books

Puget Sound Book Artists’ 15th Annual Membership Exhibition

The Puget Sound Book Artists are highlighting artists who have transformed the bare bones of books into fractals, dioramas, sculptures, and stunning blossoms of origami. The exhibition is running through June 30 at University of Puget Sound, appropriately in the Collins Memorial Library; surrounded by thousands of bog-standard books, the books being exhibited are wild and frequently abstract. One uniting factor among the works is the theme of “15,” which is interpreted in various ways.

Joyful Practice: Making the Humanity Obvious

Sarah Tavis and Jenn Berney want to give people permission to make their creativity playful. They encourage others (and themselves) to embrace making mistakes, taking risks, getting wild. They view the creative process as an end in itself, just as important as any finished product.

After years of experimenting, the two women will soon publish a book of their thoughts on creativity, “The Joyful Practice Handbook: Analog Play for Dark Times.”

Danger Room’s Stand-Up Comics Guy Celebrates Free Comic Book Day

Even contemplating the upcoming annual chaos known as Free Comic Books Day at Danger Room Comics on May 3rd elicits a hearty chuckle from Frank Hussey. “I like to say it’s my favorite holiday where I work all day long.” Hussey is the proprietor, and the garrulous mirror-universe twin of Comic Book Guy from The Simpsons. Instead of a sour-faced and patronizing comics geek, he’s a smiling and loquacious shopkeeper who’s equally informative and open-hearted.

Monster Puppet Readings of Jonah Barnett’s Moss-Covered Claws

Up in the loft at Browsers Bookshop, genderqueer writer, filmmaker, and multi-media phenom Jonah Barnett will be performing a series of readings from their 2021 short-story collection “Moss-Covered Claws,” which mashes dreams and reality together in 11 macabre tales of speculative fiction: tales of anxiety-feeding demons, anti-fascists that travel dimensions, and the vengeful spirits of dead seabirds.

Timberland Library This Spring

by Molly Walsh As the pages turn from winter to spring, a series of special events from Olympia Timberland Library will allow attendees to discover regional bands, share their favorite stories, engage in meaningful philosophical discussion and reconnect with their inner child. Programming includes events for infants, toddlers, school-age children, teens, adults and families. According …

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Corpses, Fools and Monsters: The History and Future of Transness in Cinema  

“It is a great honor to have such prominent authors [Willow Catelyn Maclay and Caden Mark Gardner] meet remotely with our community. They are lauded as two of the best film writers working today, and their new book is poised to become a foundational text about cinema and queer history.” Trans Film Festival and library Zoom event with authors.

South Sound Reading Foundation Benefit Brings Ethan’s Smile

The South Sound Reading Foundation will host its annual benefit breakfast fundraiser, “Readers are Leaders,” at the Lacey Community Center on Thursday, April 11. Keynote speaker Stacy Chapin’s son Ethan is one of the four University of Idaho students murdered in Moscow, Idaho on the night of November 13, 2022.

Sitting Down with Three Poets Featured in Mud Flat Verse (an anthology)

From the low tides of Mud Bay in the Pacific Northwest to the lush greenery of Mississippi and beyond, 81 pieces by 19 poets including seven from Thurston County are joined in “Mud Flat Verse (an anthology).” The anthology, published in late 2023, is a creation of Olympia publisher Mud Flat Press.

Hal Schrieve Writes About Getting Over the End of the World

Hal Schrieve, reading from “How to Get Over the End of the World” on Wednesday, October 25th at Browsers Books, grew up in Olympia, now lives in New York City, and works as a children’s librarian. Hir says, “I hope it resonates with people from Olympia! It is very inflected by my own teen years 2010-2014.”

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