March 2001

Monday, March 5 at 7:30 pm
Laurie R. King
Folly (Bantam)

Our beloved writer of mysteries and suspense is back! Kicking off her national book tour with the Book Cafe, Laurie R. King has brought us another intricate, pulsating story in this stand-alone novel that will take readers on a chilling, deeply psychological ride. Rae, a woman already on the edge of sanity, flees to a remote island to restore the house of an equally haunted figure, her mysterious great-uncle. There she struggles against real and imagined horrors. Is she really alone, or is there a mysterious demon in her midst?

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Tuesday, March 6 at 7:30 pm
Leonard Chang
Over the Shoulder: A Novel of Intrigue (Ecco Press)

A hybrid of crime and literary novel that explores issues of honor and family history, Over The Shoulder offers a unique view of the American protagonist and reluctant investigator, shaken from the doldrums of his insulated life. Choice and his partner, Paul Baumgartner, are security specialists for Silicon Valley executives. When Paul gets killed on the job, Choice and an inexperienced Bay Area reporter, Linda Maldonado, begin looking into the puzzling circumstances of the murder. As they work together to unravel the intricate threads of lies and half-truths, they discover that his death might be linked to an older, more personal one -- the mysterious death of Allen's father some twenty years earlier.

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Thursday, March 8 at 7:30 pm
Jane Smiley
Horse Heaven (Ballantine)

We are thrilled to welcome back Pulitzer-prize winning novelist Jane Smiley for her charming, funny new novel of horse racing. Publisher's Weekly says, "Smiley...knows a prodigious amount about Thoroughbreds, and she is as good at describing the stages of their lives, their temperaments and personalities as she is in chronicling the ambitions, financial windfalls and ruins, love affairs, partings and reconciliation of her large cast of characters... Written with high spirits and enthusiasm, distinguished by Smiley's wry humor, the novel gallops into the home stretch without loosing momentum."

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Tuesday, March 13 at 7:30 pm
Jonathan Spence
Treason by the Book (Viking)

We are honored to welcome the highly respected, premier historian on ancient and modern Chinese history to Santa Cruz. Jonathan Spence is the recipient of both a Guggenheim and a MacArthur Fellowship. His work is regularly used in the classroom and read by policy makers and historians alike. This renowned Chinese historian now brings to life the intriguing account of the 18th-century rebellion led by disaffected Chinese scholars against their Manchu emperor Yongzheng. With a list of characters as colorful and unpredictable as a literary mystery novel, Treason by the Book reads as a thriller, chasing the ancient conspiracy to its origins.

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Wednesday, March 14 at 5:30 pm **
Elissa Schappell
Use Me: A Novel (Morrow)

The witty, intelligent writer for Vanity Fair, Vogue, GQ, Spin as well as cofounder of the literary magazine Tin House, Elissa Schappell has thrown her talents into a sharp debut novel. Use Me is the ten stories of Evie Wakefield, from childhood to childbearing, as she experiences the pulse of life. Join us for tea and a delightful conversation with this marvelous new voice in American fiction.
(*Please Note Time)

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Wednesday, March 14 at 7:30 pm
Richard Gordon
Quantum Touch (Quantum Touch Publications)

According to Deepak Chopra, "to promote the healing response, you must get past all the grosser levels of the body...and arrive at a junction point between mind and matter, the point where consciousness actually starts to have an effect." Richard Gordon's Quantum-Touch method of hands-on healing achieves just this. Whether a novice or a health professional, learn how to relieve pain and inflammation with slow skeletal adjustments that Dr. C. Norman Shealy, American Holistic Medical Association president and neurosurgeon, describes as "the first technique that may truly allow us all to become healers." This will be a mini-workshop and complete demonstration by one of medicine's modern masters.

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Thursday, March 15 from 6:30-8:00 pm
Writing Group

Every third Thursday of the month, join Book Cafe's Wendy Mayer as she leads our writer's group, which meets upstairs in the back of the store. These meetings are free and open to everyone. The intent is to provide an opportunity for local writers at any stage to come together and write. Due to the limited amount of time, the group will focus on short exercises and sharing of information rather than group critique. Putting pen to paper is the name of the game.

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Thursday, March 15 at 7:30 pm
Dr. Larry Lachman
Cats on the Counter (St. Martin's)

Author of Dogs on the Couch and host of KAZU-90.3FM's weekly radio show about pet behavior, "The Family Animal Show," Dr. Larry Lachman now illuminates what makes kitties tick! With their natural intelligence and strong character, cats bring joy and life to many homes; but when cats are bad, they are very bad. Dr. Lachman guides us towards successfully treating behavior problems and restoring feline harmony to the home.

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Friday, March 16 at 7:30 pm
David Bach
Smart Couples Finish Rich: 9 Steps to Creating a Rich Future for You and Your Partner (Broadway)

David Bach, the best-selling author of Smart Women Finish Rich, has now brought his financial and life smarts to the couples out there. A must for any twosome - married or not, old or young ­- Smart Couples Finish Rich focuses on the shared values and communication between partners as the starting point of financial success. From there, the steps are clear and the rewards are great.

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Sunday, March 18 at 7:30 pm
Kenn Harper
Give Me My Father's Body: The Life of Minik, the New York Eskimo (Putnam)

In 1897, Robert Peary presented the Museum of Natural History with a "live Eskimo specimen", a Polar Eskimo boy from Greenland. The Eskimo boy, Minik, was observed by scientists, examined by doctors, and stared at by the paying public. What remained of his devastated personal life was shattered when he discovered his father's skeleton on display at the New York museum. Give Me My Father's Body is a riveting account of the West's scientific detachment and of a victim's courage.

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Monday, March 19 at 7:30 pm
Mercedes Lee
Seafood Lover's Almanac (National Audubon Society)

The National Audubon Society has created a book that is "above all, a celebration of fish." Realizing that every move humans make creates an ecological footprint but also that fish make scrumptious meals, Mercedes Lee has gathered a treasury of fish facts to help us make informed decisions when dining from the sea. Alternative choices to depleted species, nutritional data, environmental and fishing updates, as well as recipes tossed together with whimsical art make this book informative and fun. This evening will include a slide show.

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Tuesday, March 20 at 7:30 pm
Aliza Sherman
Cybergrrl Work: Tips and Inspiration for the Professional You (Berkeley)

Hoping to get more women to embrace technology rather than run from it, Aliza Sherman, a World Wide Web pioneer, founded the global networking group for women Webgrrrl International. All her hard work and great suggestions make networking simple and effective. Her newest book shows women how to find a job, change careers, or work from home, all with the help of the internet and its professional bounty. Whether you are an entrepreneurial business owner or just looking for a job, she wants to empower you with technology.

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Monday, March 26 at 7:30 pm
Joan Drummond Miller, Carolyn Livingston, and Julie Houy
Beyond Bingo: Violet Farnsworth and the Monterey Mafia (Creative Arts Book Company)

How does Pacific Grove become the center of a granny-selling cannabis ring? Three old maids cook up more than chicken soup to help relieve the pain of a friend dying of cancer and unwittingly become involved with the drug trafficking mafia. This raucous, endearing novel highlights life-long friendship and the arguments of medicinal marijuana in a witty caper.