by David Grimm

reviewed by Sandy

I've never been one to read much non-fiction, but lately I find myself drawn to a wide variety of subjects. My latest find was a book about cats and dogs. These animals have become more than pets. They are family. The author traces the origins of these animals from ancient times to the present and discusses how they have evolved from being accepted because they were earning their keep as watchdogs or herders or rat-catchers to their present day privileged status as household members. Various animal rights activist groups throughout history are mentioned, and the author brings the subject up to date by discussing how pets now have lawyers to defend their rights. Grimm raises the question as to whether cats and dogs are filling a void by becoming substitutes in our lives, keeping us from seeking out human companionship instead. This is a book written in a readable style and filled with fascinating tidbits and factual information about our four-legged family members and friends.

 

All the Light We Cannot See
by Anthony Doerr

reviewed by Michael 

In this beautiful and bittersweet novel set during World War II, Anthony Doerr tells the parallel tales of  Marie Laure, a blind girl living in occupied France, and Werner, a young German radio enthusiast in the Hitler Youth program. Doerr's portrayal of Marie Laure's relationship with her father, the locksmith at Paris's Museum of Natural History, is tender and true. Werner's journey across Europe, where he helps ferret out resistors, is unflinching and richly detailed. Through these characters, Doerr encapsulates the great horrors of war. Moreover, he weaves a deeply compelling story of lives torn asunder and united.  

 

The Arsenal of Democracy: FDR, Detroit, and an Epic Quest to Arm an America at War
by A.J. Baime

reviewed by Jeff

This month marks the 70th anniversary of D-Day and the Allied advance into Nazi-occupied Europe. By the time of the invasion, U.S. factories were producing massive numbers of weapons for the war effort. In The Arsenal of Democracy,   

Baime takes a close look at how the Ford Motor Company took on the task of producing B-24 bombers and created a production system on a scale that had never been attempted before. The enormous Willow Run factory was built on farmland outside Detroit and brought thousands of new workers to the area. When you watch old films of D-Day and other combat footage from WWII and see all the tanks, trucks, planes and other equipment it's normal to wonder, "How did they MAKE all of that stuff?" The Arsenal Of Democracy gives you an answer.

Check out our author readings in July. Mark your calendars today!

Jack Hart
Skookum Summer
Thursday, June 19, 7pm

As Skookum Summer begins, the year is 1981, and reporter Tom Dawson slinks back to his tiny Puget Sound hometown after making a disastrous mistake at the LA Times. Working reluctantly at the local weekly, the Big Skookum Echo, Tom is drawn into investigating a powerful logger's murder. As the mystery deepens, the murder exposes the strains on the community as pollution, development, and global change threaten traditional Northwest livelihoods. It also forces Tom to confront his own past and discover what home really means to him. Hart weaves together a gripping and suspenseful plot with richly observed Pacific Northwest history and a vivid picture of a community on the brink of change.

Kate Payne
The Hip Girl's Guide to the Kitchen
Wednesday, June 25, 7pm

Payne shows you how to master basic cooking techniques--boiling, baking, and sauteing--and simplifies the process of fancy ones, like jamming and preserving, dehydrating, braising, roasting, infusing, and pickling. With this straightforward and fun guide, you can stock up your kitchen with the ingredients, tools, and appliances you'll actually use. You'll also learn how to decode recipes and alter them to make them gluten-free, dairy-free, or vegan.

Janet Fisher
A Place of Her Own
Thursday, June 26, 7pm

When Martha Maupin's husband died in 1866, leaving her alone on the frontier with their many children, she was torn between grief and relief after a difficult marriage. Lone mothers had few options in her day, but she took charge of her own dream and bought her own place, which is now one of the few Century Farms in Oregon named for a woman. This is the story of the author's great-great-grandmother's daring decision to buy that farm on the Oregon frontier after the death of her husband--and story of the author's own decision to keep that farm in the family.

Warren Easley
Dead Float
Wednesday, July 16, 7pm

Cal Claxton--a small town lawyer who works to fish--has to pinch himself when his best friend and fishing guide asks him to help guide an upcoming trip with a group of executives from a high-tech firm in Portland. But the trip through the remote Deschutes River Canyon turns ugly when a member of the fishing party is murdered. Everyone in the party is a suspect, including Cal himself. Does the fact that the company's value is about to explode play into the crime? And what about the freight line running along the river? All Cal knows is that he better come up with answers because he's suspect number one.

Liz Prato, Wendy Willis & Bonnie ZoBell
Short Stories & Poetry
Thursday, July 24, 7pm

Join us for this excellent trio of authors from independent publishing house Press 53. Multnomah Village writer Liz Prato is thrilled to announce that her short story collection will be published by Press 53 in May 2015. Liz is the editor of the recently published The Night, and the Rain, and the River, a collection of short stories by Oregon authors. Blood Sisters of the Republic is Portland poet Wendy Willis's first collection. Bonnie ZoBell's linked novella and story collection, What Happened Here, delivers a wildly different cast of characters living on the same block in North Park, San Diego, site of the PSA Flight 182 crash in 1978.