A little over two years ago, Seattle author Boyd Morrison had three completed manuscripts, a literary agent, and rejection letters from every major publisher in New York. Today he has a multi-book deal with Simon & Schuster. more ›

Needless to say, Air is a quiet novel, even at its most tragic points, with a fragile melancholy tone that beautifully mirrors its characters' insecurities of finding comfort and stability in a place where they can't ultimately feel settled or as if they belong. Mengestu's lyrical prose in Air easily reminded us of other favorites such as Marilynne Robinson's Housekeeping, Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God and Toni Morrison's Beloved. It's about the energy that can fill a room and explain everything, though nothing is being said aloud. more ›

Award-winning writer and professor Howard Norman's latest historical fiction novel What Is Left the Daughter is an extraordinary read. Set in the Canadian Maritime Province of Nova Scotia, the book centers around the tragic, unforgettable occurrences that have taken place in Wyatt Hillyer's life, as he details his family's history in a memoir to his estranged daughter Marlais on her 21st birthday. The story is filled with devastating misfortunes: Hillyer is orphaned at 17 after his parents each jump to their deaths on the same night off of separate bridges; a gruesome murder is committed out of madness; WWII hardships; a family member's life is taken when a German U-boat sinks the Nova Scotia-Newfoundland ferry Caribou. more ›

Those in search of a spark to break their writer’s block need look no further: The 2010 Flash Fiction Challenge is here! No, really—the deadline to register is today, Aug. 11. The international short-story fiction competition (formerly called the Creative Writing Championships) is in its third year and is sponsored by NYC Midnight Movie Making Madness, an organization focused on discovering new talent in storytelling, be it on film or in writing. Writers must stick to 1,000 words or fewer for each story, the first of which has to be written this weekend starting on Friday. Judges then apply a points system to their favorite pieces, and the top contenders move on to the next round (there are four rounds; entrants are guaranteed to participate in at least two of them). Organizers assign each participant a genre (such as crime caper, historical fiction, fairy tale), a location (a baseball stadium, hallway, locker room, whathaveyou), and an object (a toothbrush, a TV, a banana) to be featured in each piece, so writers can expect to be forced out of their creative comfort zone. Which is how most works of genius come about, right? Right. Now get caffeinated and get writing. more ›

How Did You Get This Number does a fantastic job of further highlighting Crosley's maturity as a writer and now as an early thirtysomething who has moved past the young woes of botched first jobs and the like, and into more of an adult realm of situational humor. However this is not to say that her second collection of essays is any less humorous than the first; rather we think it just may be the opposite. more ›

At first glance, one may not realize that Anne Lamott's latest novel, Imperfect Birds, is the final piece of a trilogy--or as her faithful readers may call it--the last book in the "Rosie" series. Imperfect Birds stands on its own as a novel quite perfectly, in fact. The characters, the setting, and the plot are all introduced in full detail, as if they hadn't already played their roles in Lamott's previous novels, Rosie and Crooked Little Heart. more ›

Revered as "a modern day Henry David Thoreau,"a writer's writer," and overall as "arguably the nation's premier nature writer," Barry Lopez is an essayist and author of over a dozen well-known fiction and nonfiction works. more ›

God bless you, Kurt Vonnegut, life has been so much more dull without you here. And thank you, Sidney Offit, for making this collection possible! As the second posthumous short story collection from Kurt Vonnegut, Look at the Birdie is a great pick for longtime fans, or a great entry into his work for those who are unfamiliar. We don't normally buy hardcover books, but this was one that we couldn't pass up, as Vonnegut is one of our all-time favorite American authors, and we own a great number of his books in hardcover. Unlike his first posthumous collection, Armageddon in Retrospect, which speaks more of times of war and peace, Look at the Birdie contains stories reminiscent of Vonnegut's best work--those of the broader ideas and mindsets of America after World War II. Expect this collection to have Vonnegut's usual excellent wit and humor along with underlying themes of humanism, as, like Mark Twain, Vonnegut was a devout follower. If you love this awesome new collection, you may also consider a couple of his older collections that are just as excellent: Wampeters, Foma & Granfalloons, or Bagombo Snuff Box: Uncollected Short Fiction--our very personal favorite (includes characters from stories in Welcome to the Monkey House, an added bonus for those that are familiar). more ›

Hugo House will be hosting Visiting Hours this Friday at 7:30 p.m., featuring Northwest favorites such as Benjamin Parzybok, Elizabeth Austen, Matt Smith, and Molly Rose. Tickets range from $15-25. more ›

For anyone reading this who is in-the-know when it comes to music, there are plenty of draws on real-life artists for you to think about. We found ourselves wondering if the title of the album and the book was a play on The Beatles "Let it Be, Naked" album. You will also love the detail that Hornby put into Tucker Crowe's presence on the internet, such as the fake Wikipedia page and Duncan's website for the Croweologists that is named after one of Crowe's songs. The book is so true to the times we live in--an era where everyone looks to the internet for their gossip, facts, and autobiographical information. more ›

We don't actually read much of the fiction in the New Yorker--either it's warmed-over leftovers from famous authors or something from an MFA who's just discovered a) poor or b) ethnic peoples exist--but last week we did. Last week, Sherman Alexie shook things up with a profane, funny, poignant outburst that reminded us of how good New Yorker fiction used to be: "Last summer, in reaction to various allergies I was suffering from, defensive mucus flooded my inner right ear and confused, frightened, and unmoored me." This fucking guy Alexie. He just gets better and better. more ›

HIPHOP THEATRE: Described as a "hip-hop renaissance man," Marc Bamuthi Joseph brings his hiphop theater multimedia production, the break/s, to Seattle (runs through July 12). David Schmader seems to like it, and after reading more about it, we can totally understand why. Joseph, a dancer, award-winning poet, and educator, makes what is described as a "mixtape for the stage" with turntables and djs, visual imagery, dance, and spoken word (story and poetry) from personal interviews and documentary footage. 7:30 p.m. // ACT Theatre, 700 Union Street// Tickets: $10/ $15 (students w/ ID), $37.50/ $50 (adults) more ›

The Lace Makers of Glenmara is one of those novels that you can bet on becoming a big film in the future. We can see it already, and are practically putting money on who would star. Let's see, we need a starring actress who is pretty but not beautiful; petite, not tall; with a lively wit to make up for anything lacking...and a leading man who is tall dark and handsome with an Irish accent. The movie just seems like a no-brainer. more ›

Though this is Chandler Burr's first novel, he is also the author of three other non-fiction books: The Perfect Scent, The Emperor of Scent, and A Separate Creation. And if you're smelling sensing a particular theme, you're on the right track--Burr has been the The New York Times scent critic since August '06. more ›

We'll preface this review by saying that we absolutely loved Ali Sethi's debut novel The Wish Maker. The fact that he is only 24 years old and could produce such a well-written, excellent debut novel is just outstanding. more ›

Forgetting English is a wonderfully written, powerful compilation of short stories. After reading it, we're not surprised at all that the collection was the winner of the prestigious Spokane Prize for Short Fiction in 2007. Raymond explains that Forgetting English was written over a period of five years. She says, "I began putting the collection together after noticing a theme emerging...that of Americans traveling abroad, discovering themselves in ways not possible while on their home turf." more ›

Man, a tagger just cannot catch a break in this town! The Washington State Patrol is now using infrared to spot graffiti writers working on property that is, how you say...not legally designated for graffiti. That's serious dedication on the WSP's part. Does this strike anyone else as an eerily familiar smash-up of Fahrenheit 451 and The Giver? more ›

First of all, let Seattlest be clear up front: we have almost zero respect for Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series. Poorly written, dumb story line, not worth our time. Harry Potter, on the other hand, we loved. A group of opinionated kids at the Seattle Public Library debated the merits of the two series yesterday, and here's the video. Attention, kids: read a lot, frequently, and continue to hone your debate skills--they'll serve you in good stead in MySpace chat rooms for the rest of your lives. more ›

He won a Pulitzer for his first novel, The Brief Wondrous LIfe of Oscar Wao, but when Junot Diaz took to the lectern at Benaroya Hall last night, after what he called a "super-long introduction," he looked out into the crowd and said, "Guys, you should be up here. Super fucking scary." Diaz's spoken voice was straight from the page: super-fucking-compelling, laugh-your-ass-off funny, shit so true you don't even tell your homies. more ›

We left it up to Jami Attenberg to pick a spot in a not-so-crowded Bauhaus Coffeehouse this morning, and somehow she managed to find the cavelike area behind and below everything that goes on in a not-so-crowded coffeehouse. Overtired, pre-caffeinated and maybe a little bit getting sick, Attenberg seemed comfortable in the cave. An interview she did with Metblogs on her last book tour indicated that Bauhaus is one of her favorite Seattle haunts, so that explains that. more ›