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| April 23, 2015 |
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Hello, Readers,
Happy Earth Week! New at Grass Roots, you'll find the latest compelling works from bestselling authors Jon Krakauer and Toni Morrison, political and philosophical non-fiction from Joseph Stiglitz and Barbara Ehrenreich, Wendell Berry and Gary Snyder like you've never read them before, and an exquisite Nikki McClure title for kids.
All calendars in the store are now 60% off, so if you've gotten a late start this year, now is the time to grab yours. Then, to cap off National Poetry Month, mark April 30th as Poem in Your Pocket Day, and participate to receive a coupon! Select one of your favorite poems (or write your own), stop by Grass Roots, and share it with us -- either from your pocket or recited from memory. We'll give you a coupon for 20% off an item, usable immediately (good for one week, until May 7).
Finally, prepare for some exciting new developments...we are thrilled to announce the first Independent Bookstore Day on Saturday, May 2. Please join us for a full day party at the bookstore complete with giveaways, discounts, local authors, food, and drinks! For all the sweet details, see Store News.
We're also sprucing up the Grass Roots website to make your book browsing experience all the more precise, comprehensive, and enjoyable. We can't wait to unveil what's in store!
Read on,
~ Marissa
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New Hardcovers
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by Jon Krakauer
[Non-Fiction]
The Department of Justice investigated 350 sexual assaults reported to the police of Missoula, Montana, between January 2008 and May 2012. Few of these assaults were properly handled by either the university or local authorities, and vanishingly small but highly publicized incidents of false accusations are often used to dismiss a victim's claims in the press. Krakauer chronicles the searing experiences of several women in Missoula -- their fear and self-doubt in the aftermath of rape; the way they were treated by the police, prosecutors, defense attorneys; the public vilification and private anguish; their bravery in pushing forward and what it cost them.
Hardcover; $28.95
Publisher: Doubleday Books; ISBN: 9780385538732
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by Toni Morrison
[Fiction]
 The first novel by Morrison to be set in the present. At the center: a young woman who calls herself Bride, whose stunning blue-black skin is only one element of her confidence and success in life, but which caused her light-skinned mother to deny her even the simplest forms of love. There is Booker, the man Bride loves, and loses to anger. Rain, the mysterious white child with whom she crosses paths. And finally, Bride's mother herself, Sweetness, who takes a lifetime to understand that the sufferings of childhood can shape, and misshape, the life of the adult.
Hardcover; $24.95
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group; ISBN: 9780307594174
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by Joseph E. Stiglitz
[Non-Fiction]
 Stiglitz expands on his bestselling book The Price of Inequality, arguing that inequality is the cumulative result of unjust policies and misguided priorities. He delves into the irresponsible policies -- deregulation, tax cuts, and tax breaks for the 1 percent -- that are turning the American dream into an ever more unachievable myth. With formidable yet accessible economic insight, he urges us to embrace real solutions: increasing taxes on corporations and the wealthy; offering more help to the children of the poor; investing in education, science, and infrastructure; helping out homeowners instead of banks; and, most importantly, doing more to restore the economy to full employment.
Hardcover; $28.95
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; ISBN: 9780393248579
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by Benjamin Percy
[Fiction]
"Percy offers a tip of the hat to American explorers Lewis and Clark in this harrowing postapocalyptic thriller. After a flu pandemic, followed by nuclear war, decimates Earth's population and renders much of the land unlivable, the survivors. . .believe they are the last people alive on the planet. . .[Until] a strange woman [comes] to find Lewis Meriwether, museum curator and some say magician, and take him to Oregon, where there are other people and clean water. . .Percy uses his gift for literary horror, as seen in Red Moon, to create a compelling and at times disturbing story that will leave readers wanting more." - Booklist, Starred Review
Hardcover; $26.00
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; ISBN: 9781455528240
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by Elizabeth Alexander
[Non-Fiction]
"Poet Alexander ( Crave Radiance: New and Selected Poems) tells us at the outset that this memoir about the sudden death of her husband is not a tragedy but rather a love story. . . As Alexander describes, with spellbinding grace, their vital bond, devotion to beauty, and joy in their two sons, her wonder and gratitude for their time together rise up from the page like the scent of the flowers [he] planted for her, the brightness of the colors he loved, and the music of their family conversations. . .A radiant book of love's everlastingness and art's infinite sustenance." - Booklist, Starred Review
Hardcover; $26.00
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; ISBN: 9781455599875
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New Paperbacks
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by Barbara Ehrenreich
[Non-Fiction]
 "Based on a notebook she started when she was 14 after a series of puzzling 'dissociative' episodes that verged on the mystical, Ehrenreich, best-known for her polemics on issues of social justice ( Nickel and Dimed), fashions an intensely engrossing study of her early quest for 'cosmic knowledge'. . . Smart in math and science, non-believing and obedient to her father's instruction to ask always why, Ehrenreich was resolved not to turn out like her [alcoholic] mother, yet she could not quite be the scientist of her father's dreams because she was a girl. . .[but was goaded] to delve deeper into mortality and meaning. . . " - Publishers Weekly
Paperback; $16.00
Publisher: Twelve; ISBN: 9781455501748
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by Gary Snyder and Wendell Berry
[Non-Fiction]
 Two founding members of the counterculture and of the new environmental movement, Gary Snyder and Wendell Berry, could not have imagined the impact their work would have on American political and literary culture, or on one another. They exchanged more than 240 letters from 1973 to 2013, remarkable letters of insight and argument. The two bring out the best in each other, as they grapple with issues of faith and reason, discuss ideas of home and family, worry over the disintegration of community and commonwealth, and share the details of the lives they've chosen to live with their wives and children.
Paperback; $16.95
Publisher: Counterpoint LLC; ISBN: 9781619025462
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by Bernd Heinrich
[Non-Fiction]
 "Naturalist Heinrich ( Life Everlasting) returns with another richly crafted title that immerses readers in the wild world. In this outing he focuses on the mysteries of migration and the homing instinct while also delving into the personal story of his own Maine home. From such expected migrators as birds and butterflies to moths, eels, and grasshoppers, Heinrich's elegant passages (with line drawings) wander in and out of discussions on long travels, dwelling construction (bees are primary players), and home crashers, which include bed bugs and other pests. . . " - Booklist
Paperback; $15.95
Publisher: Mariner Books; ISBN: 9780544484016
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by Lawrence Goldstone
[Non-Fiction]
 "Goldstone (Lefty: An American Odyssey) delivers a riveting narrative about the pioneering era of aeronautics in America and beyond, centering on the intense rivalry between Wilbur and Orville Wright and Glenn Hammond Curtiss. At the dawn of the 20th century, while the Wrights were experimenting with flight at Kitty Hawk, Curtiss was designing engines and motorcycles in upstate New York. The controversial meeting of these competing tinkerers, at the Dayton Fair in 1906, spawned years of legal wrangling during the course of bitter patent wars. Meanwhile, excited masses packed the grandstands to witness the world's newest sport wherein 'spectacle coexisted with death'. . ." - Publishers Weekly
Paperback; $18.00
Publisher: Ballantine Books; ISBN: 9780345538055
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by Stephen Batchelor
[Non-Fiction]
 In this engaging spiritual memoir, Batchelor describes his own training, first as a Tibetan Buddhist and then as a Zen practitioner, and his own direct struggles along his path. Batchelor is best known for his secular or agnostic approach to Buddhism, considering it a constantly evolving culture of awakening rather than a religious system based on immutable dogmas and beliefs. As Buddhism encounters modernity, it enters a vital new phase of its development. Batchelor engages in a critical exploration of Buddhism's role in the modern world, which has earned him both condemnation as a heretic and praise as a reformer.
Paperback; $15.95
Publisher: Counterpoint LLC; ISBN: 9781619025356
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New For Young Readers
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In
by Nikki McClure
[Fiction]
Ages 2 to 5
 "McClure's latest follows a young boy and his tiny toy giraffe through a very busy day of play and imagination, beginning with the conviction that the only place worth being is in: inside, in pajamas, and even in a basket that doubles as a rocket ship that will only fly in inner space. But when he wants to go play in the rain, his adventures shift outside, making 'out' the new 'in'. . .Using only yellow, black, and white, McClure's cut-paper illustrations are filled with amazing detail. . .leaving readers with a cozy sense of wonder and possibility." - Booklist
Hardcover; $16.95
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed; ISBN: 9781419714863
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New Music
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Events at Grass Roots
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Thursday, April 23, at 7:00 p.m.
Grass Roots Books and Music
227 SW 2nd St.
Corvallis, OR
When Al Capone was finally sent to prison in 1931, much of the credit fell to a 28-year-old Prohibition Agent named Eliot Ness, the unlikely leader of the famous Untouchables squad. Updated for paperback based on newly discovered archival material, Perry's critically acclaimed book reveals that Ness's true legacy is something much more profound, and Capone is only the beginning.
Douglas Perry is the author of The Girls of Murder City: Fame, Lust, and the Beautiful Killers Who Inspired Chicago. Perry is an award-winning writer and editor whose work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, The San Jose Mercury News, The Oregonian, Tennis, and many other publications. He lives in Portland, Oregon.
Thor Hanson
Friday, April 24, at 7:00 p.m.
Grass Roots Books and Music
227 SW 2nd St.
Corvallis, OR
 In his new book, Hanson turns his eye to the ubiquitous seed plants that dominate landscapes and define entire ecosystems. Following the winding path that seeds have paved through evolution, natural history, and human culture, he examines the traits and habits that have allowed seeds -- and the plants that bear them -- to be so successful, and to so thoroughly transform our planet.
Thor Hanson is a conservation biologist, Guggenheim Fellow, and Switzer Environmental Fellow. His previous books include Feathers, which won numerous awards including the 2013 John Burroughs Medal and the 2012 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Writing, and The Impenetrable Forest, which won the 2008 USA Book News Award for nature writing.
Greg Warburton
Saturday, May 2, at 3:00 p.m.
Grass Roots Books & Music
227 SW 2nd St.
Corvallis, OR
Warburton's Winning System gives you powerful techniques to quickly and effortlessly focus your mind and control your emotions so you can consistently perform at your best under the pressure of competition. Take advantage of the latest in brain science and energy psychology by applying this comprehensive and innovative set of training tools for mental and emotional self-management.
Greg Warburton grew up living and breathing sports. A traumatic leg amputation at age 27 didn't slow him down-he remains a lifelong athlete. His own life experience and a 30-year counseling career enabled him to develop a training system that transforms athletes into champions.
Ana Maria Spagna
Saturday, May 9, at 6:30 p.m.
Grass Roots Books & Music
227 SW 2nd St.
Corvallis, OR
What skills will you need after a global catastrophe? Whether it's the end of oil, an environmental disaster, or something entirely unforeseen, Ana Maria Spagna outlines 100 skills you'll find indispensable for life after the apocalypse. You'll need to know how to barter, perform basic first aid, preserve food, cut your own hair, clean a chimney, navigate by the stars, stitch a wound, darn socks, and sharpen blades.
Ana Maria Spagna lives in Stehekin, Washington, a remote community in the North Cascades. After working many years on backcountry trail crews, she now teaches at Northwest Institute of Literary Arts. She's the author of three previous books: Now Go Home, Potluck, and Test Ride on the Sunnyland Bus, and the forthcoming Reclaimers.
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Community Events
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Darkside Show Times for 4/24-4/30
-Merchants of Doubt -PG-13 A documentary that looks at pundits-for-hire who present themselves as scientific authorities as they speak about topics like toxic chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and climate change.
-Desert Dancer -PG-13 Afshin Ghaffarian risks everything to start a dance company amidst his home country of Iran's politically volatile climate and the nation's ban on dancing.
-5 to 7 -R An aspiring novelist enters into a relationship with a woman, though there's just one catch: She's married, and the couple can only meet between the hours of 5 and 7 each evening.
-Cheatin' -NR In a fateful bumper car collision, Jake and Ella meet and become the most loving couple in the long history of romance. Bill Plympton!
-What We Do in The Shadows -NR Smarter, fresher, and funnier than a modern vampire movie has any right to be, What We Do in the Shadows is bloody good fun.
Arts/Literary Events
The Poetry Is Political: CALYX Poetry Reading
Thursday, April 23, at 7:00 p.m.
IMAGINE Coffee
5460 SW Philomath Blvd.
Corvallis, OR
In honor of National Poetry Month, CALYX, a fine arts journal and local small press, presents a special reading, The Poetry Is Political! The event will feature guest poets: Connie Eggers, Hannah Baggott, Qwo-Li Driskill, Tammy Robacker, and Amy MacLennan. Following the guest reading, CALYX invites poets and writers in the community to sign up for the Open Mic to read their own work. This event is free and open to the public.
Tragedy Full of Joy: Stories By Bernard Malamud
Majestic Reader's Theatre Company
 Saturday, April 25 at 7:00 p.m. & Sunday, April 26 at 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.
Majestic Theatre Lab
115 SW 2nd St.
Corvallis, OR
In honor of Bernard Malamud's 101st birthday, The Majestic Reader's Theatre Company and The OSU School of Writing, Literature and Film present Tragedy Full Of Joy: Stories by Bernard Malamud, directed by Robert Leff. Elena Passarello, David Turkel, and Robert Leff have adapted four of his short stories: "Steady Customer," "A Wig," "The Jewbird," and "The Magic Barrel." Malamud, a major mid-twentieth century American writer, was a member of the Oregon State English Department from 1949 to 1961. While living in Corvallis, he wrote the novels The Natural, The Assistant, and the short story collection The Magic Barrel, which won the 1959 National Book Award for Fiction.
Mary Christina Wood 
Thursday, April 30, at 7:00 p.m.
LaSells Stewart Center, C&E auditorium
875 SW 26th St.
Corvallis, OR
Environmental law has failed us all. As ecosystems collapse across the globe and the climate crisis intensifies, environmental agencies worldwide use their authority to permit the very harm that they are supposed to prevent. Growing numbers of citizens now realize they must act before it is too late. This book exposes what is wrong with environmental law and offers transformational change based on the public trust doctrine.
Mary Christina Wood is the Philip H. Knight Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the school's Environmental and Natural Resources Law Program at UO.
by David Laskin
Reviewed by Jonathan Katz; sponsored by the Friends of the Library
Wednesday, May 13, at 12:00 to 1:30 p.m.
Corvallis-Benton County Public Library
645 NW Monroe Ave.
Corvallis, OR
Willamette Writers on the River: Monthly Meeting
Chris Bernard
Talk Title TBA
Monday, May 18, at 6:30-8:30 p.m.
First Presbyterian Church, Dennis Hall
114 SW 8th St.
Corvallis, OR
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Community Events with Grass Roots
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David Gessner
OSU Visiting Writer Series
Friday, May 8, at 7:00 - 9:30 p.m. Valley Library Main Floor Rotunda
201 Southwest Waldo Place
Corvallis, OR
David Gessner is the author of the forthcoming book, All the Wild that Remains: Edward Abbey, Wallace Stegner and the American West, and eight others including Sick of Nature, The Prophet of Dry Hill, and Return of the Osprey, which was chosen by the Boston Globe as one of the top 10 non-fiction books of the year and the Book-of-the-Month club as one of its top books of the year. Gessner is an associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and founder of the national literary journal, Ecotone. Grass Roots will be selling books at this event.
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Store News
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Earth Week picks
It may only come once a year, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't cherish and nurture our planet year-round. From sustainable revolutions in the wake of climate change in Earth Calling, to the next big earthquake in the Pacific Northwest in Full-Rip 9.0, to a cross-species study of animals and the human spirit in Zoologies, take a look at our offerings that honor the world we call home.
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Independent Bookstore Day is May 2
Celebrate all that you love about your local, independent bookstore -- join us at Grass Roots for discounts on books published by independent presses, staff picks, and more! The day's festivities will include:
10:00: Book giveaways
11:00: Local authors in the store for signings and recommendations, including Elena Passarello, Ann Staley, Linda Carroll, Lena Lingemann, Wendy Madar, Frances Stilwell, Rick Borsten, Edwin Wollert, and John Addiego
1:00: Brigittine Monk fudge tasting
2:00: Why support your independent bookstore and small presses?
3:00: Author reading and signing by local author Greg Warburton
...and more until 5:30
See you there!
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Farmer's Market picks
Wondering what to do next with your Farmer's Market purchases? Or maybe you'd like to learn what it takes to grow your own grub? Whether it's cooking up a colorful feast with local produce (Dishing Up Oregon), crafting handmade flower crowns (30 Enchanting DIY Floral Creations), or helping honeybees in your own backyard (Attracting Native Pollinators), you'll want to reap the benefits of these farm-fresh selections.
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2015 Pulitzer Prizes
Recipients of the Pulitzer Prize were announced this past week at Columbia University. The winner for the fiction category is All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, "an imaginative and intricate novel inspired by the horrors of World War II and written in short, elegant chapters that explore human nature and the contradictory power of technology." The winner for non-fiction is The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert, "an exploration of nature that forces readers to consider the threat posed by human behavior to a world of astonishing diversity."
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Jigsaw
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Reading Group Selection
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Tuesday, May 7 6:30-8:00 p.m.
 Join Kendall as she leads our May Book Group with Elizabeth Kolbert's The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, winner of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize.
Over the last half-billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. This time around, the cataclysm is us. In prose that is at once frank, entertaining, and deeply informed, New Yorker writer Kolbert tells us why and how human beings have altered life on the planet in a way no species has before, compelling us to rethink the fundamental question of what it means to be human.
Regular Price: $16.00
On sale for: $13.60
Until Tuesday, May 5
Publisher: Picador USA
ISBN: 9781250062185
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Night Stands
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Marissa
by Richard Siken
[Poetry]
 Siken remains a favorite poet of mine after his literary emergence a decade ago with Crush. In this much anticipated new collection, he paints a metaphorical picture: an intimate cross-examination of the inner life of an artist, from the messiness of self-doubt to the clean beauty of the blank canvas. There is a sense of restless movement throughout and powerful, haunting imagery. The poems are sometimes dark, sometimes subtle, but ever questioning, starving for truth and seeking meaning in the transformative nature of art. So too, may they also make you reexamine how you view the process of creation.
Paperback; $17.00
Publisher: Copper Canyon Press; ISBN: 9781556594779
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Linda
by Sara Midda
[Non-Fiction]
 Sara Midda's books are an absolute delight! Having long enjoyed her collections of paintings, I was happy to see this new little treasure, and feast in the wonder of her perfect little pastel drawings of plants, gardens, and foods. Little wisdoms, recipes, and pleasant thoughts accompany these exquisite, tiny pictures and complete a lovely collection of life's joys.
Hardcover; $18.95
Publisher: Workman Publishing; ISBN: 9780761145264
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