The Book Shopper - Atlanta

Mini-review: Claire Bidwell Smith's Decatur Reading

By Jim Simpson

Where & When: Decatur Public Library Auditorium on January 8, 2013. Sponsored by the Georgia Center for the Book.

Attendance: ~100 people, many of whom were family and friends of the author.

What Claire Bidwell Smith Read: Nearly a dozen pages from her debut book, The Rules of Inheritance, a “grief memoir” as she calls it, about her life from the time she was 14 when both of her parents were diagnosed with cancer, until 2011. (The book was published in February 2012; this reading coincided with the paperback release.) The author, an Atlanta native who grew up in Sandy Springs, would be parentless by the time she was 25 years old. The book jumps around in time covering a period of roughly 18 years and is divided into five parts, following Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’ five stages of grief. The excerpt she read takes place in 2003 when she is 25 years old and on assignment in the Philippines for Student Traveler magazine in Los Angeles. She is on her way to the remote island of Malapascua to dive with thresher sharks. This episode is one of many describing semi-dangerous and questionable decisions on Claire’s part (destructive relationships and alcohol abuse, to name but two) that she will later discover are subconscious attempts to bring her dead parents back in order to save her. This diving trip is a climactic event because, as she and her guide are descending into 80 feet of dark, shark-filled water, she suddenly cancels the dive and surfaces. With tears streaming down her face, she sits slumped in the front of the boat heading back to shore. “This is the very place -- with my tear-soaked face, at the front of this little boat in the middle of the great Pacific Ocean -- where I ind a truth that I will test over and over in my life. Nothing is ever going to bring either of them back.” Some parts of the book are almost too much to bear, but you find yourself forging ahead, cheering her on, hoping she will be okay in the end.

Why I Went: Claire and I have both written for the literary collective The Nervous Breakdown for six years, and I have always admired her writing.

Q & A: Questions ranged from those regarding grief (she is a licensed therapist), writing routines, the book title’s origin, to compliments about Claire’s delivery and voice during the reading. I thought she seemed a bit stiff and nervous, but that could be attributed to the hometown crowd and sheer number of family and close childhood friends in the audience; she seemed to be trying to keep her emotions in check, which makes perfect sense.

 
Question I Didn’t Get To Ask Because Time Ran Out But Asked Her When She Signed My Book: “I’ve never been to L.A., but I imagine there are a bunch of motorcycles around. Do you and your husband, (Greg Boose, a freelance/ghost writer) still go around touching motorcycles that don’t belong to you?” Claire responded, “Danger Touch? Not lately, but we were disappointed that it never caught on.” We were referring to a game she and Greg played during a cross-country correspondence (Claire in L.A., Greg in Chicago, the two meeting as writers for The Nervous Breakdown). He invented a game that involved taking cell phone pictures of his hand reaching out and touching strangers’ motorcycles on the street and sending them to Claire; she in turn would do the same and send them to him, and the person with the most “danger touches” would win the game.

Mini-review: Robert Craig's Lecture at the Decatur Public Library

Where & When: Decatur Public Library Auditorium on May 23, 2012. Sponsored by the Georgia Center for the Book.

 Attendance: ~40 people with so many architects and preservationists present that Robert M. Craig, a professor emeritus of architectural history at the Georgia Institute of Technology, quipped that he was quite intimidated by the distinguished audience (excluding me, of course).

What He Read: Craig didn't read. Instead he presented an extensive slide show based on his new book from the University of Georgia Press, The Architecture of Francis Palmer Smith: Atlanta's Scholar Architect. For a half a century, Francis Palmer Smith (1886-1971) either designed or influenced dozens of commercial buildings, hotels, elegant homes and churches. Smith was the first department head of the Georgia Institute of Technology's architecture program.

Why I Went: I've always had an interest in history, architecture and gorgeously printed books like Architecture. Craig is correct in saying his book is no coffee table book – though it has over 400 color and black and white photos. The book is chocked full of building descriptions and detailed history about the architecture and architects of Atlanta. I especially liked the appendix that has the list of all the houses, buildings, and churches including addresses where you can drive by and see them for yourself. (Shown at the top of the posting is the Druid Hills First Presbyterian Church on Ponce De Leon Avenue built in 1939-40. And don't worry, Craig's photos are much better than mine.)

What Craig Talked About: Everything. The lecture was divided into four parts: 1.) The early influences of the Ecole des Beaux-Art on Smith ( who grew up in Cincinnati and studied architecture at the University of Pennsylvania). 2.) Smith's partnership with another influential Atlanta architect, Robert Pringle. (1922-1934), which included many beautiful homes – many in the Druid Hills area. 3.) Smith's commercial work which began with Pringle and included hotels and Coca-cola bottle plants all over the Southeast. The bottling plant construction supported Smith's work during The Great Depression. 4.) Smith's design of churches including his crowning achievement, The Cathedral of St. Philip, here in Atlanta. Preliminary sketches were began in 1937, but the church wasn't built until 1960-62.

 

Mini-review: Kevin Wilson's Performance at the Decatur Public Library

Where & When: Decatur Public Library Auditorium on April 18, 2012. Sponsored by the Georgia Center for the Book.

Attendance: ~30 people including one woman who was doing her knitting.

Why I Went: Both Kevin Wilson's 2011 novel The Family Fang and his collection of short stories Tunneling to the Center of the Earth have received considerable critical acclaim the past few years. (The Family Fang was one of the finalist for this year's Pultizer in fiction.) I missed his earlier visits to the Atlanta area.

What He Read: A somewhat unconventional selection. For about 25 minutes, Wilson read an excerpt from The Family Fang and three freshly written scenes for the Fang book that didn't appear in the book (requested by his publisher for promotional purposes?). The Family Fang is the story of two performance artist parents who use their children as part of their act with consequences that are detrimental to the children.

 Q & A: At first, the unassumming Wilson nervously zipped and unzipped his hooded sweatshirt, but then relaxed when members of the audience asked specific questions about The Family Fang. (Something comforting when a writer connects to his or her readers.)  Wilson also talked about how he first became intrigued by performance art of Chris Burden as a fifteen year old growing up in Winchester, Tennessee. Wilson admires the work of performance artist Joesph Beuys and network of artists known as Fluxus as well, but said he was careful not to study their work too much because he didn't want to risk tainting the imaginative performances he created for characters in his book.

 Question-I-Was-Too-Timid-to-Ask-But-Didn't-Have-To-Because-Someone-Else-Did (thankfully). One audience member asked about the recent decision of the Pulitzer committee not to award a Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2012. Wilson said that naturally he was disappointed that he didn't win (Ann Patchett wrote that Wilson was certainly worthy), but thinks Denis Johnson's Train Dreams was definitely a book that deserved the prize.

Did I Buy Something? Yes. I picked up a copy of his collection of short stories and had it signed. I debated whether to have him pose for a picture for the blog, but Wilson who thanked everyone repeatedly for attending, seemed shy about the whole “reading” experience. I didn't want to be pushy.

Worth Mentioning: Wilson has a different approach to writing that you don't often hear. Unlike some writers who insist that you have to put on a tie and write every day like it is a job, Wilson, who teaches fiction at the University of the South, says he will go months without writing. He lets the story “spend time in my head.” When it's time, he will write continuously for six or seven days, breaking only for meals.

They're Coming to Americapedia and Andisheh Nouraee Is Why

If the melodic refrains of Neil Diamond's “America” stays in my head any longer I must remember to “thank” Andisheh Nouraee, the next time I see him. Nouraee, a former columnist for Creative Loafing kicked off the local tour of his book, Americapedia: Taking the Dumb Out of Freedom, with a medley of songs about America. In front of a full house at Decatur's Eddie's Attic, Nouraee boldly sang his personal Ode to America, which included bits of “El Paso,” “California Girls,” “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “Wichita Lineman,” the theme from the Broadway show “Oklahoma,” “Doraville,” “Jackson,” and the “America” from “West Side Story” to name but a few). The unaccompanied singing was richly apropos considering it was A Cappella Books who partnered with Eddie's Attic to host this book launch (some of the proceeds of the book sales going to the Decatur Education Foundation.)

Americapedia is actually the work of three authors: Jodi Lynn Anderson, Daniel Ehrenhaft, and Nouraee. The book is kind of a humorous junior high level civics textbook, which not only has a satirical edginess that appeals to teens, but to some adults as well. The crowd ranged from junior high students to people who say they remember the political upheaval of the sixties (but have forgotten the adage, “If you remember the sixties, you probably were not there.”). Nouraee believes that history coupled with humor can remove the confusion of how government works or doesn't work. Once that barrier is removed, says Nouraee people will be more likely to get involved. “The heart of the book is activism,” says Nouraee and part of the book (and its website) are dedicated to providing links and information to a multitude of organizations where a reader can connect to like-minded individuals.

The book is divided into seven chapters, which include topics such as economics, American dynasties (e.g., the Kennedy and the Bush families) foreign affairs, and a chapter devoted to hot topics such as religion, gay marriage and global warming. The book is a breezy read with lots of sidebars (“more sidebars than bars,” quipped Nouree) and is printed with colorful photographs and illustrations. One impressive aspect of the book is that the styles of the three writers have been melded into one consistent voice. Nouree explained (he and I chatted briefly at the bar before showtime) that even though the writers were based in different cities, (Anderson in D.C.; Ehrenhaft in New York; Nouree in Atlanta) that they edited each others' contributions, which added to the seamless quality of the book.

Tayari Jones: Review & Preview

Even though Tayari Jones' current promotional tour (which included six different appearances in Atlanta!) is focused on her latest book Silver Sparrow, I just finished reading her first novel, Leaving Atlanta, published in 2002.

I have been impressed with Jones essays (see earlier posting), but I will admit I was slow picking up this book. The thought of reading about the 1979 Atlanta child murders, a two year time period where over 20 African-American children were murdered, is not an inviting subject matter, but I now realize that although the deaths and the fears of abduction cast a shadow, the book is as much about the lives and expectations of three particular fifth grade schoolmates: Tasha Baxter, Rodney Green, and Octavia Harrison.

This book does what all good serious fiction does, it takes you into the world of these middle-school kids who, in addition to the tense atmosphere created by the abductions, also struggle with the usual awkwardness of puberty, classroom rivalries, and relationships with mothers and fathers (or absent fathers). Jones presents the different strata of the black working class – where people may be defined by whether they live in the projects or near them, can afford good clothes or not, or have brown skin pr “black, black as night” skin. (One student hangs the nickname “Watusi” on Octavia because she resembles a black African with unruly hair that “stuck out around her face like rays of the sun in a children's drawing.”) The book is divided into three sections following each child, but Jones melds these separate lives with skill. Jones' crafted prose is simple and strong and once a while she poleaxes you with a line that crushes then numbs you. (“You lose your child not like you lose your watch. You lose your child like you lose your sight. Lose your mind,” says one of the mothers.)

 

Sarah Vowell's Unfamiliar Fishes: A Review

As a contributor to NPR'S This American Life, and with appearances on Jon Stewart and David Letterman, it is no surprise Sarah Vowell has accumulated a legion of fans over the years along with a string of bestsellers. Her most recent book is Unfamiliar Fishes, a history of Hawaii that focuses on the Protestant missionaries who brought religion to Hawaii in 1820, which eventually led to the islands' 1898 American annexation.

My question is: Does anyone who isn't already a big fan of Vowell's thinks this is a very good history book? I liked her Assassination Vacation, but Unfamiliar Fishes sounded like a continuation of The Wordy Shipmates and I had enough of that book during her reading here in Atlanta a few years ago.

In short, Unfamiliar Fishes reads like one big riff on Hawaiian history reminiscent of the “native Hawaian” Ula's (played by Rob Schneider) rant in 50 First Dates (“Okay you haole you think you can come to this island, eat our pineapple, bang our women, and make my sister clean your hotel rooms.”) Coincidentally both the movie and the book pay homage to late Isreal Kamakawiwo'ole's (known more as Iz) rendition of “Over the Rainbow.”

Comparing to Unfamiliar Fishes to 50 First Dates may be silly, but the book has a few shortcomings as a history book, especially for an author who has made it her mission to translate history to the masses. It's has structural faults: The book has only one map (but I am a map junkie). The book has no chapters, no subheadings, no index, no chronology of events, and no family tree of the Hawaiian Royal Family (which would have been really helpful). I know it's unfair to criticize a book for what it doesn't have, but if Vowell's impetus to write the book is to educate us why not provide us with a few reading aids? (See Comments)

 

Crossroads of Conflict: A Review

To mark the beginning of the Civil War sesquicentennial commemoration, almost hundred buffs came out on a chilly night last month to hear Barry L. Brown and Gordon R. Elwell at the Decatur Public Library introduce their book Crossroads of Conflict: A Guide to Civil War Sites in Georgia. It was a seasoned crowd who has been going to the Cyclorama since they were kids, (Elwell made a solo bus trip from Orlando when he 11 years old to see the large oil painting) and an audience who knows the real story on whether Confederate President Jefferson Davis was wearing his wife's dress when the Federal cavalry captured him near Irwinville, Georgia on May 10, 1865. (Davis was wearing Mrs. Davis' shawl.)

Published last fall by the University of Georgia Press, in association with the Georgia Civil War Commission, the Georgia Department of Economic Development, and the Georgia Humanities Council, Crossroads of Conflict is a comprehensive guide to the battlefields, markers, houses, relief maps, monuments, statues, museums, mills (mill ruins at Sweetwater Creek shown here), churches, depots, cemeteries, bridges, forts, parks, visitor centers, ferries, courthouses, capitols, prison sites, campsites, trenches, plantations, archives, arsenals, and lighthouses located in Georgia. All is all, 350 sites are included in the book, an increase from the last compilation, which listed 150 sites.

What is impressive is that Brown and Elwell's expansion of Crossroads' scope means the book covers more than just generals and campaigns. For example, they include the site where Atlanta barber and freed black, Solomon Luckie, died from injuries when a Union shell landed near him in July, 1864. (Luckie Street was named after him.) Another story, which Brown and Elwell told at their presentation, features Theophile Roche, a French national and mill owner in Roswell who tried to declare neutrality by hoisting a French flag as the Federal cavalry approached his mill. (Nice try, but to no avail as the Yankees torched the mill anyway.)

Book Organization

The sites are divided by the nine tourism regions of Georgia where individual sites and towns are grouped together geographically. For example, the Historic High Country region features the battlefield at Resaca (which has recently been expanded), and the surrounding areas of interest: the Duncan Norton House, the Resaca Confederate Cemetery and the Oostanaula River Bridge.

Brian Dettmer’s Exhibit at Saltworks Gallery

Don’t despair if you didn’t see the Salvador Dali exhibit at the High Museum before it left town. (If it makes you feel any better, I rated the Dali exhibit up there with the Leonardo Da Vinci “doodles” from the previous year, but I am no critic— strictly a poseur, and not a very good one at that.)

But if you are interested in books as art objects or more specifically sculpture, there is still time for you to see Brian Dettmer’s New Worlds to Conquer exhibit at the Saltworks Gallery (located near the west side Six Feet Under).  The exhibit closes Saturday, January 15th. 

Dettmer, who lives here in Atlanta, takes hard-cover books—older books with elaborate illustrations (e.g. Military Preventative Medicine, Encyclopedias of World Travel)—and carves through them page by page, pulling out words and pictures from the book. This creates a stunning visual and reminds us how the richness of books can convey new meanings beyond just reading them. A better description and interpretation of Dettmer’s work and technique can be found at the Art Critic Atlanta website.

Shown here is Dettmer’s carving of the book, The War on All Fronts (photo courtesy of Brian Dettmer and the Saltworks Gallery), but photos really don’t do the work justice. As mentioned earlier, it’s the perfect exhibit for those who like books and for those who don’t like books—I guess it can be one of those 101 Uses for a Dead Cat type of experiences.

Grant Jerkins: A Very Simple Reading

I’ve heard a few well-known authors read this year—Jonathan Franzen, Anne Lamott, and Nick Hornby—all of them read for what seemed like an eternity (over a half an hour). I much prefer a quick reading—20 minutes tops. After all, I can read the book myself and I often drift off in thought during oral presentations. By the time I refocus, I’ve usually lost the plot line.

There are quick readings and then there are nano-quick readings and if you went to the water fountain at the wrong time Tuesday night, you missed most of first time novelist’s Grant Jerkins' book launch at the Decatur Public Library.  (Only the late E. Lynn Harris’s reading was shorter. See here or details. )

It’s not like Jerkins didn’t warn us. “I will have you home in time to watch Glee,” he quipped, before he read just a couple pages from his crime novel, A Very Simple Crime.

Set in Atlanta, A Very Simple Crime is the story of a man accused of murdering his wife by placing his violent and developmental disabled son in a position to allegedly bludgeon his wife (his son’s mother) with an ashtray. Jerkins puts his 10+ years of experience working with developmentally disabled adults into the narrative. The book also approaches the murder from the perspective of a junior deputy prosecutor who struggles to redeem himself from a child molestation case he botched years ago.

Jerkins fielded questions about the origins of the book and how it began as original screenplay he had written over a decade ago. The book has been optioned as a movie by director Barbet Schroeder (Barfly, Reversal of Fortune), but Jerkins explained that whether the movie will be made depends largely on financial support.

Nick Hornby at the Highland Inn

  

Novelist, essayist and now song lyricist Nick Hornby was in Atlanta promoting the paperback release of his latest novel Juliet, Naked and his current work with singer/musician Ben Folds on the release of Lonely Avenue, a collaborative album of short stories. Hornby’s reading on Monday, October 18 was the kickoff event for the A Cappella Books’ Ballroom Bash. 

Hornby read three excerpts from Juliet, Naked for about 40 minutes, before taking questions from the packed house for another half hour.  The crowd wasn’t shy about asking questions, and Hornby used his storytelling ability to answer them.

Here are my notes—not everything is verbatim, but it was a dark room (I don’t how Hornby read so flawlessly from his book) and so my notes --like my photography aren’t crystal clear. Here’s the gist of what Hornby talked about:

On Juliet, Naked

“This book (which centers on the legacy of an aging reclusive singer-songwriter – not necessarily Bob Dylan, but a composite figure of songwriters of that era) represents the split within me as a music fan, an author and an artist."

 On Collaborating with Ben Folds

 Hornby told the story of how he met Ben Folds after he wrote an essay about the Ben Folds Five song, “Smoke” in his 2002 book of essays Songbook, which is a great book about the many ways we relate to music. (Both Rube Ambler from ATLalist and I brought our original copies, which Hornby graciously signed.) Apparently this was the beginning of his current working friendship with Folds, which has included along the way, trying to write songs for—get this—the actor William Shatner. (For more on Ben Folds and the William Shatner Gonzo Ballet, I must refer you to other sources.)

 On When to Quit Writing

 “One of the most profound questions about the arts is when to decide to quit. You’re convinced you’re a genius, but that doesn’t really help either. I’ve come to the conclusion that artists are childish. Once you grow up, you realize that you are not that special. But all the famous ones didn’t grow up.”