Rain, rain, please do stay;
I love having you visit today.
Because readin’ and rain make me feel so fine,
It’s how I like to spend my time.

I  cannot claim to be a poet, or even a composer of bad doggerel. What I can do is have a little fun with a child’s verse that with my own twist speaks rather well to my ideal day.

For several days now warnings of a huge storm heading south towards my hometown have been circulating. The satellite image is impressive; a wide, thick line of dark clouds is currently covering the coast from Oregon to Alaska. Days of unremitting rain and even thunderstorms are being promised to those of us in the southern end of the state. I can only hope that this is not one of those promises that peters out after a light drizzle because today I took the forecasts seriously enough to visit Home Depot and pick up $170 worth of rechargeable lights, battery-operated lanterns, and plenty of D batteries. The only thing I fear with storms like this is losing power. I’m not afraid of much, but electrical outages are at or near the top of the list. There’s something creepy about everything inside and out going black, and I will do whatever it takes to avoid being in that situation.

Fortunately, the number and strength of the lights I bought will be sufficient not only to ensure my home is full of light but that there’s enough so I can even read by it. And with Monday being a holiday I am assured a full day after this issue goes to bed where I have no responsibilities other than to myself. Woohoo! Home with books and rain: my kind of day.

What book? Well, I am thinking that a book I can start and end in one day would be perfect. But not a forgettable book. I’m looking for substance, intensity, beauty of prose, and strength in the story. And I found it.

On the shelf that houses my growing collection of Penguin Classics was the new translation of Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev. Perfect! The book is now awaiting me, sitting quietly on the right side of the loveseat from which I will have a floor-to-ceiling view of the rain at those times I choose to look out at the rain that promises to make this Monday one of my favorite ones of all time.

Upcoming Book Festivals:
On Friday, January 22 and Saturday, January 23, the Marin County Library System in Stuart, Florida will be hosting its annual Book Mania! From 5:30 to 8:00 pm on Friday evening a special event, Hot Havana Nights, will present Latin dancers, Cuban music, cigar rollers, authentic cuisine, mojitos, and the opportunity to mingle with twenty-five guest authors. Tickets are $75 per person for this event.

On Saturday, it’s all free. Activities include book signings, panel and author presentations, and music from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Authors appearing include Ann Louise Bardach, Steve Berry, Lisa Black, Robert Goolrick, Gerald Posner, Elaine Vlets, and more. There are also special activities for children in the afternoon.

Beginning on Saturday, January 23 and running through January 30 is the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering that takes place in Elko, Nevada. This is its 26th year, and to celebrate they have added Seminole and “Cracker” cowboys from Florida and swamp cowboys from Louisiana. Events include several ticketed programs such as the Great Basin Show Kick-Off, Dinner and a Movie, Swamp Tunes & Cattle Tales, Punny Poets, Hold Yer Horses!, Pards & Bards, and quite a few more (some already sold out).

During the week, there will be workshops on a variety of topics including traditional arts, cooking, gear making, contemporary ranch issues, writing, poetry, music, and more. Plus there are special youth workshops and education and an exhibition titled Florida Cattle Ranching: Five Centuries of Tradition.

Eatonville, Florida hosts ZORA! (Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities) from January 23 through January 31. The festival is designed to celebrate the life and work of this famous writer, folklorist, and anthropologist, her hometown, the nation’s oldest incorporated African American municipality, and the cultural contributions of people of African ancestry. Included in the week-long event are museum exhibitions, public talks, panel discussions, workshops, and concerts, the latter headlined by Kem, a noted R&B artist. Several events require tickets—a Reading Group Mobile Tour, a play, the Legacy Awards, and more—but many, including an Outdoor Festival of the Arts, are free.

The Pub House:
Bellevue Literary Press has as its motto “books at the intersection of arts and sciences.” Intriguing, yes? I think you’ll find it so. It includes both “literary and authoritative” fiction and nonfiction for general educated readers as well as scientific professionals and academics. Among their newest books are The Jump Artist, a psychological novel based on the true story of renowned photographer Philippe Halsman. In September 1928, he was out hiking with his father in the Tyrolean Alps when his father, behind him on the trail, was attacked and murdered. The young Jewish man found himself alone in hostile country, and his fears were realized when he was tried for killing his father. At the time it was known as “The Austrian Dreyfus Affair.” Though it has faded in memory because of the war, it attracted much public attention. The Anatomist: A True Story of Gray’s Anatomy takes a look behind the famous book, the extraordinary lives of the author and illustrator who created it, and the human body that engendered it.

Of Interest:
Bookworm is a national book show based at Los Angeles’s public radio station, KCRW, and hosted by Michael Silverblatt. What’s somewhat unusual about Michael is that (unlike many radio hosts) he reads everything his author guests have ever written and therefore has the ability to discuss, in an insightful, thoughtful way, their work. He is on live every Thursday from 2:30-3:00 pm, but his past shows are easily found on this page and can also be subscribed to via podcasts. Upcoming shows include author Rudolph Wurlitzer (Flats and Quake) in the second of a two-part interview on January 21, and Jonathan Lethem, author of the Philip K. Dick-inspired science fiction,, then Motherless Brooklyn and The Fortress of Solitude, as well as his newest, Chronic City.

This Week . . .
Artists are using books in ways never intended, some of it extraordinarily beautiful, some of it horrifying. This, I think, kinds of falls between the two. It’s kind of cringe-making to think that this many books are being defaced but the result is rather spectacular. Artist Mike Stilkey paints images on the spines of stacked books using both his own face and fairytales. I think you’ll agree that these book sculptures are unforgettable.

Until next week, read well, read often and read on!

Lauren