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Ander Monson

Powell's Books on Hawthorne 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR, United States

Ander Monson’s new story collection, The Gnome Stories (Graywolf), focuses on characters who are loners in the truest sense – who are in the process of recovering from mental, physical, or emotional trauma, and who find solace – or at least a sense of purpose – in peculiar jobs and pursuits. Personal and idiosyncratic, Monson’s new collection of essays, I Will Take the Answer (Graywolf), showcases his deep thinking and broad-ranging interests, his sly wit, his soft spot for heavy metal, and his ability to tunnel deeply into the odd and revealing, sometimes subterranean, worlds of American life.

Free

Thom Hartmann

Powell's City of Books 1005 W Burnside Street, Portland, OR, United States

In his new book, The Hidden History of the War on Voting (Berrett-Koehler), progressive radio host Thom Hartmann unveils the strategies and tactics that conservative elites in this country have used, from the foundation of the Electoral College to the latest voter ID laws, to protect their interests by preventing “the wrong people” – such as the poor, women, and people of color – from voting, while making it more convenient for the wealthy and white. He also lays out a variety of simple, common-sense ways that we the people can fight back and reclaim our right to rule through the ballot box.

Free

Erin Khar in Conversation With Rene Denfeld

Powell's City of Books 1005 W Burnside Street, Portland, OR, United States

Erin Khar’s Strung Out: One Last Hit and Other Lies That Nearly Killed Me (Park Row) is a personal, illuminating look at the opioid crisis, as lived by one woman and her 15-year struggle with opioids, beginning when she was 13 and ending with motherhood. An urgent and empathetic take, Strung Out is a necessary memoir of addiction, recovery, and the lifesaving power of love. Khar will be joined in conversation by Rene Denfeld, author of The Butterfly Girl.

Free

Gone at Midnight: The Mysterious Death of Elisa Lam

Powell's Books at Cedar Hills Crossing 3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd, Beaverton, OR, United States

A Los Angeles hotel with a haunting history. A missing young woman. A disturbing video followed by a shocking discovery. A cold-case mystery that has become an Internet phenomenon – and for one determined journalist, a life-changing quest toward uncomfortable truths. In Gone at Midnight (Citadel), investigative journalist Jake Anderson chronicles eye-opening discoveries about who Elisa Lam really was and what – or whom – she was running from, and presents shocking new evidence that may reopen one of the most chilling and obsessively followed true crime cases of the century.

Free

Your Body in Balance: The New Science of Food, Hormones, and Health

Powell's City of Books 1005 W Burnside Street, Portland, OR, United States

Hidden in everyday foods are the causes of a surprising range of health problems: infertility, menstrual cramps, weight gain, hair loss, breast and prostate cancer, and much more. All of these conditions have one thing in common: they are fueled by hormones hiding in our food or influenced by the foods we eat. Neal D. Barnard’s Your Body in Balance (Grand Central) provides step-by-step guidance for understanding what's at the root of your suffering – and what you can do to feel better.

Free

Elephant Speak: A Devoted Keeper’s Life Among the Herd

Powell's City of Books 1005 W Burnside Street, Portland, OR, United States

When Roger Henneous first dons his keeper uniform and sets foot in the Oregon Zoo, he doesn't know what to expect. But over his 30-year career, Henneous discovers the joys, difficulties, and dangers of life in a zoo, all the while maintaining an unwavering devotion to Belle, Packy, and the rest of the Asian elephants in his care. Melissa Crandall’s Elephant Speak: A Devoted Keeper's Life Among the Herd (Ooligan) takes place in a time when ethical conversations about animal comfort, safety, and enrichment in zoos were just beginning. More than an evolutionary history of zookeeping, this unique biography celebrates the extraordinary bonds between humans and elephants and asks what we owe elephants, where we have fallen short, and how we can move forward together.

Free

Westside Writing Group

Powell's Books at Cedar Hills Crossing 3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd, Beaverton, OR, United States

A group for anyone writing nonfiction or memoir who would like company, support, and, most of all, accountability. Whether you’ve never written a word or you’re a published author, join us!

Free

Longreads Club: How the Horrific 1918 Flu Spread Across America

Rose City Book Pub 1329 NE Fremont, Portland, OR, United States

The toll of history’s worst epidemic surpasses all the military deaths in World War I and World War II combined. And it may have begun in the United States. 4,600 words, about 30 minutes ARTICLE: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/journal-plague-year-180965222/ If you prefer to listen to the article, you can create a Text-To-Speech mp3 for free here: http://www.fromtexttospeech.com/. The TTS is a robotic voice, but many people get used to it fairly quickly. The Longreads Club is a twice-monthly program hosted by WorldOregon's Young Professionals group. Join us for Longreads Club where we discuss a long-form article focused on global topics every other week. Rather than skim the headlines, we are trying to dive deep and learn from each other to gain a better understanding of world events. No…

Continue readingLongreads Club: How the Horrific 1918 Flu Spread Across America
Free

Donnie Horn in Conversation With Darcelle

Powell's City of Books 1005 W Burnside Street, Portland, OR, United States

Donnie Horn’s Darcelle: Looking From My Mirror (Donald L. Horn) tells the complete story of Walter W. Cole, aka Darcelle – Guinness World Record holder for oldest drag queen performer. Horn’s The Many Shades of Darcelle: 50 Years of Fashion 1969 Until Present documents Cole's life as Darcelle, as well as his purchase of Portland’s Demas Tavern and its transformation into Darcelle XV Showplace. Horn will be joined in conversation by Walter W. Cole.

Free

Golden Gates: Fighting for Housing in America

Powell's City of Books 1005 W Burnside Street, Portland, OR, United States

Spacious and affordable homes used to be the hallmark of American prosperity. Today, however, punishing rents and the increasingly prohibitive cost of ownership have turned housing into the foremost symbol of inequality and an economy gone wrong. In Golden Gates (Penguin Press), New York Times journalist Conor Dougherty chronicles America’s housing crisis from its West Coast epicenter, peeling back the decades of history and economic forces that brought us here and taking readers inside the activist uprisings that have risen in tandem with housing costs. Dougherty will be joined in conversation by Oregonian reporter Brad Schmidt.

Free
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