If you require clearer text or layout, please click here |
|||||||
Greetings From Politics and Prose!
|
|||||||
Shortcut Bar: Click below to skip to popular destinations |
|||||||
UPCOMING EVENTS IN BRIEF |
|||||||
HOURS OF OPERATION Politics & Prose will close an hour early on Sunday, May 2 at 7 p.m. for a staff function.
Click here for our events calendar and preview upcoming events through May.
|
|||||||
Thursday April 29 Friday April 30 Saturday May 1 Sunday May 2 Monday May 3
|
Tuesday May 4 Wednesday May 5 Thursday May 6 Friday May 7 Saturday May 8
|
||||||
LETTER FROM BARBARA & CARLA | |||||||
MOTHER'S DAY Mother's Day is May 8th this year. We have already begun thinking about the gifts we would like to receive and to share this year. You can see our suggestions and wish lists below or by clicking here. At both entrances to the store, on the lower level between the coffeeshop and the Children's Department and to the left when you walk in the front door, we also have a display of the biggest and best Mother's Day card selection in town. Please come in the store to browse and choose the ones that are best for the mothers in your life! We would also like to draw your attention to the option of our Book-a-Month Gift Program. With our help, you can easily give the gift of carefully hand-selected books for your mother all year round. When you talk with our gift program coordinator, Caroline Ketcham, you can design the selections to your budget and your mother's reading preferences, so that you can benefit from our booksellers' knowledge and skill throughout the year! Click here for more information!
THE BIG READ DC This coming Sunday, May 2nd, 5 p.m., Politics & Prose will host the second of our two Big Read DC events for the provocative and profound novel A LESSON BEFORE DYING by Ernest J. Gaines. When Gaines presented an almost clinical examination of the workings of the criminal justice system in a small Louisiana town in the late 1940s, he wrote against the backdrop of historic legal injustices such as the notorious Scottsboro Case of the 1930s. GWU English and African-American Studies Professor James A. Miller (author of Remembering Scottsboro: The Legacy of an Infamous Trial) will lead us in exploring some of the historical precedents for The Anatomy of Justice in "A Lesson Before Dying." This discussion will include an examination of the historical, social, and political dimensions of the criminal justice system as portrayed in Gaines's novel. We are excited about participating in this city-wide book group and discussion, and we encourage you to visit the DC Public Library website to take advantage of more events at venues across Washington. As is always true with registered book groups, anyone who buys A LESSON BEFORE DYING (Vintage, $13) from us will be entitled to a 20% book group discount. The National Endowment for the Arts has created a radio show as an introduction to the book. Listen to it by clicking here. The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for Arts in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest.
|
|||||||
CARLA COMMENTS | |||||||
Kai Bird - CROSSING MANDELBAUM’S GATE (Scribner, $30) This is the most compassionate, even-handed history of the Middle East that I have read. As Kai Bird says, “I now realize that no one can comprehend the Middle’s East’s Nakba without an understanding of Europe’s Shoah.” A tragedy indeed - in which two dispossessed peoples claim the same land. Bird’s account gives us a full history of the making of the modern Middle East from Saudi Arabia to Palestine/ Israel, from Egypt to Lebanon. In this relatively short book, Bird offers a course in modern history, including Nasser’s secular Egypt, on one hand, and the intensely religious closed society of Saudi Arabia. The United States always chose a short term fix. Here is what Bird says about Arabia: "In the 1960s we opposed the Free Princes and their reformist plans for a constitutional monarchy. Both Aramco (the oil company) and Washington valued stability in the form of an absolute monarchy over the uncertainty of any alternative…All of this was done because of our desire to control Arabian black gold." In Egypt: "The Agency had a long-standing relationship with Nasser’s most implacable enemy—the Muslim Brotherhood…'We thought of Islam as a counterweight to communism,' said Talcott Seelye, a foreign service officer." In Jordan, the United States supported Hashemite King Hussein over the Palestinians even though half of the population of Jordan was Palestinian. Nixon, with Kissinger’s backing opposed a pro-Palestinian state. "Neither the Nixon administration nor the Israelis could stomach the notion of a Palestinian state on the east bank of the River Jordon." Bird wonders what would have happened had a Palestinian state emerged in 1970. The last 100 pages are about the Holocaust and the emergence of modern Israel, a nation deeply divided about its geography and inclusiveness since its beginnings. Kai Bird is a historian who has won much acclaim - for his biographies of John McCloy and the Bundy brothers and particularly for American Prometheus, the brilliant portrait of Robert Oppenheimer which Bird wrote with Martin J. Sherwin, and which won many awards for its co-authors. So you can be assured of exemplary historical writing. What is remarkable in Crossing Mandelbaum’s Gate is that Bird so gracefully weaves his own history. As the son of a Foreign Service officer who was stationed in those countries, he grew up with the events that set into motion the terrible quandary we now know as the Middle East. He claims no special knowledge, but a special concern and empathy. Kai Bird will appear at Politics & Prose on May 5.
|
|||||||
BOOKSELLER RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE WEEK | |||||||
In anticipation of Mother's Day, our booksellers have chosen suggestions that we think the mothers in our lives would love to receive. Click here for more of our selections. WASHINGTON AT HOME, edited by Kathryn Schneider Smith (Johns Hopkins Univ., $45) Congratulations to Kathryn Smith for her brand new second edition of the book she lovingly edited 12 years ago. Not only has she updated the neighborhood descriptions and included new photos to reflect the changes in the last decade, but more communities been added. Smith and her accomplished colleagues, who contributed many of the chapters, emphasize that the city of Washington is a city of distinctive neighborhoods with long histories, not just a stage set for national politics. This lively book will be welcomed by many Washington residents. - Carla Cohen MAJOR PETTIGREW'S LAST STAND by Helen Simonson (Random House, $25) For those who liked The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, Helen Simonson’s charming new book is sure to please. In a small English country town, where everyone knows everyone else’s business, an elderly widower grapples with the recent loss of his brother - and of his wife six years before. The future looks bleak until our hero allows himself to pursue a romantic relationship with a Pakistani shopkeeper from the village. Despite cultural differences and annoying family interventions, Major Pettigrew finds that love the second time around can be surprisingly exhilarating. - Tracey Filar Atwood IN THE GREEN KITCHEN: Techniques to Learn by Heart by Alice Waters (Clarkson Potter, $28) Alice Water’s newest cookbook grew out of an event in San Francisco called Slow Food Nation. There, Waters brought together chefs from all over the world to demonstrate cooking techniques, such as Rick Bayless, Charlie Trotter, Lidia Bastianich, David Chang, and our own Joan Nathan. In her new book, Waters profiles these chefs and offers recipes highlighting their techniques. As always, she stresses the value of fresh, local ingredients. It’s a gorgeous book, full of great recipes and a perfect Mother’s Day present. - Mark LaFramboise THE CHILDREN'S BOOK, by A.S. Byatt (Knopf, $26.95) For Olive Wellwood, the grand matriarch of this large dysfunctional family and popular author of children's stories, every day is Mother's Day, but this mother is deeply embedded in an intellectual and artistic community in Edwardian London. Nevertheless, there are many mother "issues" that exist in many worlds: control and letting go, fantasy vs. reality, and private vs. public lives. There’s enough in this expansive novel to keep mom reading right through the summer. - Barbara Meade Click here for more of our booksellers' recommendations for mothers! And click here for suggestions for young children to share with their moms!
|
|||||||
TICKETED EVENTS ON SALE NOW | |||||||
The author of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Rick Riordan will present and sign his new book, which begins a new series and introduces his fans to an entirely different pantheon of gods! Click here for important information about advance book purchase and event details.
Thursday, May 13, 7 p.m.
|
|||||||
BESTSELLERS | |||||||
P&P members always save 20% on our top twelve FICTION and NON-FICTION hardcover bestsellers. To purchase these books, click the titles. #1 Every Last One by Anna Quindlen (Random House, $26) |
|||||||
NEW IN PAPERBACK | |||||||
These two titles were both store favorites when they were in hardcover. Click FICTION or NON-FICTION to browse a more complete selection of recent paperback releases.
SHOP CLASS AS SOULCRAFT (Penguin Press, $15) by Matthew Crawford |
|||||||
COMING NOW TO YOUR FAVORITE BOOKSTORE |
|||||||
If you can't attend a talk, but would like to reserve a signed copy or a recorded author talk,
Thursday April 29 Andrew Young and Kabir Sehgal - Walk in My Shoes Friday April 30 Robert Remini - At the Edge of the Precipice Saturday May 1 Kathryn Smith - Washington at Home Warren Brown - United Cakes of America David Goodwillie - American Subversive
Sunday May 2 Sandra Beasley - I Was the Jukebox 2010 Big Read w/ James A. Miller - "The Anatomy of Justice in 'A Lesson Before Dying'"
Monday May 3 Daniel Clowes - Wilson Tuesday May 4 Bernard Waber & Paulis Waber - Lyle Walks the Dogs 7 p.m. Andrea Levy - The Long Song - CANCELLED DUE TO VOLCANIC ASH
Wednesday May 5 Kai Bird - Crossing Mandelbaum Gate Thursday May 6 J&P Voelkel - The Jaguar Stones: Middleworld Rick Riordan - The Kane Chronicles, Book One: The Red Pyramid Lisa Shannon - A Thousand Sisters Friday May 7 Graham Robb - Parisians Saturday May 8 Howell S. Baum - Brown in Baltimore Todd Kliman - The Wild Vine
To see the complete schedule and to purchase any of the above books, click here. |
|||||||
P&P CUSTOMERS ARE ALSO INVITED TO... | |||||||
Thursday, April 29, 7:30 p.m. National Geographic Society Friday, April 30, 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. The Liaison Capitol Hill Friday, April 30, 8 p.m. Discovering Stories That Need to Be Told Monday, May 3, 7 p.m. Sixth & I Historic Synagogue Tuesday, May 4, 7:30 PM. National Geographic Society Thursday, May 6, 7:30 p.m. George Washington University Saturday, May 8, 7 p.m. at the Folger Shakespeare Library 201 East Capitol St., SE PEN/Faulkner Presents 30th annual PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction Ceremony and Dinner Join us for an evening of celebration as we honor the 2010 PEN/Faulkner Winner--Sherman Alexie--and four finalists: Barbara Kingsolver, Lorraine M. Lopéz, Lorrie Moore, and Colson Whitehead. A ceremony featuring readings by the five honorees and three judges will be followed by a dinner, catered by Susan Gage. Tickets are $100 and may be purchased by phoning the Folger Box Office at 202-544-7077 or visiting www.folger.edu/penfaulkneraward. Sunday, May 9, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Dupont Circle FRESHFARM Market LOUISA SHAFIA Wednesday, May 12, 7 p.m. Sixth & I Historic Synagogue AYELET WALDMAN Click here to purchase advance tickets ($8 or one (1) FREE ticket with the purchase of the $15 book). through sixthandi.org. Tickets are $10 the day of the event. If you have questions, please call 202.408.3100. Wednesday, May 12, 7:30 p.m. National Geographic Society Would the world be a better place if human societies curbed their desires for material goods? In his provocative new book, scholar and environmental visionary Saleem H. Ali suggests that the answer is not so simple. He proposes a new environmental paradigm that accepts our need to consume resources, while urging conservation as well. Click here to purchase $18 tickets ($15, NG Members). Thursday, May 13, 7:30 p.m Friendship Heights Village Center In addition to being a correspondent and an editor for Marketplace Money, he is economics correspondent for the business program Marketplace and American Radio Works, and a contributing economics editor at Business Week magazine. Please RSVP for this FREE event by calling the Village Center at 301-656-2797. Thursday, May 13, 7:30 p.m. National Geographic Society Friday, May 14, 8:30 – 10:30 a.m. Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center MUHAMMAD YUNUS
Saturday, May 15, 1 p.m. National Geographic Society
|
|||||||
FROM THE CHILDREN AND TEENS' DEPARTMENT | |||||||
(20% off through 05/06/2010) A BOY HAD A MOTHER WHO BOUGHT HIM A HAT (HarperCollins, $16.99), and the boy loves his woolly red hat so much that he never takes it off. Then, his mother buys him a mouse in a house, and black rubber boots, and bright yellow skis, and a Halloween mask, and an elegant cello, and a tall grey elephant. The boy carries his gifts everywhere, never leaving a single one behind, and building a rhyming, tongue-twisting list that grows longer with each new present. Kevin Hawkes's delightful new illustrations meld with Karla Kuskin's classic writing to create a perfect read-aloud. Ages 3-6. - Dana Chidiac Come into the store or click here to check out our display of Mother's Day books!
Read about - and buy - more of our favorite books for children by clicking here. Lisa Chaplin-Hobbs hosts story time for young children every Monday morning at 10:30 a.m.
For upcoming events and more from the Children and Teens' Department, click here. |
|||||||
MARKDOWN BOOKS | |||||||
Close out Poetry Month (but keep reading poems!) with the witty, surprising gems of our Poet Laureate, Kay Ryan. SAY UNCLE includes “Deferred Silence”: There is a/deferred silence/which only follows/a deferred sound./As when an oak falls/when no one is around./The violence waits/for someone to approach/to have just stopped./There is that ozone /freshness to the aftershock.” Available in paperback, $5.98. For some twenty years, Bill McKibben has been speaking out about climate change and sustainable living, and he recently presented his new book, Eaarth, to a packed house here at Politics & Prose. In ENOUGH: Staying Human in an Engineered Age, he examines some of humanity’s technical achievements, such as genetic engineering, nanotechnology, and robotics, and looks at the implications of each one in terms of their effect on the world as well as on what it means to be human. McKibben is not a luddite, and he recognizes the benefits our inventions have brought us. But he also wants us to keep in mind our special ability to recognize limits. Available in paperback, $5.98. Krista Tippett’s new Einstein’s God has been highly praised for its thoughtful presentation of science and religion. Tippett’s first book, named after her popular Public Radio show, SPEAKING OF FAITH, is a wide-ranging discussion about the origins and meanings of faith. She considers what role spirituality plays in a secular age, and how traditions can change with changing social realities; looks at questions of religion and politics, and how faith can ameliorate social injustice. All in all, she works to get beyond dogma to fresh and sustaining notions of the spirit. Available in hardcover, $5.98. Click here to browse more remainders that have recently become available.
|
|||||||
MUSIC NEWS |
|||||||
Mary Chapin Carpenter, THE AGE OF MIRACLES (Zoë/Rounder, $17.98) – This is another beautiful set of songs from Mary Chapin Carpenter. Diane Rehm did a splendid interview with Mary Chapin this Tuesday on WAMU Pablo Aslan, TANGO GRILL (Zoho, $15.99) – Argentinian bassist Pablo Aslan has brought jazz improve to tango classics, and also assembled top-notch groups to handle the assignment. “Tocar a la parilla” (to play on the grill) is to play without written arrangements, and Aslan and his group including bandoneon, piano, violin, trumpet, and drums, bring verve and excitement to 11 tango classics. Aslan played at the Smithsonian in early April, and having seen the group live, I recommend this very highly. Christina Pluhar & L’Arpeggiata, VIA CRUCIS (Virgin, $17.98) – Christina Pluhar and her group, L’Arpeggiata, have made a specialty of 17th-century French, Italian and Neopolitan music, and also bringing back the art of improvisation into this music. Via Crucis focuses on music from Southern Europe, and includes the Corsican choir, Barbara Furtuna. Pluhar also brings in the fantastic countertenor Philippe Jaroussky, and soprano Nurial Rial. Also check out L’Arpeggiata’s other CDs, Monteverdi: Teatro d’Amore, and La Tarantella. The Mynabirds, WHAT WE LOSE IN THE FIRE WE GAIN IN THE FLOOD (Saddle Creek, $13.98) – Laura Burhenn (formerly of DC duo Georgia James) has a big bright voice (a little like Neko Case), and has produced a set of retro-pop and R&B tunes with “echoes of Dusty Springfield and Bobbie Gentry.” Great tunes, great echo-y wall of sound. Gogol Bordello, TRANS-CONTINENTAL HUSTLE (American, $12.98) – Ukrainian-American frontman Eugene Hutz once again mixes punk with Balkan brass, Gypsy accordions and fiddlers, politically-incisive lyrics, and raucous sing-along choruses. The Capitol Steps, LIBERAL SHOP OF HORRORS (Capitol Steps, $13.99) – The DC political comedy group parades another set of smart song parodies such as “Battle Hymn of the Tea Public,” “Return to Spenders,” “Everything’s Coming Up Roguey,” and “Don’t Cry, I’m in Argentina.” Click here for more reviews and news. Please call us at 202-364-1919 to order these CDs. |
|||||||
BOOK GROUPS |
|||||||
BOOK GROUPS
Monday, May 3, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 4, 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 5, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 6, 7:30 p.m.
|
|||||||
NEWS FROM THE COFFEEHOUSE |
|||||||
For news from the coffeehouse, visit the Modern Times blog. |
|||||||
|