her life turned upside-down in what turns out to be the best way possible. 1005 W. Burnside St., 7:30 pm, FREE

On Saturday, Katherine Applegate, co-author of the bestselling children’s series Animorphs and the most recent Newbury Award-winning author, will be at Powell’s at Cedar Hills reading from her standalone children’s novel, the award-winning The One and Only Ivan about a gorilla and an artist living inside an exhibit in a shopping mall and his friendship with Ruby, a baby elephant taken from the wild. 3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd., 4 pm, FREE

On Sunday, Susan Sokol Blosser, founder and former president of the esteemed Sokol Blosser Winery for over thirty years, will be reading from her autobiography Letting Go about her decision in 2008 to step down from her career path and transfer leadership of the winery to her children at Powell’s City of Books. 1005 W. Burnside St., 4 pm, FREE

Closing the week on Sunday will the weekly Portland Poetry Slam at Glyph Café & Artspace. Check out their Facebook page closer to the date to see what this week’s theme or special performer will be. 804 NW Couch St., 5-7pm, $5 donation