Literary Events

Send your Literary Events for the December issue of AGENDA by November 15 to: AGENDA, 220 S. Main St., Ann Arbor, Ml 48104.

1 Wednesday    Pubiication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. JOHN VANDERMEER and IVETTE PERFECTO, U-M ecologists and long-time rainforest activists, celebrate pubiication of their new book "Breaktast of Biodiversity: The Truth About Rainforest Destruction." 662-7407. Reading & Book Signing: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. With DAVID GUTERSON, author of "Snow Falling on Cedars." Set on a rugged island in the Puget Sound and against the backdrop of a murder trial, the novel is a story of the clash of Japanese and American cultures in a fishing and farming community. 668-7652.

2 Thursday    Discussion & Book Signing: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. With OyamO, Assoc. Prof. of Theatre at U-M, and author of the play "I Am A Man." This is the story of the sanitation workers strike in Memphis.Tennessee in 1968. It will be staged this month at the Trueblood Theatre. 668-7652.

3 Friday Pubiication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. U-M Prof. of Anthropology, History, and Women's Studies. ANN LAURA STOLER, will celebrate pubiication of her new book "Race and the Education of Desire: Foucault's History of Sexuality and the Colonial Order of Things." This is a book that will be welcomed by those concerned with postcolonial theory, sexuality, and the ways in which racial thinking in the past has shaped racial discourse today. 662-7407. Reading & Book Signing: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. TOBIAS WOLFF, author of "This Boy's Life," will read from his new novel "ln Pharaoh's Army: Memories of the Lost War." Having survived one of the strangest childhoods on record, Wolff joined the army, trained as a paratrooper, and headed for Vietnam. He found himself stranded in the Mekong Delta, more of a spectator than a combatant. 668-7652.

4 Saturday    Children's Hour Borders 11 am, 612 E. Liberty. Celebrate Good Dog Carl's birthday as well as the new edition of "Lassie Come Home" by Rosemary Wells. Submit a photo o fyour dog prior to Saturday and you'll have a chance to win a copy of "Lassie." 668-7652. After Hours Poetry Series: Shaman Drum 8 pm, 315 S. State. ELTON GLASER. award-winning poet (NEA grant, lowa Poetry Prize) will read from his work. He is the author of three collections of poems: "Relies," "Tropical Depressions," and most recently "Color Photographs of the Ruins," chosen for the prestigious Pittsburgh Poetry Series. Glaser is Prof. of English at the University of Akron. 662-7407.

5 Sunday   "Kerry Tales: Acorn Cups for Mother Goose": Kerrytown Shops 2 pm, Workbench, 2nd fl., 410 N. Fourth Ave. TRUDY BULKLEY, storyteller, entertains as Mother Goose with rhymes, riddles and rollicking good fun. All ages welcome, children's imaginations required. 769-3115. Publication Celebration: Shamn Drum 4-6pm, 315 S. State. MANNING MARABLE, who has been called "one of the most provocative theorists of African-American political development in the U.S.,"will celebrate his new book "Beyond Black and White: Rethinking Race in American Politics and Society," a book Jesse Jackson describes as "vital reading for anyone concerned with African-American politics today." Marable is Prof. of History and Director of the Institute for Research in African American Studies at Columbia University. 662-7407.

6 Monday   Poetry Reading: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. LEMUEL JOHNSON reads his poems and signs books to celebrate publication of his Sierra Leone Trilogy: "Carnival of the Old Coast," first edition; and "Hand on the Navel" and "Highlife for Caliban" in new editions. Johnson, born of Sierra Leonan parents in Nigeria, is Prof. of English at U-M. 662-7407. Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. SUSANNA MOORE, author of "Whiteness of Bones" and "Sleeping Beauties," will read from her new novel, "In the Cut." 668-7652. Writers Series: Guild House 8:30 pm, 802 Monroe. BOB HICOCK will read from his book "The Legend of Light." The manuscript of this book won the 1995 Felix Pollak Prize in Poetry. Carmen Bugan, 677-6839.

7 Tuesday    Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. DARYL M. HAFTER, Prof. of History at EMU, will celebrate publication of "European Women and Preindustrial Craft,"which she edited. This collection of essays focuses on the ways in which women in preindustrial craft production incorporated the new technology of heavy industrialization. 662-7407. Poetry Slam: The Heidelberg 8 pm, 215 N. Main. Featured poet and open mike, $3. 663-7758.

8 Wednesday   Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. BONNIE BRERETON, who teaches religious studies and Asian art history at Washtenaw Community College and EMU, will celebrate publication of her new book "Thai Tellings of Phra Malai: Texts and Rituals Concerning a Popular Buddhist Saint." 662-7407. Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. MICHEUNE MAYNARD, Detroit bureau chief for USA Today, will read from her new book, "Collision Course: Inside the Battle for General Motors." Primarily focusing on GM leader Jack Smith, this book tells how he rebuilt the company from the ground up. 668-7652.

10 Friday    Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. NANCY FLORIDA, U-M Prof. of Indonesian Languages and Literatures, will celebrate publication of her new book "Writing the Past, Inscribing the Future: History as Prophecy in Colonial Java." A critic calis the book "of great relevance not only for Indonesianists" but also for scholars in general in the fields of literary theory, history, and anthropology. 662-7407. Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. STEPHANIE GRANT, who received her MFA at New York University, will read from her first novel, "The Passion of Alice." The protagonist is a 23-year-old anorexic who has just experienced heart failure. This is a novel about women's relationships to their bodies, themselves, and each other. 668-7652.

11 Saturday   Children's Hour: Borders 11 am, 612 E. Liberty. Guest musician LOIS MILLER will sing and play the guitar during a Very Noise-y story hour. 668-7652.

12 Sunday   Poetry Reading: Artisan Market 3 pm, 315 Detroit St. Local poet GLORIA PRITSHCET reads from her work at the weekly outdoor market. 761-5616.

13 Monday    Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. BUNYAN BRYANT, U-M Prof. of Natural Resources, will celebrate publication of "Environmental Justice: Issues, Policies, and Solutions," which he edited. 662-7407. Writers Series: Guild House 8:30 pm, 802 Monroe. JANET LAWLESS comes from Hamtramck, where she works, reads at various places and writes "The Hamtramck Diaries." She's finishing up her MA in English Literature and Creative Writing at Wayne State University. Carmen Bugan, 677-6839.

14 Tuesday    Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. JUAN GONSALEZ, a columnist for New York Daily News, will read from his new book, "Roll Down Your Window: Stories of a Forgotten America." This book emphasizes the contributions of Latino culture and labor in the U.S. 668-7652.

16 Thursday   Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. RICHARD TILLINGHAST, U-M Prof. of English and critically acclaimed poet, will celebrate publication of his new book, "Robert Lowell's Life and Work." Tillinghast was Lowell's writing student at Harvard University. 662-7407.

17 Friday   Reading: U-M Office of Minority Student Services 7:30 pm.Trotter House, 1443 Washtenaw. Mohawk author and editor Beth Brant reads from her latest work, "Writing as Witness," and shares other stories of life - part of Native American Heritage Month. 763-9044. Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. SVEN BIRKERTS, author of "American Energies: Essays on fiction," will read from his new book. "The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age." 668-7652. Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 8 pm. 315 S. State. GARY SNYDER, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and long-time Champion of the environment, reads to celebrate his newest collection of essays "A Place in Space: Ethics, Aesthetics, and Watersheds." Snyder is Professor of English at the U-Cal-Davis. 662-7407.

18 Saturday   Children's Hour: Borders 11 am, 612 E. Liberty. Stormy Weather hits the Children's Hour. Thunder, wind and rain is forecast. 668-7652. Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 3-5 pm, 315 S. State. CARL A. ANDERSON, Assoc. Prof. of Romance and Classical Languages at MSU and a resident of Ann Arbor, will celebrate publication of his new book "Athena's Epithets." 662-7407.

20 Monday    Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm. 315 S. State. A. L. BECKER and his son ANDREW SPRAGUE BECKER will celebrate their new books. A. L. Becker, retired Prof. of Linguistics, has just published "Beyond Translation: Essays Toward a Modern Philology." Andrew Sprague Becker, Assoc. Prof. of Classics at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, has just published "The Shield of Achilles and the Poetics of Ekphrasis." 662-7407. Discussion & Booksigning: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. With BERUTE GALDIKAS, author of "Reflections of Eden." Galdikas is known for her work with orangutans in the rainforests of Borneo. 668-7652. Writers Series: Guild House 8:30 pm, 802 Monroe. ROSE BOHN's poems appeared in the "Stone Circle Anthology 1995," where she performs during the summers. Carmen Bugan, 677-6839.

25 Saturday   Children's Hour: Borders 11 am, 612 E. Liberty. "Thank you for..." Stories of things to be thankful for. 668-7652. Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 8 pm. 315 S. State. SCOTT RUSSELL SANDERS gives a talk to celebrate his new collection of essays, "Writing From the Center." "Center" refers to the Midwest, where Sanders was bom, raised, and now makes his home, but it also refers to a personal interior. Sanders is Prof. of English at Indiana University, Bloomington. He has published numerous other books - fiction, nonfiction, and books for children. 662-7407.

26 Sunday    Poetry Reading: Del Rio Bar 1:30-4:30 pm, 122 W. Washington. Join the FEED THE POETS GROUP for an afternoon of poetry from the area's finest poets with one hour of open mike reading. Interested poets should contact the Del Rio for scheduling arrangements or further information. 761-2530 .

27 Monday    Writers Series: Guild House 830 pm, 802 Monroe. Featuring storytellerand puppeteer PAT JUDD. Carmen Bugan, 677- 6839.

28 Tuesday    Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. LAWRENCE KRAUSS, Prof. of Physics at Case Western Reserve University.will read from his new book "The Physics of StarTrek." An internationally known theoretical physicist, Krauss has written the quintessential physics book for trekkies and non-trekkies alike. He goes boldly where Star Trek has gone before, and beyond. 668-7652.

30 Thursday    Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. THOMAS VOSTEEN, Asst. Prof. of French at EMU. will celebrate publication of his translation of "You've Always Been Wrong," a 20th-century literary essay by Renee Daumal. 662-7407. Reading: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty. JUDY BROWN, an organizational consultant and independent educator, wil read from her new book "The Choice: Seasons of Loss and Renewal after a Father's Decision to Die." This book explores how to have the quality of conversation at the end of life that allows us to care for each other, regardless of the path a person chooses to death. 668-7652.