Literary Events

Literary Events   8 AGENDA-DECEMBER 1995

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

1 Friday

Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 8pm, 315S. State. DANNY RENDLEMAN reads from his new collection of poems "The Middle West," which has been praised by author Charles Baxter for its "compassion and tenderness, its ability to look at the unforgiving nature of our contemporary urban lives. " Rendleman, a lecturer in the English Department at UM Flint, will be on hand to sign books and share refreshments. 662-7407

"First Fridays" Poetry: Galerie Jacques 8:30 pm, 616 Wesley. featuring three Detroit poets: Maurice Greenia. Jr., Jim Gustafson, and Sarah Peters. 665-9889

2 Saturday

Children's Hour: Borders 11 am, 612 E. Liberty. ROSIE. from Maurice Sendak's book "Really Rosie," will tell the story of the little girl who has a vivid imagination. 668-7652

Discussion: Shaman Drum 7 pm, 315 S. State. MARY BLOCKSMA, a widely published Michigan author, speaks about improvisation as a spiritual path. Her most recent book. "The Fourth Coast: Exploring the Great Lakes Coastline from the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Boundary Waters of Minnesota," documents her solo travels along 5,000 miles of northern coastline. Blocksma, who lives on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan where she conducts writing workshops, will be on hand after the talk to sign books and share refreshments. 662-7407

4 Monday

Writers Series: Guild House 8:30 pm, 802 Monroe. RACHEL PASTER, when asked to describe her writing. responded as follows: "Neurotic Jew tells true tall tales and reviews movies not yet made." RAUL SMITH spent most of this time in New York City and Brazil before coming to Michigan, and he began writing poetry and prose out of a sense of isolation in the Midwest. And Ann Arbor's NATHALIE PETERSON reads from her whacked-out collection of way-out stuff. Ken Cormier, 481-9101

5 Tuesday

Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6pm.315 S. State. BRUCE MANNHEIM celebrates publication of "The Dialogic Emergence of Culture," which he co-edited with Dennis Tedlock. In this collection of essays, 13 prominent anthropologists reformulate the idea of culture. They show how language and culture - and anthropology itself - are continuously created and recreated in dialogues. Mannheim, U-M Assoc. Prof. of Anthropology, will be on hand to sign books and share refreshments. 662-7407

6 Wednesday

Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. W. ANDREW ACHENBAUM celebrates two new books: "Crossing Frontiers: Gerontology Emerges as a Science" and "Profiles in Gerontology: A Biographical Dictionary." "Crossing Frontiers," which he authored, is the first book length study of the history of gerontology, providing, one critic observes, "insight into the modest 20th-century beginnings of gerontology and helping us prepare for the field's likely acceleration in the next century." "Profiles in Gerontology" was co-authored by Daniel Albert. 662-7407

7 Thursday

Reception: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. Sigma Lambda Beta, a Latino fraternity, celebrates the conclusion of their second annual "Leer es Vivir" (To Read is to Live) Book Drive. The goal of the drive is to increase the number of books available by Latino/a authors, furthering the creation of an intellectually nurturing environment. In support of the drive, Shaman Drum Bookshop will offer a ten percent discount on any books purchased for donation to Sigma Lambda Beta. 662-7407

8 Friday

Book Signing: Shaman Drum 5-7 pm. 315 S. State. DEBORAH MEIER, whom the Washington Post called "one of the best known and most celebrated educators in the country," signs copies of her book, "The Power of Their Ideas: Lessons for America From a Small School in Harlem." The book is a passionate defense of public education. For 20 years, Meier has led one of the most remarkable public schools in the country, Central Park East in East Harlem. She is also a fellow at the Annenberg National Institute for School Reform at Brown University. 662-7407

Poetry Reading: Shaman Drum 8 pm, 315 S. State. BOB HICOK reads his poems in celebration of his new collection "The Legend of Light," chosen for the Felix Pollak Prize by Pulitzer Prize-Winning poet Carolyn Kizer and described by poet Thomas Lux as "vivid, quirky, and deeply human." Hicok is also an automotive die designer and computer system administrator. He will be on hand after the reading to sign books and share refreshments. 662-7407

9 Saturday

Children's Hour: Borders 11 am, 612 E. Liberty. Guest story teller ANNETTE BOWMAN will read holiday stories. 668-7652

11 Monday

Writers Series: Guild House 8:30 pm, 802 Monroe. Ypsilanti's KURT LINDEMANN blends ideas, imagery, humor, and performance into a set of poetry and monologues. Also, Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti based PANOPTIC FILM/VIDEO presents a special screening of ts brand-new, feature-length movie project entitled, "MARWOOD'S GHOST." This Victorian era comedy ghost-story follows the trail of two pernicious brothers and their haughty cousin, Marwood, who is being mercilessly haunted by the ghost of Etta Sims. Ken Cormier, 481-9101

12 Tuesday

Discussion & Book Signing: Borders 7:30 pm, 612 E. Liberty DOROTHY WINBUSH RILEY will talk about her new book, "The Complete Kwanzaa: Celebrating Our Cultural Harvest." This book is filled with inspirational poetry, quotations, folktales, proverbs and profiles of famous African Americans who live by the prinicples of Kwanzaa. It also contains practical guides for gift-giving and recipes for a Kwanzaa feast. Riley is an elementary school principal and lives in Detroit. 668-7652

15 Friday

Publication Celebration: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. RUTH BEHAR celebrates the publication of two new collections of essays: "Bridges to Cuba/Puentes a Cuba," which she edited; and "Women Writing Culture," which she co-edited with Deborah A Gordon. In "Bridges," the contributors' voices offer much needed testimony to the continuing efforts of Cubans and Cuban Americans to look beyond animosities and failings to renewal and reconciliation. In "Women Writing, "feminist scholars offer a wide range of visions of identity and difference through various genres. 6627407

16 Saturday

Poetry Reading: Shaman Drum 4-6 pm, 315 S. State. JOHN REED reads from his fourth collection of poems, "Great Lakes Poems." Laurence Goldstein says of Reed, he "has a superb talent for fashioning language compelling enough to transport us into worlds both natural and preternatural far removed from the commonplace." Reed, Prof. of English at Wayne State University, will be on hand afterwards to sign books and share refreshments. 662-7407

18 Monday

Writers Series: Guild House 8:30 pm, 802 Monroe. Ypsilanti's LAURA SEVILLA reads poems, stories, and an excerpt from a new play-in-progress entitled "Home Cooked." Poet and fiction writer EMILY WISMER returns to the Guild House after a prolonged absence from the Ann Arbor area. And IAN DEMSKY, a 17-year-old Ann Arbor poet, reads "vomit-up-your-guts-and-put-them-under-glass" poetry. Ken Cormier, 481-9101