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September 10, 2015
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Hello, Readers,
 
Along with the bustle of back-to-school and the kickoff of OSU football season, we're raking in the upcoming fall events in downtown Corvallis: Corvallis Beer Week, autumnal farmer's markets, Majestic Theater shows, and more. Anticipating all this and the cooler weather, why not stop in to browse the best new books of the coming season?

This week, you can look forward to a mythological tale from Salman Rushdie, this year's Best American Poetry anthology, and books by Sarah Waters and Bill Nye out in paperback. Plus, 2016 Paperblanks dayplanners have arrived! Llewellyn, We'moon, and more calendars are coming soon.

We've got quite a few author events lined up as well. Look out below for the latest, including an author reading on tiny living spaces, a meeting with J.A. Jance, and a "speed dating" event featuring several authors (many of them notable finalists for Oregon Book Awards).

Book lovers, unite!

Marissa
New HardcoversNHardcovers

by Salman Rushdie
[Fiction]  
 
Centuries ago, Dunia, a princess of the jinn, fell in love with a mortal man of reason. Together they produced an astonishing number of children, unaware of their fantastical powers, who spread across generations in the human world. Once the line between worlds is breached on a grand scale, Dunia's children and others will play a role in an epic war between light and dark spanning a thousand and one nights or two years, eight months, and twenty-eight nights. It is a time of enormous upheaval, in which beliefs are challenged, words act like poison, silence is a disease, and a noise may contain a hidden curse.

Hardcover; $28.00
Publisher: Random House; ISBN: 9780812998917
by J.A. Jance
[Fiction]
(See upcoming author event with J.A. Jance below!)

"Bestseller Jance's 51st novel brings together two of her popular series characters -- Seattle detective J.P. Beaumont and Arizona sheriff Brandon Walker -- in a highly entertaining plot that honors both of these now-retired cops. Grounded in the legends and lore of the Tohono Oaodham people, the story also delivers a solid look at the vagaries of justice. In 1970, Walker arrested John Lassiter for the shooting murder of Lassiter's foster father, prospector Amos Warren. Still in prison after all these years and suffering from MS, Lassiter refuses a plea deal that might release him. Instead, Lassiter wants Walker to find the real killer. . ." - Publishers Weekly

Hardcover; $26.99
Publisher: William Morrow & Company; ISBN: 9780062297662
by Judith Flanders
[Non-Fiction]  
 
"Flanders asks, What makes a house a home? When does a simple hut become more than just shelter? From corridors to curtains, porches to parlors, the evolution of how humans have shaped their abodes to adapt to their personal needs is an organic study in the ways form follows function. Throughout Europe and the U.S., from medieval times to the present, religion, agriculture, industry, and the arts have all influenced the ways people erect and utilize their domiciles. In her extensively researched and eminently readable discourse, Flanders examines the roles that gender, children, extended family, and auxiliary labor play in keeping the home fires burning. . ." - Booklist

Hardcover; $26.99
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books; ISBN: 9781250067357
by Erica Jong
[Fiction]  
 
As the afternoon of life looms over Vanessa Wonderman, she watches her parents age, attends doctor appointments with her pregnant daughter, and sits by the hospital bed of her husband, Asher, 15 years her senior. With her best years as an actress behind her, she's discovering that beginnings are easy, but endings can be hard. Could her fountain of youth fantasies be fulfilled on zipless.com? A site inspired by the writings of her best friend, Isadora Wing, it promises "no strings attached" encounters -- and Vanessa is so restless that she's willing to try anything.

Hardcover; $26.99
Publisher: St. Martin's Press; ISBN: 9781250065919
New PaperbacksNPaperbacks

by Bill Nye
[Non-Fiction]

Sparked by a controversial debate in February 2014, Bill Nye has set off on an energetic campaign to spread awareness of evolution and the powerful way it shapes our lives. He explains why race does not really exist; evaluates the true promise and peril of genetically modified food; reveals how new species are born; takes a stroll through 4.5 billion years of time; and explores the new search for alien life. With infectious enthusiasm, Bill Nye shows that evolution is much more than a rebuttal to creationism; it is an essential way to understand how nature works -- and to change the world.

Paperback; $16.99
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; ISBN: 9781250074225
by Miranda July
[Fiction]

"[July's] protagonist is Cheryl, a lonely middle-aged woman invested in her work for a company that produces self-defense exercise videos. Cheryl's incredibly regimented life is interrupted by Clee, a young, irresponsible houseguest who won't leave. Cheryl's problems start out predictably, but her inner monolog and way of coping with loneliness and alienation are anything but typical. Her obsession with an older coworker leads her to explore her sexuality and gender identity, and through Clee she learns about herself and fulfills a lifelong desire to care for a child born to the 'wrong' mother." - Library Journal
Paperback; $16.00
Publisher: Scribner Book Company; ISBN: 9781439172575
by Liz Cunningham
[Non-Fiction]

After a near-drowning accident in which she was temporarily paralyzed, Liz Cunningham crisscrosses the globe in an effort to understand the threats to our dazzling but endangered oceans. This intimate account charts her thrilling journey through unexpected encounters with conservationists, fishermen, sea nomads, and scientists in the Mediterranean, Sulawesi, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Papua, New Guinea. Ocean Country is an adventure story, a call to action, and a poetic meditation on the state of the seas. But most importantly, it is the story of finding true hope in the midst of one of the greatest crises to face humankind, the rapidly degrading state of our environment.

Paperback; $16.95
Publisher: North Atlantic Books; ISBN: 9781583949603
by Sarah Waters
[Fiction]

It is 1922, and London is tense. Ex-servicemen are disillusioned; the out-of-work and the hungry are demanding change. And in South London, in a genteel Camberwell villa, impoverished widow Mrs. Wray and her spinster daughter, Frances, are obliged to take in lodgers. With the arrival of Lilian and Leonard Barber, a modern young couple of the clerk class, the routines of the house will be shaken up in unexpected ways. Little do the Wrays know just how profoundly their new tenants will alter the course of Frances's life or, as passions mount and frustration gathers, how far-reaching, and how devastating, the disturbances will be.

Paperback; $17.00
Publisher: Riverhead Books; ISBN: 9781594633928
edited by David Lehman and Sherman Alexie
[Poetry]

Since its debut in 1988, The Best American Poetry has become a mainstay for the direction and spirit of American poetry. Each volume in the series presents the year's most extraordinary new poems and writers. Guest editor Sherman Alexie's picks for The Best American Poetry 2015 highlight the depth and breadth of the American experience. Culled from electronic and print journals, the poems showcase some of our leading luminaries -- Amy Gerstler, Terrance Hayes, Ron Padgett, Jane Hirshfield -- and introduce a number of outstanding younger poets taking their place in the limelight.

Paperback; $18.99
Publisher: Scribner Book Company; ISBN: 9781476708201
by Amy Hill Hearth
[Fiction]

"One day, out of the blue, as telegrams often arrive, Dora Witherspoon receives a Western Union message telling her, Big trouble. Come home now. Home is Collier County, Florida, where a new real-estate development is threatening to take away the tidal river habitats of herons, alligators, and many of the county's residents. Dora soon realizes that the man in charge of the new development is her no-good ex-husband, but that turns out to be the least of her worries. Caught up in the small-town swell of gossip, protests, and not-so-buried secrets, Dora ends up learning far more about her neighbors and about herself than she ever expected. . ." - Booklist

Paperback; $16.00
Publisher: Atria Books; ISBN: 9781476765747
New For Young ReadersYReaders

by Kevin Henkes 
[Fiction]
Ages 3
 to 7
 
"A pig with an umbrella, a spotted owl, a puppy on a sled, a bear holding a kite, and a rabbit with a long accordion body. These five little toys look out a tall window at nothing much, waiting. Pig waits for rain; Owl, the moon; Bear, the wind; Puppy, the snow; and Rabbit just waits. . .Quiet yet evocative, this is a lovely melding of artwork, design, and text. . .Caldecott medalist and Newbery Honor Book author Henkes is a favorite among librarians and booksellers (and, of course, children). . ." - Booklist, Starred Review

Hardcover; $17.99
Publisher: Greenwillow Books; ISBN: 9780062368430
by Laura Amy Schlitz
[Fiction]
Young Adult
 
"Growing up on a hardscrabble farm, Joan learned to avoid her cruel father, but she adored her mother, who encouraged her to work hard, study her lessons, and earn her own way in the world. In 1911, after Ma's death, 14-year-old Joan clashes with her father and flees to Baltimore. Representing herself as 18, she is taken into the household of a wealthy Jewish family as a hired girl. Joan works hard to please the Rosenbachs and their beloved, aging housekeeper, the testy Malka. . .Written as a diary, the first-person narrative brings immediacy to Joan's story and intimacy to her confessions and revelations. . ." - Booklist, Starred Review

Hardcover; $17.99
Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA); ISBN: 9780763678180
New Bargain BooksBargain

Need a book to turn your frown upside down while also sharpening your linguistics skills? These wickedly funny picks are all about wordplay at its finest...and not-so-finest. Check these out (and more from David Sedaris and American Heritage Dictionaries) in our Bargain Books section!




New MusicNMusic


Chick Corea & Bela Fleck
Two
Jazz

2007 marked the first recorded collaboration between the piano master and the eclectic banjo wizard. This second collaboration is a live double CD, featuring performances from the duo's tour for their award-winning debut.
($19.98)

Pop/Folk

Singer-songwriter Finn is best known as the frontman for the Hold Steady. His second solo record features his literary story-songs, paired with anthemic rock and contemporary folk.
($14.98)

Pop/Folk

Clark's major label debut cemented his reputation as a savior of electric blues guitar. His follow-up focuses on the art of song structure as opposed to sheer musicianship, featuring folk, gospel and rock in addition to blues.
($13.98)

Pop/Folk

Cook came into prominence as a member of DeYarmond Edison with future members of Bon Iver, Futurebirds, Megafaun and Shouting Matches. After years of serving as a session musician and producer, Cook's debut solo record features loose, front porch Americana.
($12.98)
Events at Grass RootsEventsGRR

Derek "Deek" Diedricksen

Tuesday, October 13, 2015 at 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.
Grass Roots Books & Music
227 SW 2nd St.
Corvallis, OR

If you dream of living in a tiny house, or creating a getaway in the backwoods or your backyard, you'll love this gorgeous collection of creative and inspiring ideas for tiny houses, cabins, forts, studios, and other microshelters. Created by a wide array of builders and designers around the United States and beyond, these 59 unique and innovative structures show you the limits of what is possible. You'll also find guidelines on building with recycled and salvaged materials, plus techniques for making your small space comfortable and easy to inhabit.

Derek "Deek" Diedricksen is the author of Humble Homes, Simple Shacks, Cozy Cottages, Ramshackle Retreats, Funky Forts. His work has been featured on the cover of the New York Times' Home and Garden Section and in the Boston Globe, the Boston Herald, the Seattle Times, the Wall Street Journal, Make magazine, and Apartment Therapy.com; and on NPR, CBS, PBS, and ABC. Diedricksen lives in Stoughton, Massachusetts.
Community EventsCommunityEvents

Darkside Show Times for 9/11-9/17

-Meru -R  A triumph of editing and narrative beyond "Are you kidding me?" visuals, Meru is a climbing story with context; biographies are woven in incrementally. A rare documentary that proves thought-provoking while offering thrilling wide-screen vistas.

-Mr. Holmes -PG A retired, nonagenarian Sherlock Holmes is haunted by a failing memory, a past case, and his own cold heart as he tries to find a cure for aging. Ian McKellan, Laura Linney.

-Jimmy's Hall -PG-13 A wonderful love story woven into a larger tale about Ireland's political troubles during the 1930s, with irresistible performances by Barry Ward and Simone Kirby. Ken Loach directs.

-Phoenix -PG-13 A disfigured concentration-camp survivor (Nina Hoss), unrecognizable after facial reconstruction surgery, searches ravaged postwar Berlin for the husband (Ronald Zehrfeld) who might have betrayed her to the Nazis. 99% ON RT!

Arts/Literary Events

Willamette Writers on the River: Character & Plotting Workshops with Susan Kelly

Saturday, September 12 and/or Sunday, September 13, at 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Corvallis, OR

Susan Kelly has a gift for conveying the structure of story. Her workshops are suitable for fiction and creative non-fiction writers. Her goal is always for students to have fun, to participate, and to learn lots. For maximum benefit, Susan recommends taking both workshops. Register before September 1 for reduced pricing at the Willamette Writers on the River website. Attendance is limited to 25 for each workshop.

Willamette Writers on the River: Quarterly Open Mic on International Day of Peace

Monday, September 21, at 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (sign-up at 6:15)
First Presbyterian Church
114 SW 8th St.
Corvallis, OR

These quarterly readings are free and open to everyone. The program this month will begin with a reading of a short poem honoring International Day of Peace. The number of readers is limited by the available time. First to sign up is first to read. Time limit per reader is 7 minutes. No graphic violence, sex, or hate speech. If you don't want to read, please come hear some talented writers present their work. 

Sweet Home Public Library Open Mic

Thursday, September 24 at 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. (sign-up at 6:00)
Sweet Home Public Library
This program is free and open to the public. The number of readers is limited by available time. First to sign up is first to read. Time limit per reader is 7 minutes. No graphic violence, sex, or hate speech. If you don't want to read, please come hear some talented writers present their work. Local authors and teachers Dana Kirk and Mark Holden will be reading from their books. 

Friends of the Library Fall Festival Used Book Sale

Saturday, September 26 at 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
*Members - 9:00 a.m. (Join at the door)
and Sunday, September 27 at 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Main Meeting Room
Corvallis Public Library
645 NW Monroe Ave.
Corvallis, OR

Lots of lightly used top-quality paperback books at very reasonable prices. Books especially selected for this sale include fiction, children's, youth, biographies, history, memoirs, cooking, and holiday crafts. Sets of high quality books suitable for book groups will also be available.

Community Events with Grass Roots


Monday, September 14, at 1:30 to 3:00 p.m.
Monroe Community Library
380 North 5th St.
Monroe, OR

Bestseller Jance's 51st novel brings together two of her popular series characters Seattle detective J.P. Beaumont and Arizona sheriff Brandon Walker in a highly entertaining plot that honors both of these now-retired cops. Grounded in the legends and lore of the Tohono Oaodham people, the story also delivers a solid look at the vagaries of justice. In 1970, Walker arrested John Lassiter for the shooting murder of Lassiter's foster father, prospector Amos Warren. Still in prison after all these years and suffering from MS, Lassiter refuses a plea deal that might release him. Instead, Lassiter wants Walker to find the real killer. . .

J. A. Jance is the New York Times bestselling author of the J. P. Beaumont series, the Joanna Brady series, the Ali Reynolds series, and the Walker Family Series. Over 20 million copies of her books are in print. Born in South Dakota and brought up in Bisbee, Arizona, Jance lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington, and Tucson, Arizona. Grass Roots will be selling books at this event.
Crazy Eights Author Event (Corvallis)

Thursday, October 15, at 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.
Corvallis-Benton County Library
645 NW Monroe Ave.
Corvallis, OR

Speed dating, only with authors! Each author will have eight minutes to address the audience about their life as a writer and introduce a featured book. It will be a fast-paced literary slam. A mixer, wherein the authors will interact one-on-one with members of the audience to discuss their work and personally sign books, will follow the rapid-fire presentations. Grass Roots will be selling books at this event.

Authors include:
  • Dan DeWeese (Oregon Book Award fiction nominee, You Don't Love This Man)
  • K.B. Dixon (Oregon Book Award finalist, The Sum of His Syndromes; Eric Hoffer Award)
  • Cai Emmons (Oregon Book Award winner, His Mother's Son; new work Weather Woman)
  • Lisa Ohlen Harris (Oregon Book Award finalist, The Fifth Season)
  • Lauren Kessler (Oregon Book Awards; on David Letterman twice; newest: Raising the Barre)
  • Phillip Margolin (Nationally known for NYT best selling legal thrillers; Woman With a Gun)
  • Ismet Prcic (Bosnian author of Oregon Book Award winner novel, Shards; NYT Notable Book)
  • Ellen Waterston (Award winning poet and essayist, novel of verse Via Lactea most recent)
  • Emcee: George Byron Wright (Noted for Oregon-based novels; In the Wake of Our Misdeed)
Lois Leveen

Saturday, October 17, 2015 at 2:00 to 3:30 p.m.
Corvallis Public Library
645 NW Monroe Ave.
Corvallis, OR

In death-ravaged Verona, Angelica, a mother mourning her day-old infant, enters the household of the powerful Cappelletti family to become the wet-nurse to their newborn daughter Juliet. Over the next 14 years, Angelica becomes caught up in the Cappelletti's darkest secrets. But when those secrets erupt across five momentous days of love and loss, Angelica must confront her own deepest grief to find the strength to survive.

Award-winning author Lois Leveen's work has appeared in the New York Times, the LA Review of Books, the Chicago Tribune, the Huffington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic and on NPR, as well as in numerous literary and scholarly journals and in film and performing arts festivals. She lives in a bright green house in Portland, Oregon, with two cats, one Canadian, and 120,000 honey bees. Grass Roots will be selling books at this event.
Store NewsStoreNews

Paperblanks dayplanners have arrived!

Keep track of dates in style with 2016 Paperblanks dayplanners. We just received a wide variety of sizes and designs -- from floral patterns to gilded-inspired embellishments to tooled leather lookalikes -- but be sure to stop in soon for the best selection! 
Job opening at Grass Roots

Love books and looking for a challenging and rewarding opportunity? Grass Roots Books & Music has an immediate opening for a part-time receiver/back up frontline bookseller

The position is both intellectually and physically demanding. Potential applicants must be highly computer literate, and easily able to learn new programs and systems quickly in a multi-tasking environment. Successful candidates must interact well with coworkers and customers, but also be able to function independently in a back room setting. 

For more information and a complete job description, please see an official job posting on our website!
JigsawJigsaw

Solve this week's jigsaw!
Reading Group SelectionReadingGroup

by Julian Barnes
Tuesday, October 6, at 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.

Join Adam as he leads our October Reading Group with The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes, winner of the 2011 Man Booker Prize.

This intense novel follows Tony Webster, a middle-aged man, as he contends with a past he never thought much about -- until his closest childhood friends return with a vengeance: one of them from the grave, another maddeningly present. Tony thought he left this all behind as he built a life for himself, and his career has provided him with a secure retirement and an amicable relationship with his ex-wife and daughter, who now has a family of her own. But when he is presented with a mysterious legacy, he is forced to revise his estimation of his own nature and place in the world.
 
Regular Price: $14.95
On sale for: $12.71
Until Tuesday, October 6
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 9780307947727
Night StandsNightStands

Marissa

[Non-Fiction]

The Portland author and fiction queen Ursula Le Guin's classic guide to the writing craft belongs on every storyteller's shelf. Now revised to encompass the challenges of publishing in the modern age, this workbook is a contextually relevant primer to the art of writing. The examples offered and exercises designed encourage critical thinking and inspire imaginative play with language. Here you'll find not only the nuts and bolts of prose, but a valuable appendix on providing and receiving effective critique as a compendium to her online workshop.

Paperback, $14.95
Publisher: Mariner Books; ISBN: 9780544611610
Linda

by Helen Scales
[Non-Fiction]

If you love seashells, you will love this book. Spirals in Time is a thorough, in-depth look at the history, scientific makeup, and locations of the intricate, delicate wonders that come from the sea. Scales has fantastic tales about shells that she has discovered in her research and shares with her readers. And she has important information as to how shells have shaped mankind's world. An example of this is the money cowrie shell, that was used for years in the slave trade. Reading this book will cause you to wonder in awe, as you walk the beach and pick up a wandering shell.

Hardcover, $27.00
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA; ISBN: 9781472911360
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