Click here for our events calendar to preview upcoming events through the end of December.
Click here for more complete descriptions and to buy signed copies online.
Members always save 20% on event books. Click here to register!

 

 

We are excited to introduce our new series of podcasts, with a recording of our blockbuster author event with Jonathan Franzen. Nine hundred people came to listen to him introduce FREEDOM at Lisner Auditorium. If you missed it or want to hear it again, you can visit this link so you can listen online! Click here!

UPCOMING TICKETED EVENTS

We want to let you know that we are preparing to host several other exciting popular authors - David Grossman, Nicole Krauss, V.S. Naipaul, and Salman Rushdie - at Sixth & I Historic Synagogue. All of these ticketed events are free to patrons who purchase these authors' new books from us. More details below.

 

Go back to top of email

 

P&P will co-host these four events at Sixth & I Historic Synagogue. When you pre-purchase these books from P&P, you will receive two free admission tickets. Space permitting we will also sell books with tickets at the door. Book signings and Q&A will follow each author talk. These events may sell out!

Click the links below for more information and to buy your books and/or admission tickets today!

Thursday, October 14, 7 p.m.
DAVID GROSSMAN - TO THE END OF THE LAND (Knopf, $26.95) - Available Now at P&P

From one of Israel’s most acclaimed writers, To the End of the Land is a novel about family life—the greatest human drama—and the cost of war. Evoking the ever-present intrusion of war into the daily life of Israelis, Grossman’s novel tells the story of Ora, a woman whose son, Ofer, who is about to leave the army, and instead goes to the front. To endure the anxiety, Ora leaves home with an old friend, an artist turned recluse after a brutal POW experience. Together the two recall old times and slowly reaffirm the values that give their lives meaning. Grossman vividly depicts the reality and surrealism of daily life in Israel, the currents of ambivalence about war within one household, and the burdens that fall on each generation.

Monday, October 18, 7 p.m.
NICOLE KRAUSS - GREAT HOUSE (W.W. Norton, $24.95) - Pre-purchase Now - Available Oct. 5

Like the heirloom desk at its center, this novel is intricately and sturdily composed of niches and compartments, secret drawers and histories, each of them telling its own story and contributing to a larger one. From an American novelist to a poet in Pinochet’s Chile, from a woman dying in London to an antiques dealer in Jerusalem, Krauss weaves a powerful narrative of epic sweep. 

Nicole Krauss is the author of Man Walks into a Room and the international bestseller The History of Love. In 2010, The New Yorker named her one of the 20 best writers under 40.


Thursday, October 21, 7 p.m.
V.S. NAIPAUL -THE MASQUE OF AFRICA: Glimpses of African Belief (Knopf, $26.95) - Pre-purchase Now - Available Oct. 19

From Uganda to Ghana and Nigeria, around the Ivory Coast and Gabon, and on to South Africa, the Nobel laureate’s latest work of travel and culture looks at the role of belief throughout the African continent. Considering native faiths based in animism as well as religions introduced from other areas of the world, Naipaul has synthesized a wide range of history, practices, and peoples to tell one more portion of the larger story of human civilization.

Wednesday, November 17, 7 p.m.
SALMAN RUSHDIE - Luka and the Fire of Life (Random House, $25) - Pre-purchase Now - Available Nov. 16

With the same imagination that has made Salman Rushdie one of the great storytellers of our time, Luka and the Fire of Life revisits the magic-infused, intricate world he first brought to life in the modern classic Haroun and the Sea of Stories.

This new novel centers on Luka, Haroun’s younger brother, who must save his father from certain doom by traveling to the Magic World and stealing the Fire of Life. Thus begins a quest full of unlikely creatures, strange alliances, and seemingly insurmountable challenges as Luka and his assorted of enchanted companions race through peril after peril, pass through the land of the Badly Behaved Gods, and reach the Fire itself, where Luka’s fate, and that of his father, will be decided. Filled with mischievous wordplay and themes as universal as the power of filial love and the meaning of mortality, Luka and the Fire of Life is a book of wonders for all ages.

Please note: From the day the books are released until the day of the event, ticket-holders may collect their books and tickets at P&P. On the day of the event, books and tickets will only be available for Will Call at 6 p.m. at Sixth & I. Signed books may be shipped after the event.

 

Go back to top of email

 

Politics & Prose does National Novel Writing Month

October hints at the dismal November weather to come. You are inside.  The new episode of Grey's Anatomy is on TV.   Yet, as you sink down deeper into the sofa, clutching the remote, you wonder quietly to yourself, "Wouldn't it be better to create, rather than to simply consume?"

You think about it.  Your brain quietly churns creamy thoughts into extravagant ice-cream realizations...

"...There's that novel... the one I've been meaning to write," you exclaim.  "Thank God/Allah/Zeus/L. Ron Hubbard that at least Politics & Prose is on the ball!"  There are many things you know, but none so clearly meaningful, so profound, so relevant as this one simple thing that I am about to tell you.

Politics & Prose -- or at least a couple of its staff members – will be taking part in the National Novel Writing Month. Click here to learn more.

- Lars Townsend

Go back to top of email

 

Britain in the 16th Century - - Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Additional class added due to popular request!
Monday, October 11 (Columbus Day), 1-3 p.m.
Instructors: Virginia Newmyer and Susan Willens

Henry VIII wants a divorce; the Pope forbids it. Enter Thomas Cromwell, the King's brilliant commoner to transform the Tudor power structure and advocate for the English reformation. This dramatic situation forms the center of Hilary Mantel's novel, Wolf Hall, which traces Cromwell's amazing career from gutter to glory.

In this class, Virginia Newmyer sets the historical stage for Britain's uneasy renunciation of the Roman Catholic Church. Susan Willens discusses how Hilary Mantel brings Thomas Cromwell and his era to new life.

Click here to buy a copy of Wolf Hall. (Discounted 20% for participants.)
Register for the class at Politics & Prose or by clicking here. ($15 for P&P members, $20 for non-members)

 

Go back to top of email

P&P Members always save 20% on our top twelve FICTION and NON-FICTION hardcover bestsellers.
Click the titles to read more about these books and to buy them from Politics & Prose.

FICTION and POETRY

1. Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $28)
2. Zero History, by William Gibson (Putnam, $26.95)
3. To the End of the Land, by David Grossman (Knopf, $26.95)
4. The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, by David Mitchell (Random House, $26)
5. Room, by Emma Donoghue (Little, Brown, $24.99) Man Booker Shortlist
6. Human Chain: Poems, by Seamus Heaney (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $24)
7. The Cookbook Collector, by Allegra Goodman (Dial, $26)
8. What Is Left the Daughter, by Howard Norman (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $25) Signed copies available
9. The Widower's Tale, by Julia Glass (Pantheon, $25.95)
10. By Nightfall, by Michael Cunningham (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $25)
11. Super Sad True Love Story, by Gary Shteyngart (Random House, $26) Signed copies available
12. C, by Tom McCarthy (Knopf, $25.95)

NONFICTION

1. The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration, by Isabel Wilkerson (Random House, $30)
2. Dreaming in Chinese: Mandarin Lessons In Life, Love, and Language, by Deborah Fallows (Walker, $22)
3. Making Our Democracy Work: A Judge's View, by Stephen Breyer (Knopf, $26.95)
4. Bob Dylan In America, by Sean Wilentz (Doubleday, $28.95)
5. The Grace of Silence: A Memoir, by Michele Norris (Pantheon, $24.95)
6. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, by Jon Stewart (Grand Central, $27.99)
7. Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured an Allied Victory, by Ben Macintyre (Crown, $25.99)
8. Baby, We Were Meant for Each Other: In Praise of Adoption, by Scott Simon (Random House, $22)
9. The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival, by John Vaillant (Knopf, $26.95)
10. Overhaul: An Insider's Account of the Obama Administration's Emergency Rescue of the Auto Industry, by Steven Rattner (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $27)
11. C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy, by Jeff Sharlet (Little, Brown, $26.99)
12. Let's Take the Long Way Home: A Memoir of Friendship, by Gail Caldwell (Random House, $23)

Go back to top of emaii

 

The War That Killed Achilles (Penguin, $16) is an insightful and original exposition of Homer’s epic poem, The Iliad. Caroline Alexander investigates the importance of Achilles’s defiance of Agamemnon, and his sorrowful plea to his immortal mother, Thetis, to avenge his wounded honor. The book addresses both personal honor and what it means to fight for other people’s ends. Alexander succeeds wonderfully in widening her scope from a study of Homer to an intricate and detailed account of what war-time sacrifices truly mean. - Adam Waterreus

The Junior Officers' Reading Club: Killing Time and Fighting Wars (Riverhead, $16) by Patrick Hennessey - about reading, writing, and fighting in Afghanistan - is back in stock. Jonathan Yardley wrote last week, "a dark book at times, but it's also smart and funny. Hennessey's account of his training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst is absolutely delicious, self-mocking and irreverent."

And just in time for Halloween, an original paperback short story collection: My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me: Forty New Fairy Tales (Penguin, $17), edited by Kate Bernheimer, introduced by Gregory Maguire with contributions from a whole range of fabulous authors - Kevin Brockmeier, Neil Gaiman, Michael Cunningham, Shelley Jackson, Ludmilla Petrushevskaya, Joyce Carol Oates, and so many more! Pick some out to read at your Halloween party or simply put yourself in the mood for magic and mayhem!

Click FICTION or NONFICTION to see and buy more recently released paperbacks.

Go back to top of emaii

 

If you can't attend a talk, but would like to reserve a signed copy or a recorded author talk, click the title links to purchase online. P&P members save 20% on these author event titles.

Thursday September 30

Jim Arnosky - Man Gave Names to All the Animals
10:30 a.m. The classic Bob Dylan song provides the text for the gorgeous, lush drawings by naturalist Jim Arnosky. Animals from all over the world inhabit his Eden, each awaiting its name. Mr. Arnosky will bring his guitar and give his rendition of the song; an original Bob Dylan recording comes with the book. (Ages 3-6)

Gal Beckerman - When They Come for Us, We'll Be Gone
7 p.m. Between the end of World War II and 1989, Jews in the Soviet Union were unwanted yet not allowed to leave. Based on newly released government documents and interviews with activists and refusniks, Beckerman's story of the Soviet Jews' long struggle for freedom is also an account of how human rights gained prominence in American foreign policy.

Friday October 1

Keith Jeffery - The Secret History of MI6
7 p.m. The world's first spy agency, Britain's MI6 was formed just before the First World War. For this authorized history of the organization, Jeffery, professor of British history at Queen's University, Belfast, was granted access to hitherto secret archives. His very colorful history starts with the chaotic early days and traces the development of classic spy-master techniques.
This event is co-sponsored with Washington, D.C.'s International Spy Museum. More information at www.spymuseum.org.

Saturday October 2

Matthew Zapruder - Come On All You Ghosts
1 p.m. This award-winning poet's third collection uses vivid imagery, startling jump cuts, and other energetic techniques to update the classic genres of love poem, elegy, and ode. The powerful title work combines elements of each of these modes as Zapruder salutes his late father, literary heroes, and other mentors.

Scott Simon - Baby, We Were Meant for Each Other
3:30 p.m. The host of NPR's Weekend Edition is also the father of two adopted daughters. How he, his wife, and these little girls became a family is one story here; considering all the things "family" can mean, Simon sought out other adoptive parents and adds their diverse range of experiences and observations to his own.

Mark Feldstein - Poisoning the Press
6 p.m. In their long, public, and very dirty fight, Richard Nixon and the columnist Jack Anderson set the stage for the contentious relationship between government and the press that Feldstein—a George Washington University professor of media and public affairs—sees continuing today.

Sunday October 3

Mark Ozer - Massachusetts Avenue in the Gilded Age
1 p.m. The latest tour of D.C. from the city's resident historian runs from Union Station to Dupont Circle, traverses elegant Embassy Row and takes in the imposing National Cathedral. In addition to expert commentary on the Avenue's architecture, Ozer illuminates the lives of the socialites, celebrities, politicians, and others who lived and visited there.

Thanassis Cambanis - A Privilege to Die
5 p.m. Made up of middle-class professionals as well as the unemployed, the Party of God is at once a standing army, a political party, and a theological movement. In his thorough, detailed presentation of Hezbollah, the veteran Middle East correspondent goes to the heart of this complex and uncompromising organization by following the activities of a few of its members.

 

Monday October 4

Harold Ford, Jr. - More Davids than Goliaths
7 p.m. Ford was 26 when he won a seat in Congress, where he served for ten years. He gained national attention with the keynote address at the 2000 Democratic convention and with a heartbreakingly close defeat in the race for Tennessee Senator in 2006. In his political memoir Ford passes along the lessons of his experiences, especially his belief that "leadership in government can solve, inspire, and heal."

Tuesday October 5

Fred Bowen - Throwing Heat
10:30 a.m. Last year Jack's pitches were the fastest in his league. But this year he's in a different league and he isn't striking out batters the way he was. Can Jack learn more control and some new pitches? Bowen has a regular feature in The Washington Post "KidsPost."  (Ages 9-11)

Steven Johnson - Where Good Ideas Come From
7 p.m. Following popular books on singular breakthroughs, such as The Invention of Air and Mind Wide Open, Johnson, a Wired contributing editor, here looks at the phenomenon of the eureka moment in general. Using neurobiology and history, he explores the cultural and psychological factors at work in innovation, and identifies seven key principles of inventiveness.

Wednesday October 6

Mary Catherine Bateson - Composing a Further Life
7 p.m. Bateson's sequel to her 1991 Composing a Life is a rich and inspiring picture of "Adulthood II," the years after work and child-rearing when people can apply their experience and wisdom to new projects. Extensive interviews with a boatyard worker turned silversmith, a former dean involved in community building, and Jane Fonda, among others, show how aging can be "an improvisational art form."

Thursday October 7

Brian Floca - Ballet for Martha
10:30 a.m. Martha Graham's dream ballet was realized when she teamed up with the composer Aaron Copland and the sculptor Isamu Noguchi to create Appalachian Spring. With his lovely watercolor images, Floca, a 2010 Sibert Award winner, brings to life the story of the making of this American classic. (Ages 7-10)

Maxine Kumin - Where I Live & The Roots of Things
7 p.m. In her long, distinguished career, Kumin has written 16 books of poetry, won the Pulitzer and Ruth Lilly Prizes, and the Frost Medal, and served as Poetry Consultant to the Library of Congress. She's also found time to write novels, essays, and children's books, as well as run a horse farm in New Hampshire. Her two most recent collections of essays and poems continue her rich engagement with nature, family, and language.

Friday October 8

Seth Stern - Justice Brennan
7 p.m. Co-written with Stephen Wermiel, who conducted extensive interviews with Brennan over the course of six years and was given access to the Justice's court and personal papers, this chronicle of Brennan's life and career reveals the strategizing behind major court cases, the working relationship between Brennan and Chief Justice Earl Warren, and much more. 

Saturday October 9

Diane Rehm - Life With Maxie
1 p.m. In her heartwarming book of stories and photos, the renowned NPR host celebrates her best friend, the long-haired Chihuahua, Maxie, and discusses the positive impact a dog can have on a person's life.

Ron Chernow - Washington
6 p.m. The National Book Award-winning biographer of J.P Morgan, Alexander Hamilton, and others here gives a rich, full account of the first president, delving into his private life as well as chronicling his public accomplishments. Chernow undercuts the standard view of Washington as dispassionate and laconic, finding evidence that he was also fiercely opinionated.

Sunday October 10

Mother/Daughter Tea with Authors Jennifer Allison - Gilda Joyce: The Dead Drop & Caroline Hickey - Isabelle's Boyfriend
4 p.m. Join us for a mother-daughter chat with the authors (to be held downstairs in the Remainder Room). Allison and Hickey will discuss teen reading, writing for teens, and their own recent books. When we last saw Allison's heroine, Gilda Joyce had landed a summer internship at the International Spy Museum and suspected Russian spies were in D.C. Ghosts from the Cold War helped her uncover clues. Hickey's hilarious novel is about two girls interested in the same boy, with ensuing complications. Mothers and their daughters are invited for light refreshments, and an informal discussion of young-adult themes such as friendship, rivalry, and other age-appropriate issues. Attendees will receive a goodie bag with bookmarks, and a 20% discount coupon for the authors' books for the day. (Suggested ages 10-14)

For information on purchasing $6 admission tickets, please click here or contact the P&P Children's Department. Enrollment is limited.

 

Judith Viorst - Unexpectedly Eighty
5 p.m. What's in store for the rising octogenarian? In her latest look at a dreaded decade, the witty versifier finds plenty to look forward to. There are great-grandchildren, third helpings of dessert, and memory loss to help you forgive and forget. And after the cataract surgery, you'll see things in a whole new light.

To see the complete schedule and to purchase any of the above books, click here.

 

Go back to top of email

 

Thursday, September 30, 6 p.m.

Perry's Restaurant
1811 Columbia Road, NW
ARI WEINZWEIG
ZINGERMAN'S GUIDE TO BETTER BACON (Zingerman's Press, $29.99)
James Beard award-winner Ari Weinzweig guides you on a personal tour of bacon's long and curious history. Rebecca Powers of Hour Detroit Magazine says, "Some books whet a thirst for knowledge. This one stirs a gnawing hunger for meat … Weinzweig's ode to bacon offers . . . folksy writing, food lore, trivia, and 42 recipes," so you can put your new-found bacon expertise to use right away! Ari will also talk about his forthcoming book, Zingerman's Guide to Good Leading, Part 1: A Lapsed Anarchist's Approach to Building a Great Business.

 

Tuesday, October 5, 7 p.m.

Sixth & I Historic Synagogue
600 I Street, NW
Metro: Gallery Place/Chinatown
MARK BITTMAN
THE FOOD MATTERS COOKBOOK: Lose Weight and Heal the Planet with More Than 500 Recipes (Simon & Schuster, $35)

Mark Bittman, the author of the weekly New York Times column, "The Minimalist," offers over 500 recipes for fresh, delicious dishes that rely largely on fruits, vegetables and whole grains. The book also discusses why food matters to our health and to that of the planet. There's information on what ingredients are best and how to buy seasonally, responsibly, and sustainably.
Tickets are $12, or receive 2 FREE tickets with the purchase of the book ($35) through Sixth & I. Questions? Please call 202-408-3100.

Thursday, October 7, 7:30 p.m.

National Geographic Society
1600 M Street, NW
JENNIFER JORDAN
THE LAST MAN ON THE MOUNTAIN: The Death of an American Adventurer on K2 (W.W. Norton $26.95)

Jennifer Jordan tells the story of Dudley Wolfe, an American socialite, who in 1939 attempted to summit K2, only to become its first victim when he was abandoned—dehydrated and suffering from altitude sickness—at 25,000 feet. In a tale of adventure and tragedy, Wolfe travels from the parlors of Boston to one of Earth's most forbidding landscapes. Author of the book Savage Summit, Jordan has lived at the base of K2, where in 2002 she discovered Wolfe's remains. Click here to buy $18 tickets (3-part Quest for Adventure Series: $48); NG Members: $16 (3-part series: $42).

Co-sponsored with Booz Allen Hamilton

Friday, October 8, 7:30 p.m.

National Geographic Society
1600 M Street, NW

JEAN-MICHEL COUSTEAU
MY FATHER, THE CAPTAIN: My Life with Jacques Cousteau (National Geographic, $26)
Since the age of seven—when he was tossed overboard, scuba gear and all, by his legendary father—Jean-Michel Cousteau has explored the ocean realm. An award-winning documentary filmmaker, Cousteau used his work to persuade President Bush to declare the Northwest Hawaiian Islands a Marine National Monument. His new book celebrates the centennial of the older Cousteau's birth and offers an intimate look at the life Jean-Michel shared with his father. Click here to buy $20 tickets ($18, NG Members).

Presented in honor of the centennial of Jacques Cousteau's birth.

Friday, October 8, 7:30 p.m

Folger Shakespeare Library
201 East Capitol Street, S.E.
PEN/Faulkner Presents

An Evening with COLUM McCANN

LET THE GREAT WORLD SPIN (Random House, $15)
Irish-born and internationally bestselling author Colum McCann won the National Book Award for Let the Great World Spin. He has also written Zoli, Dancer, This Side of Brightness, and Songdogs, as well as two critically acclaimed story collections. His fiction has been published in thirty languages and he has been a finalist for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, among others. His short film Everything in This Country Must was a 2005 Oscar nominee. He teaches at Hunter College and lives in New York City with his wife and children.  Click here to buy $15 tickets.

Tuesday, October 12, 7:30 p.m.

National Geographic Society
1600 M Street, NW

K. DAVID HARRISON

THE LAST SPEAKERS: The Quest to Save the World's Most Endangered Languages (National Geographic, $27)
By 2100, half of the 7,000 languages spoken on earth—many not yet recorded—may disappear. As head of National Geographic's Enduring Voices Project, Swarthmore linguistics professor K. David Harrison documents endangered languages and their associated culture, history, and environment. Harrison's new book chronicles his expeditions around the world. Spend an evening with him as he shares the eloquent reflections of individuals who know they may indeed be the last people to speak their native languages. Click here to purchase $18 tickets ($16, NG Members).

Go back to top of email

CHILDREN'S BOOK OF THE WEEK
(20% off through 10/06/2010)

THE CHIRU OF HIGH TIBET (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $17.99) look like antelope, but are related to wild goats and sheep. Their wool, shahtoosh, is the warmest and finest in the world. When people discovered beautiful shahtoosh shawls, chiru were killed for their wool. But the chiru had a secret: no one knew where the females migrated every summer to give birth. Scientist George Schaller was determined to protect these animals and their birth place from poachers. Jacqueline Briggs Martin (Snowflake Bentley) tells the true story of the chiru and the trekkers who made the treacherous journey to find and protect the chiru birthing grounds. Linda Wingerter's pastel paintings evoke the cold desolation and beauty of the northern plains of Tibet. The book concludes with color photographs of the expedition and a bibliography. Ages 6-9 - Heidi Powell

Read about - and buy - more of our favorite books for children and teens by clicking here. 

Teachers - from pre-school through grade 12 - and school and public librarians are eligible for Politics and Prose's educator's discount program.  To qualify for a 20% discount on books purchased for your classroom or library and a 10% discount on personal purchases, please bring a current ID for the 2010-2011 academic year to the children's and teens' department to update your file.

PARTNERSHIP FRIDAYS
Politics & Prose is delighted to support the local community with Partnership Fridays by joining with area businesses, government agencies and nonprofits, and the schools or literacy projects they support.

Upcoming Partnership Fridays:
October 1: A Wider Circle www.awidercircle.org
October 8: Marie Reed Elementary School and Fannie Mae, the inspiration behind our Partnership Fridays, celebrate their 5th anniversary as a partnership.

To learn more about Partnership Fridays and to schedule one of your own, contact Mary Alice Garber mgarber@politics-prose.com or Heidi Powell at hpowell@politics-prose.com.

Please join us for Storytime on Mondays at 10:30 a.m., BearSong, the Guitar Man, is back after several years' hiatus, leading stories, songs, finger plays, and more for children from birth to 4 years old and their caregivers.

 

Release Party for Heroes of Olympus #1: Lost Hero
Tuesday, October 12, 3:30 - 4:30 p.m.

Join us for:

• Nectar and ambrosia
• 20% discount on Lost Hero
• Camp Half Blood trivia games
• Raffle with prizes -Grand prize!: a voucher for a free copy of the next Kane Chronicles book, title to be announced!

For upcoming events and more from the Children and Teens' Department, click here.

Go back to top of email

Go back to top of email