SATURDAY, 11/13
William Least Heat-Moon, From Sea to Shining Sea—While Blue Highways was his exploration of America by road, River Horse is Heat-Moon's journey across the states via their rivers. From Astoria, NY, to Astoria, OR, he logged more than 5,000 miles aboard his 22-foot dory Nikawa, the Osage word for "river horse." Meanwhile, the author also logged 500 pages of philosophic musings, high adventure, and honest—and at times folksy—prose. Join Heat-Moon for more about his discovery of a familiar yet new country. Hugo Stage, 10:30. —D.M.
Artistic Mystery and Museum Mayhem—Art, lost and found, is at the root of what is sure to be a fascinating conversation, if not only for the combination of writers. Art critic Sheila Farr sits down with Nick Bantock (Griffin and Sabine), whose newest pictorial journey, The Museum at Purgatory, takes the reader on a tour of various earthly collections assembled and guarded by the narrator/curator; Second Story Books manager Thomas Orton contributes with his debut, The Lost Glass Plates of Wilfred Eng, a Seattle-set tale of a despairing art dealer who comes across potentially valuable negatives of a nude woman; and Matthew Stadler, whose main character in Allan Stein hunts for lost Picasso sketches. Art for art's sake? Perhaps it should be for book's sake, as words and pictures come just a little closer together for an afternoon. Barnes & Noble Carver Stage, 11:45.—E.B.R.
Anatomy of a City: Inside Seattle Architecture—From the under-construction confines of the Convention Center, Seattle-In-Progress is up for discussion. Architectural chronicler Paul Dorpat (Seattle: Now and Then, Building Washington: A History of Washington State Public Works), urban designer and Seattle Times contributor Mark Hinshaw (Citistate Seattle: Shaping a Modern Metropolis), Historic Seattle director Lawrence Kreisman (Made to Last: Historic Preservation in Seattle and King County), and urban planner/real estate developer David Sucher (City Comforts: How to Build an Urban Village) wrangle with our city's architectural past and future. KUOW/KPLU Hall Stage, 11:45.—E.B.R.
The Lure of Tibet—Revered by mountain climbers, idealists, and Buddhists, among others, Tibet has become a sparkling jewel locked in the glass case of China. Hear writer and panel moderator Gordon Janow, director of programs at Alpine Ascents International; Todd Burleson, mountain climber and founder of AAI; Art Perry, author and photographer of The Tibetans; and Her Eminence Jamyang Dagmola Sakya, author of Princess in the Land of Snows: The Life of Jamyang Sakya in Tibet, as they discuss why we should pick that lock. US WEST Maclean Stage, noon.—D.M.
The New Underground: Today's Trash, Tomorrow's Literature—You no longer have to be embarrassed about that copy of Jacqueline Susann's Valley of the Dolls tucked under your bed. It's not just trash, it's literary trash. Join members of the alternative press as they talk about trash and its potential to become art. Juliette Torrez, editor of The Sofa Surfing Handbook: A Guide for Modern Nomads, will moderate a group consisting of Sean Carlson, from Pistil Books and News; De Kwok, of Milky World, a 'zine and art gallery; Jennifer Nace, of Left Bank Books Collective, and Ron Turner, from Last Gasp Books. Stanford Stage, noon.—D.M.
You Can't Write if You Don't Read—Poet and author of the novel The Pearl of Ruby City Jana Harris will moderate as travel writer Jonathan Raban (Passage to Juneau: A Sea and Its Meanings), poet Belle Randall (101 different ways of playing solitaire, and other poems), and author Irene Wanner (Sailing to Corinth) stress the importance of picking up a few books before you attempt to write your own. Third Place/Elliott Bay Beard Stage, 12:15.—D.M.
Jack Cady: An American Writer—In The American Writer: Shaping A Nation's Mind, Cady offers a comprehensive commentary that spans hundreds of years and touches upon all the major authors, periods, and genres of American literary history. The Cherokee creation myth, the science fiction of Ursula LeGuin, and the sermons of Cotton Mather are only a few of the nuggets found in this gold mine. The Ohio-born author began his career in 1965 by winning the Atlantic Monthly's "First" award for his short story "Burning." From there he wrote eight novels and four volumes of short fiction, picking up a number of awards along the way. Cady sits down with KPLU's Donna Weinch. Barnes & Noble Carver Stage, 1:15.—D.M.
Elusive Truths: The Art of Writing Biography—How do you capture ghosts and make them walk again among the pages of your book? Find out as three biographers muse upon the triumphs and travails of portraying past lives: museum curator Patricia Albers, author of Shadows, Fire, Snow: The Life of Tina Modotti, a book that captures the short, intense life of Italian-born photographer Tina Modotti; Jonathan Kirsch is the author of The Life of Moses (as well as the acclaimed The Harlot by the Side of the Road: Forbidden Tales of the Bible), his attempt to depict a historical Moses; and David Laskin, whose soon-to-be-released Partisans: Marriage, Politics, and Betrayal Among the New York Intellectuals, is a study, ranging from the '30s to the '60s, of the intellectual couples surrounding the Partisan Review. Microsoft Press McCarthy Stage, 1:15.—D.M.
