Thursday, February 3rd at 7:30 p.m.
Pankaj Mishra
An End to Suffering
(FSG )
Describing his own restless journeys
into India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, among Islamists and the emerging
Hindu middle class, this author of The Romantics seeks to understand
the Buddha's relevance in a world where class oppression and religious
violence are rife, and where poverty and terrorism cast a long, constant
shadow. The result is the most three-dimensional, convincing book yet
on the Buddha.
Friday, February 4th at 7:30 p.m.
Warren MacDonald
A Test of Will: One Man's Extraordinary
Story of Survival
( Greystone)
In 1997, experienced climber MacDonald
set out to make the grueling climb up Australia's spectacular Mount
Bowen. This two-day adventure turned into a nightmare when he found
himself lying in a creek bed, both legs pinned by a giant boulder. Surviving
was only the beginning. In 2003, he became the first double above-knee
amputee to reach the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro. This sensational story
will both haunt and inspire you. A short DVD film will be showed.
Monday, February 7th at 7:30 p.m.
John M. Barry
The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the
Deadliest Plague in History
(Penguin )
The great influenza epidemic of
1918 killed more people in twenty weeks than AIDS has killed in twenty
years. In the United States, where bodies were stacked without coffins
on trucks, nearly seven times as many people died of influenza as in
the First World War. With his skillful recounting of this first great
collision between science and epidemic disease, award-winning historian
Barry documents a spellbinding and terrifying true tale.
Tuesday, February at 8th 7:30 p.m.
Anita and Soloman Feferman
Alfred Tarski: Life and Logic
( Cambridge)
"A chain smoker, a heavy
drinker, a frequent user of 'speed,' a relentless womaniser, and a man
of Napoleonic self-regard and worldly ambition. This is not how one
pictures an eminent Professor of Logic...The Fefermans, of course, are
uniquely qualified to lead the reader through the intricacies of Tarski's
work, which they do very engagingly and with great expository skill."--Ray
Monk, Professor of Philosophy, Southampton. One of the greatest logicians
of all time, UC Berkeley professor Tarski is widely thought of as "the
man who defined truth," and his mathematical work became a cornerstone
of modern logic, influencing philosophy, linguistics and computer science.
Wednesday, February 9th at 7:30 p.m.
Dave King
The Ha-Ha
( Little Brown)
Howard Kapostash has not spoken
in thirty years, ever since a head injury from his Army days. No one
understands he is still the same man, awed by the beauty of the landscape
and pining for his high school sweetheart who now asks Howard to watch
over her nervous, resourceful nine-year-old boy while she's hauled into
rehab. Forced out of his routine-designed specifically to minimize the
agony of human contact-Howard finds unexpected delights, but these changes
also open him to the risks of loss and to the rage he has spent a lifetime
suppressing. "Many of literature's most memorable novels became so because
the protagonist was utterly unforgettable and completely human. That's
the key to Dave King's...The Ha-Ha."--Anna Quindlen.
Tuesday, February15th at 7:30 p.m.
Donna Zajonc
The Politics of Hope: Reviving the Dream
of Democracy
(Synergy Books)
A nurse and mental health advocate,
business owner, former Oregon State Representative, nominee for Secretary
of State, and political leadership coach, Donna Zajonc inspires us to
rejoin the political scene as public leaders. Making simple food of
an elaborate smorgasbord of politics and social theories, she offers
a clear look at where we have been politically and outlines our country's
essential passage from polarization towards cooperation in the Four
Stages of Political Evolution. As a legislator, she was the chief sponsor
of Oregon's Marijuana for Medical Use legislation in the early 80's,
and as a leadership coach, she has brought nonpartisan awareness to
a wide variety of candidates for public office.
Wednesday, February 16th at 6:30 p.m. *
Book Club
Time Traveler's Wife
by Audrey Niffenegger
(Harvest Books)
A
dazzling novel in the most untraditional fashion, this is the remarkable
story of Henry DeTamble, a dashing, adventuresome librarian who travels
involuntarily through time, and Clare Abshire, an artist whose life
takes a natural sequential course. Henry and Clare's passionate love
affair endures across a sea of time and captures the two lovers in an
impossibly romantic trap, and it is Audrey Niffenegger's cinematic storytelling
that makes the novel's unconventional chronology so vibrantly triumphant.
* Please note time
Wednesday, February 16th at 7:30 p.m.
Brigitte Carnochan
Myth and the Natural World: Painted Photographs
(Sensu Publications)
In this catalog of thirty sensuous
floral and nude images, Carnochan displays her ability to "transform
the mundane of everyday to the transcendent." With oil paints, abstract
black and white images are transformed into the lush, evocative images
for which she is known. A UCSC and Stanford professor whose work has
been exhibited on the coasts as well as in Chile and Latvia, she will
present a slide show and describe her shooting and painting techniques.
View her work at www.brigittecarnochan.com
.
Thursday , February 17th at 7:30 p.m.
Brandi Chastain
It's Not About the Bra: Play Hard, Play
Fair, and Put the Fun Back Into Competitive Sports
(Harper )
Drawing on anecdotes from her
own storied career as well as those of her coaches and teammates, World
Cup and Olympic Soccer Champion Chastain tackles the thorny issues of
sportsmanship and parental involvement in today's youth sports that
are losing the joy of competition. She candidly discloses both the good
and bad ways she's dealt with adversity and teaches young athletes how
to develop leadership skills, find (and become) role models, and give
something back to their team and community. Whether it's Little League
or youth soccer, Chastain offers a blueprint for kids and parents alike
on how to play fair, win (and lose) with grace, and, above all, how
to have a good time doing it.
Thursday, February 17th at 7:00 p.m. *
World Affairs Book Club
From Oslo to Iraq and the Road Map: Essays
by Edward W. Said
(Pantheon )
These forty-six pieces underscore
his efforts for the Palestinian cause, taking us from the collapse of
the Oslo Accords to the U.S. invasion of Iraq and focusing on the need
to reveal Israel's treatment of Palestinians, the need to get Palestinians
and other Arabs to engage with the progressive elements in Israel, and
the need to speak out about the failure of Arab leadership. In upcoming
months we will be reading the work of Bernard Lewis and other historians
to offer a balanced perspective on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
As always, we welcome people from all backgrounds and affiliations to
participate. For more information you may email Jenn Ramage at jenn_ramage@yahoo.com
or call the store at 462-4415. *Please Note Time.
Tuesday, February 22nd at 7:30 p.m.
Patricia Rain
Vanilla: The Cultural History of the World's
Favorite Flavor & Fragrance (Tarcher)
AND
Stephen Yafa
Big Cotton: A Biography of a Revolutionary
Fiber (Viking)
A celebration of small things
with grand histories! Vanilla has been considered the ultimate aphrodisiac,
an ideal currency, and a coveted spice. Anthropologist, culinary historian,
and voice for vanilla growers world-wide, Rain explores the diverse
impact of vanilla on food, medicine, psychology and even politics, from
indigenous peoples to consumers today. (See www.vanilla.com). Appetizers
from Theo's will be served!
Stephen Yafa, a playwright and a journalist for Rolling Stone
and San Francisco Chronicle, draws on the extraordinary feats
of ingenuity required to convert a fluffy mass of fiber into a substance
of terrifying versatility. He traces cotton's journey from its first
domestication about 5,500 years ago through its part in the Civil War
and its new role in modern-day nano-technology and bio-engineering.
Yafa highlights a compelling history--and great trivia, too: a bale
of cotton can produce 2,104 pairs of boxer shorts or 313,600 dollar
bills.
Wednesday, February 23rd at 7:30 p.m.
Rita Mae Brown
Cat's Eyewitness
(Bantam)
The national bestselling author
and her feline friend Sneaky Pie prove their unique writing partnership
is one of the most successful in the history of mystery! Rita Mae is
an Emmy-nominated screenwriter, poet, and author of numerous books,
including now 13 Mrs. Murphy and Sneaky Pie mysteries. This time a decade-old
curiosity in the monastery that has perplexed Crozet, Virginia, for
ages is tackled by local investigators--two-legged and four.
Thursday, February 24th at 7:30 p.m.
Fred Luskin
Stress Free for Good
(Harper SF)
The author of Forgive for Good
and Director of the Stanford Forgiveness Project shares ten scientifically
proven skills for eliminating stress and pain that occur all too frequently
in daily life. Between jobs and families, we are subject to constant
pressures that affect our physical and emotional well-being, with stomach
pain, headaches, and depression resulting. And now you don't need to
be a meditation master to find some healthy, fast-acting relief. Co-written
with a leader in alternative medicine, Dr. Kenneth Pelletier, and with
a foreword by Dr. Andrew Weil, Stress Free for Good combines
timeless wisdom and science while providing the only stress tool you'll
need.
Friday, February 25th at 7:30 p.m.
Izzy and Coco Tihanyi
Surf Diva: A Girl's Guide to Getting Good
Waves
(Harvest )
In 1996, twin sisters, Izzy, a
competitive surfer, and Cocoa, a fashion designer, opened Surf Diva
in La Jolla--the world's first surf school for women and girls, with
a fashion and surfboard line to boot. What resulted was an entirely
new concept: powerful women teaching hundreds of women and girls the
art of surfing, which was once only a boy's game. Quickly recognized
as the best by national media (from The Today Show and the
New York Times to InStyle), these hip pioneers have written
down their effective and irreverent secrets. Professional surfers like
Sofia Mulanovich and Kate Skarratt and ladies new to the waves take
the plunge and live up to the Surf Diva motto, "The best surfer in the
water is the one having the most fun."
Monday, February 28th at 7:30 p.m.
Lalo Fiorelli
Hidden Splendors of the Yucatan
( Splendors)
A first of it's kind, this photographic
exploration of the subaquatic caves of the Yucatan peninsula is filled
with fantastic images of limestone spirals and spikes submerged since
the end of the last ice age, when rising water covered land and human
remains alike. A thrill for scuba divers, photographers, and anthropologists,
this event will feature a multimedia presentation.
COMING IN MARCH
2005
Tuesday, March 1st at 7:30 p.m.
Anna Tsing, Jennifer Gonzales, and Helene Morgan
Shock and Awe: War on Words
( New Pacific Press)
If you don't know what to say
about global war, you may need a dictionary. Shock and Awe, published
by The Literary Guillotine's partner New Pacific Press, is just that:
a keywords book that participates in a battle over the imagination,
acknowledging the force of words and images in framing our everyday
lives. Rather than being merely shocked and awed by the manipulation
of words (think "patriot", "terrorism", "peace", "security"), a group
of more than seventy scholars, artists and public intellectuals put
their writings on the line, joining forces and fervor to offer "glimpses
of social history as a form of defense and defiance in an escalating
war on words." Several UCSC contributors will participate.
Wednesday, March 2nd at 7:30 p.m.
Richard Walker
The Conquest of Bread: 150 Years of Agribusiness
in California
( The New Press)
For over a century, California
has been the world's most advanced agricultural zone, an agrarian juggernaut
that not only out-produces every state in America, but also most countries.
However, as acclaimed geographer and historian Walker argues, our state's
miraculous manipulation of nature has been purchased at the price of
epic environmental degradation and labor exploitation. Full of thunder
and surprises, The Conquest of Bread allows the reader to weigh
the claims of both boosters and critics in the debate over the most
extraordinary agricultural profusion in the modern world.
And "Big
Names" appearing in March include...
Adam Hochschild, Bury the Chains: March 9 at
7:30 p.m.
Lily Tuck, The News from Paraguay (winner of The National Book
Award): March 13 at 2:30 p.m.
Suze Orman, The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous and Broke:
March 21at 7:30 p.m.
Deborah Santana, Space Between the Stars: March 24 at 7:30 p.m.
