Steven Johnson Leyba
Coyote, Satan, America. Leyba is a legally ordained priest in the Churc of Satan, an advocate of the swastika, who creates paintings with sperm, blood, and paint. Lots of anger, lots of rage. Powell's Books on Hawthorne, 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 238-1668, 7:30 pm
Sam Lightner
All Elevations Unknown. Climbing in the Borneo jungle. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm
* Tom Spanbauer
See review this issue Twenty-Third Avenue Books, 1015 NW 23rd Ave, 224-6203, 7:30 pm
Poetry Fling
Open Mic. Read your own work, or that of a favorite poet. Barnes & Noble, 1720 N Jantzen Beach, 283-2800, 7 pm, free
Portland Poetry Workshop
Writing exercises, shared work, reading. All poets welcome. Barnes & Noble Northeast (Lloyd Center), 1231 NE Broadway, 335-0201, 7 pm
* Chuck Palahniuk
Portland's local hero, literary luminary, self-made success story. Here's another chance to catch a reading of his new book, premiering here in town, Choke. Sure to be received with controversy and that same obsessive scrutiny his fans have turned to his previous works. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm
Sue Grafton
Singing copies of P is for Peril. Twenty-Third Avenue Books, 1015 NW 23rd Ave, 224-6203, 7:30 pm
Katherine Martin
Women of Courage. Martin is a self proclaimed "Champion of the Human Spirit." The book highlights 40 women who have had life changing experiences. Barnes & Noble, 1720 N Jantzen Beach, 283-2800, 2 pm
Spoken Word
Neil Gilpin, Gwion, Pete Krebs, and the Afterhours Players. Storytelling, performance, music. They've been at it a while--I'm sure it's good. Laurelthirst, 2958 NE Glisan St, 232-1504, 9-12 pm, $7.00
* Julia Alvarez
In The Name of Salome. A novelization of the exceptional and mythic life of Carribbean poet Salome Urena. Poetry that literally inspired revolution--no excess of marketing, just language that made readers rethink their world. Urena left a daughter who grew up to join Castro's revolution. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm
Frances Park & Ginger Park
These two sisters, co-owners of the famous chocolate shop, "Chocolate, Chocolate," have collaborated to turn their parents love story into fiction. North Korea & South Korea, a boy and a girl, love in a war-torn land. Twenty-Third Avenue Books, 1015 NW 23rd Ave, 224-6203, 7:30 pm
Irene Radford
Guardian of the Vision: Merlin's Descendants: Volume 3. Taking place as part of the Sci-Fi Fantasy book group. Barnes & Noble, 1720 N Jantzen Beach, 283-2800, 7 pm
* Tom Spanbauer
In The City of Shy Hunters. Here's a book into which the author's put his heart, his mind, and over ten years of his life. Spanbauer builds heartbreaking stories on beautiful sentences, with big ideas and careful details. He's also a much-loved local instructor, leading his band of "dangerous writers." Get to the reading early, because the space will fill quickly with the most devoted fans and students you'll find anywhere. Broadway Books, 1714 NE Broadway, 284-1726, 7 pm
Suzanne Berne
A Perfect Arrangement. Kind of a literary-ish thriller using the Hand That Rocks The Cradle situation. Perfect lives, perfect nanny, lots of perfection until everything goes wrong. Powell's Books on Hawthorne, 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 238-1668, 7:30 pm
Joe Queenan
Balsamic Dreams. Looking at baby-boomers as "venal, self-obsessed egomaniacs blighted by an insalubrious interest in things like the provenance of their neighbors' balsamic vinegar...a group whose greatest sin lies in confusing lifestyle for life, and pop culture for culture." Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm
Powell's Books Square Deal Sale
More books than you can shake a stick at, from $3.50 down to 50 cents. Cheaper each day. Runs through Friday June 29th. Pioneer Courthouse Square, 701 SW 6th Ave, 9 am-9 pm
Ann Patchett
Bel Canto. A South American vice president, a lovely party, an opera singer, and then enters the band of terrorists, weilding machine guns, breaking in through the air conditioning vent. What do you know--unexpected bonding, ill fated love. Sounds like a movie to me. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm
Harlan Coben
Tell No One. A thriller. A doctor has sudden reason to believe his long-dead wife may be alive... Powell's-Beaverton, 8725 SW Cascade Ave, 643-3131, 7 pm
