Readings, Signings, and Literary Events for the Week of March 21, 2011

Could you prove that you are human? What is human? What is humanity? Humaneness? Is the quality that we call “soul” really what defines us, and is it truly ineffable? Brian Christian raises these questions with the book he wrote after participating in the Turing Test for the “Most Human Human.”

3/21/2011 12:05 p.m. Seattle Public Library
Thrilling Tales
Story Time for Grown-Ups
Monday lunch hour series at the Central Library.

3/21/2011 6 p.m. Seattle Public Library
Alan Hovhaness
Winds of Everest
Screening of the Emmy-winning documentary.

3/21/2011 6 p.m. Pilot Books
Writer’s Group
New exercises every week. Come prepared to write and discuss. Aye, Cap’n!

3/21/2011 7 p.m. UW Bookstore
Shani Raviv
Being Ana: A Memoir of Anorexia Nervosa
Please refer to the title.

3/21/2011 7 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Shin Yu Pai
Adamantine
“The heart of these poems broke open even before the poet was born. Shin Yu Pai has maintained a practice to keep it this way, so that she and all of us might live in that open, compassionate field with neither boundary nor end. How wise of her to know that what is adamantine is the open heart. Fearless seeing, ancient mutterings on contemporary pathways and boulevards, inventive poetics, merciless memories and tender knowing hands all take their proper place here … Her eyes will help you open what you’ve held onto too tightly, too long, and her hearts will open the rest of you from the first word to the last.” – Peter Levitt

3/21/2011 7:30 p.m. Town Hall Seattle
David Brooks
The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement
The NYT columnist visits to discuss his new book. 

3/22/2011 6:30 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
The Mercy Seat
Neil LaBute
Stages, drama book group, is catching up on February’s canceled meeting, as well as discussing the March selection, Blackbird, by David Harrower.

3/22/2011 7 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Brian Christian
The Most Human Human: What Talking to Computers Teaches Us About What It Means to Be Alive
The former Seattle resident will talk about participating in the annual Turing Test for the “Most Human Human Award”.

3/22/2011 7 p.m. Lake Forest Park Third Place Books
Kristin Hannah
Night Road
“Even readers who like their melodrama thick will have problems as Hannah pushes credibility to the breaking point, and more than once.” — Publisher’s Weekly

3/22/2011 7 p.m. Pilot Books
Matthew Simmons & Matthew Briggs
Reading
Group reading.

3/22/2011 7 p.m. UW Bookstore
Neil Strauss
Everyone Loves You When You’re Dead
The journalist talks about “the dysfunctional lives of stardom.”

3/22/2011 8:30 p.m. Rebar
Seattle Slam
Poetry Reading
Competitive poetry open mic.

3/23/2011 12 p.m. Seattle Mystery Bookshop
Cara Black
Murder in Passy: An Aimee Leduc Investigation Set in Paris
Ms Black writes these too fast for me to keep up. Number eleven of the Aimee Leduc series.

3/23/2011 6 p.m. Richard Hugo House
Write Time
Weekly Series
A drop-in writing circle for teens, facilitated by the Hugo House writer-in-residence, Karen Finneyfrock.

3/23/2011 6:15 p.m. Ballard Branch Library
Great Decisions 2011
Global Governance
A national civic-education program sponsored by the Foreign Policy Association. Number five of six.

3/23/2011 7 p.m. Good Shepherd Center
Cara Black
Murder in Passy: An Aimee Leduc Investigation Set in Paris
Ms Black writes these too fast for me to keep up. Number eleven of the Aimee Leduc series.

3/23/2011 7 p.m. Lake Forest Park Third Place Books
Dori Jones Yang
Daughter of Xanadu
A terrific YA novel, highly recommended for readers of all ages.

3/23/2011 7 p.m. Lake Forest Park Third Place Books
Eleanor Brown
The Weird Sisters
“Here’s what I adored about this book: the first person plural narrative voice (I can still hear it in my head), its realistic take on the pleasures and pangs of sisterly relationships, and a cast of complex, three dimensional characters who love reading but find that real life sometimes doesn’t fit neatly – or can’t be solved – within the pages of a novel.” —Nancy Pearl, celebrity librarian

3/23/2011 7 p.m. Town Hall Seattle
Michael Riera, Ph.D.
Staying Connected to Your Teenager: How to Keep Them Talking to You and How to Hear What They’re Really Saying
The author will present a talk called, “Uncommon Sense for Parenting Teens and Tweens.”

3/23/2011 7 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Piper Kerman
Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison
“I can’t stop thinking about this marvelous book, about the generous and lovely women with whom Piper Kerman served her time. I never expected to pick up a memoir about prison and find myself immersed in a story of grace, of friendship, of loyalty and love. I have never read anything like this book, and I will read and reread it again and again.” —Ayelet Waldman

3/23/2011 7 p.m. Seattle Public Library
Ursula LeGuin & Roger Dorband
Out Here: Poems and Images from Steens Mountain Country
Rescheduled from last November, Ms. LeGuin visits SPL to discuss her new book of poetry, drawings, and photographs (by Mr. Dorband). “Here’s a book to makes us want less of more—may the owl repackage and put us there.” – Gary Snyder

3/23/2011 7:30 p.m. Town Hall Seattle
Judith Orloff
Emotional Freedom
The assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at UCLA presents ideas for dealing with stress and negative emotions.

3/23/2011 7:30 p.m. UW Kane Hall, Room 210
Scott Macklin
Building Organizational Capacity through Convening Community Stories
“Stories have always been the heartbeat through which communities are bound and the footsteps by which organizations bridge their mission to the outside world. With the advent of digital media and social technology, an organization’s ability to create, disseminate, and thus challenge dominant modes of mass media has arrived. Community centric storytelling puts the role of the storyteller in the hands of the communities we serve and places active participants in the realm of social communities through the practice of transparency and authenticity. This lecture will explore specific digital storytelling examples that convene community and give it voice—as well as align with your organizational mission(s).” –SAL

3/23/2011 7:30 p.m. UW Kane Hall, Room 130
Suze Orman
The Money Class: Learn to Create Your New American Dream
The popular self-help, finance author is in town. Sponsored by the UW Women’s Center.

3/24/2011 6:30 p.m. W Seattle Hotel
A Benefit Dinner featuring Garth Stein
Words Matter
Seattle Arts & Lectures event.

3/24/2011 7 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Carol Edgarian
Three Stages of Amazement
“In this gorgeously written, haunting and often hilarious novel, Carol Edgarian conjures a particular moment in America’s recent history and unleashes within it a collision of universal forces: love, desire, ambition, loyalty. I can’t think of a novel that more viscerally evokes the gritty challenge—and casual heroism—of motherhood and marriage.” – Jennifer Egan

3/24/2011 7 p.m. Lake Forest Park Third Place Books
Jeffrey Overstreet
The Ale Boy’s Feast
“Overstreet’s writing is precise and beautiful, and the story is masterfully told.” –Publisher’s Weekly

3/24/2011 7:30 a.m. Westin Hotel
Jeffrey Toobin
The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court
The annual “Breakfast with Champions” benefit breakfast, which benefits the King County Bar Association’s access to justice and diversity programs, this year features attorney/author/New Yorker staff writer Jeffrey Toobin.

3/24/2011 7:30 p.m. Town Hall Seattle
Ted Danson w/ Chip Giller
Oceana: Our Planet’s Endangered Oceans and What We Can Do to Save Them
The former Cheers star has turned his attention the fate of the world’s oceans for the past 20 years. www.na.oceana.org

3/25/2011 7 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
David Horowitz & Co.
Many Trails to the Summit
Some of the 42 contributors to this collection will join editor Horowitz this evening.

3/26/2011 1 p.m. Queen Anne Branch
Arthur Miller
All My Sons
Front Porch Theater discussion.

3/26/2011 1 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Artist Trust
2011 EDGE Professional Development Program for Writers
A showcase of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.

3/26/2011 6:30 p.m. Lake Forest Park Third Place Books
Mary McElroy
Fantail Journeys
Mary McElroy lives in Washington, U.S.A. with her husband. Together they raised three daughters and now love spending time with their eight grandchildren. Due to a twenty-five year career in teaching and administering a Christian school, she delights in seeing children enjoy reading books, especially ones that increase their faith in God.

3/26/2011 7 p.m. Pilot Books
Sommer Browning & Noah Gordon
Either Way I’m Celebrating / The Source
Poetry reading.

3/26/2011 8 p.m. Queen Anne Books
Barbara Kingsolver
The Lacuna
Queen Anne’s book club. Meets every other month.

3/26/2011 9:30 a.m. SAAM
Andrew Hale
“Colorful Ikat Textile Design and Central Asian Aesthetics”
Saturday University World Little Known: Central Asia, Its Histories and Place in Today’s World Lecture Series

3/27/2011 1 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Clare Hodgson Meeker
Soccer Dreams: Playing the Seattle Sounders FC Way
“The fictional story of a young boy from Kenya who moves to Seattle and helps his soccer team to a winning season.” –EBBC

3/27/2011 1 p.m. SAAM
Zohra Saed & Sahar Muradi
One Story, Thirty Stories: An Anthology of Contemporary Afghan American Literature
“The editors have assembled a collection that manages to be both literature and history, heartbreaking and hopeful, educational and lyrical.” – Minal Hajratwala

3/27/2011 2 p.m. Seattle Mystery Bookshop
Harlan Coben
Live Wire
“Myron Bolitar has represented former tennis ace Suzze T and her rock-star husband Lex for years. One day she appears in Myron’s office in tears. Lex has vanished. She’s very pregnant and fears rumors of the paternity of the baby may’ve driven him away.” –SMBS

3/27/2011 3 p.m. Elliott Bay Book Company
Bonny Becker
A Visitor for Bear
A portion of the proceeds from booksales at this program will go to benefit uncompensated care at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

3/27/2011 3 p.m. Queen Anne Books
Book Fair Benefit
Queen Anne Cooperative Preschool
Queen Anne donates 20% of each purchase to the QACP.

3/27/2011 5:30 p.m. Lake Forest Park Third Place Books
Harlan Coben
Live Wire
“Myron Bolitar has represented former tennis ace Suzze T and her rock-star husband Lex for years. One day she appears in Myron’s office in tears. Lex has vanished. She’s very pregnant and fears rumors of the paternity of the baby may’ve driven him away.” –SMBS