JANUARY 2003

Tuesday, January 7 at 7:30p.m.
Teresa LeYung Ryan
Love Made of Heart
(Kensington Publishing Company)

Caught between two vastly different cultural roles - an American girl raised on kitschy TV and a Chinese woman known only as Daughter, the fulfiller of responsibilities - Ruby comes to see that "life is not a straight road" but a language drawn with many brush strokes, where misunderstandings yield messages to the heart. A theatrical presentation of a scene from this brilliant, emotional work will ignite a buzz around talented Ryan who uses storytelling to honor ancestry, heart, and humanity.

---

Monday, January 13 at 7:30p.m.
Rabih Alameddine
I, The Divine (W.W. Norton)

This is a powerful novel of a woman's self-definition and a daring literary feat in which a Lebanese-American woman, Sarah El-Din tells her story. Chapter after chapter, she throws out her opening and begins again, each time mesmerizing us with the infusion of political and social awakening, painting a portrait of a woman caught between cultures, struggling to define herself.

"Alameddine has reinvented the way in which we tell a story. His ingenious method of an entire novel in first chapters hints at the rich layers and sublime rewriting that we each make when telling our life story. I learned so much about Lebanon at a bloody point in its history, for Almeddine infuses his work with compassion and cultural nuance. I found myself wishing Sarah's story--even her daily struggles---did not have to end. This is one of my favorite novels of the last year."
-- Jenn Ramage

---

Tuesday, January 14 at 7:30p.m.
John L'Heureux
The Miracle (Grove, Atlantic)

Acclaimed by the Washington Post as a "master storyteller...elegant, cunning, and wickedly funny", John L'Heureux enters the world of an unorthodox Catholic priest - Paul LeBlanc - whose liberal ideas on the Vietnam war, birth control, racial equality and the singing of show tunes in the church halls puts him at odds with the Pope whose "infallibility" he is willing to discuss. Exiled to a small town parish to aid with a dying, cynical priest, LeBlanc painfully guards his own faith, then witnesses a miracle in the lives of two compelling women, a miracle that will call his faith, vows, and life all into question. Himself a Jesuit priest for 17 years, this author of 16 other books of poetry and fiction will openly discuss his witty, profound work and personal exit from the priesthood.

---

Wednesday, January 15 at 7:30p.m.
Sally Bookman
Sand Beneath Your Toes (BookMan)

Fifteen years in the making, this vibrant watercolor journey through Santa Cruz County by locally and nationally recognized artist Sally Bookman is a treasure for all of us. In a very personal attempt to preserve the uniqueness of our quirky neighborhoods, dramatic coastlines, and historic buildings, Bookman has elegantly mixed educational text and memorable watercolor images of Pleasure Point, Roaring Camp Railroads, the Yacht Harbor, and other landmarks of our California paradise.

---

Tuesday, January 21 at 7:30p.m.
Charlotte Gullick
By Way of Water (Blue Hen)

A writer from the rural timber country of Northern California and student of our respected bestselling author Jim Houston, Charlotte Gullick, essayist and poet, has poured her powerful talents into a novel of the unforgiving western forests and unbending rules we set for ourselves when the world seems irreconcilably misaligned. Narrated by the gentle voice of seven-year-old Justy, the story of the Colby family's desperate struggle against starvation when all the logging jobs are gone is dangerously intensified with the father's refusal to accept any governmental help and the mother's refusal to allow hunting. Violence, faith, and personal aspirations loom as large here as the old-growth redwoods that command the landscape.

---

Thursday, January 23 at 7:00 pm
World Affairs BookClub

Last March, the Book Cafe began a new book club focusing on global current history with Graham Parsons facilitating the discussion. To date, the group has read books on Afghanistan, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the border dispute between India and Pakistan, Iraq, Iran and Latin America. As always, we welcome people of all backgrounds and affiliations to come participate. For more information you may email Graham Parsons at parsons402@yahoo.com or call Jenn Ramage at 462-6297.

---

Friday, January 24 at 7:30p.m.
Richard Price
Samaritan (Knopf)

We're pleased to welcome the acclaimed writer of Clockers and Freedomland to Santa Cruz County. Richard Price's unique ability to merge literary thriller, racial exploration and social commentary make him one of our very favorite American writers. Of Samaritan, Stephen King says, " [It] blew my mind. This is a damned fine story by a novelist who is currently at the height of his powers. The characters...are rich and believable. I cared about how it worked out. There are literally a hundred places in the book where I said to myself, 'Yeah! That's how things look, that's how people act and talk, I believe this.'.... I did say the reader is hooked from the first page, and that's just about always a keeper, right?" Join us for a marvelous reading.

---

Thursday, January 30 at 7:30p.m.
Po Bronson
What Should I Do with My Life? (Random House)

Bestselling author and journalist of The Nudist on the Late Shift and The First Twenty Million is Always the Hardest, Po Bronson has now crossed America and the oceans to find people who have struggled to unearth their true calling - people of all ages, class, and professions. With a bear market, loss of faith in technology, and a spike in corporate corruption, more folks grapple with what is important in life, and Bronson interviewed 900 of them, profiling 50 brave souls who resisted the allure of money and expectations of others. From the lawyer who became a trucker to spend more time with his son to the Cuban immigrant who defied her parents and chose social work over high pay, Bronson inspires, illuminates, and entertains.