The Seattle Public Library - Programs & Events

Two thirds of the poems in "Battlefield Without Borders" were written while in Iraq, after his encounters with Iraqi people, in a wide-range of settings - from hospitals to homes to bomb sites. The remaining poems have been written since. Smith-Ferri visited Iraq for the first time in July 1999, as part of an eight-member fact-finding delegation organized by the Chicago-based group, Voices in the Wilderness, whose purpose was to gather first hand information about the humanitarian crisis caused by international economic sanctions and the terror caused by the policy and practice of "no-fly zone" bombings. He returned to Iraq in September 2002, in the run-up to the invasion, to interview Iraqis, investigate the likely real life consequences of a United States military invasion on ordinary Iraqis, and to reconnect with Iraqi families he had met previously.

Kenney is the author of three previous books of poetry: "The Evolution of the Flightless Bird," "Orrery," and "The Invention of the Zero." In 1987 he received a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship. He is currently professor of English at the University of Washington.

Schorr discusses topics from his new book, "Come to Think of It: Notes on the Turn of the Millennium" with Liu. The book is a compilation of Schorr's National Public Radio (NPR) commentaries. Schorr currently works as a senior news analyst for NPR. He has earned three Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award. He wrote for the Christian Science Monitor, the New York Times. He was also a reporter for CBS and he helped Ted Turner create CNN in 1979. He worked with Edward R. Murrow and is the last of Murrow's team to still be fully active in journalism. Liu is president of The Seattle Public Library board of trustees and wrote the books, "Guiding Lights: How to Mentor - and Find Life's Purpose" and "The Accidental Asian: Notes of a Native Speaker." He has been a frequent commentator on CNN, MSNBC and CNBC and served as speechwriter and deputy domestic policy adviser for President Bill Clinton.

Khoury is the author of 12 novels, including the award-winning "Gate of the Sun," four volumes of literary criticism, and three plays. He is the editor of the literary supplement of An-Nahar newspaper in Beirut. Khoury has taught at the American University of Beirut, Columbia University, and is a global distinguished professor at New York University.

Goldberg offers compassionate, practical, and often humorous advice about how to find time to write, how to discover one's personal style, how to make sentences come alive, and how to overcome procrastination and writer's block.

Anne Enright has received the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature and has been a writer fellow at Trinity College. Her work has appeared in The Paris Review, Harper's, The New Yorker, and The Penguin Book of Irish Fiction.

The Seattle Public Library presented a panel discussion about the evolution and future of downtown Seattle on Monday, Feb. 11 at the Central Library. Featured panelists included Seattle City Librarian Deborah L. Jacobs, Seattle Art Museum Director Mimi Gates, John Nesholm of LMN Architects and Greg Smith of Urban Visions. Moderated by The Seattle Channel's C.R. Douglas.

Geraldine Brooks read from her new novel, "People of the Book," in which Hannah Heath, a rare books expert, uncovers the story of a mysterious codex, the Saravejo Haggadah, and its perilous journey from medieval Spain to the twentieth century sacking of Sarajevo.

Professor Ochsner presented a lecture about architect and artist Lionel Pries Sunday, Jan. 27 at the Central Library. Pries' career spanned the 20th Century from arts and crafts to modern styles.

Participants include:Bill Barnes & Gene Ambaum, Unshelved.com; Greg Hatcher, Comic Book Resources; Nicole & Danielle, NDP Comics; Eric Reynolds, Fantagraphics Books and Rosie Heffernan & Madeline Heffernan, TheColorM.com's "Serves You Right"

Ellen Forney, acclaimed local cartoonist, illustrator and teacher, spoke about her work Jan. 26 at the Central Library. Ellen Forney is the author of several books, including "I Love Led Zeppelin" and MONKEY FOOD: The Complete "I Was Seven in '75" Collection. "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," written by Sherman Alexie and illustrated by Forney, won the 2007 National Book Award.

The Seattle Public Library and Harper's Magazine presented essayist Richard Rodriguez on. Friday, Jan. 25 at Town Hall. Rodriguez read from "The God of the Desert: Jerusalem and the Ecology of Monotheism."

"The Senator's Wife" is a portrait of two marriages and two unconventional women at different stages of life: Meri, the young wife of a charismatic professor, and Delia, the long-suffering wife of a notoriously philandering retired senator.

Walter G. Andrews is a professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilization at the University of Washington. Andrews was interviewed by Dr. Selim S. Kuru, professor of Turkish and Ottoman Literature at the University of Washington.

Chris Crutcher is the author of eight critically acclaimed novels, including "Whale Talk," which won the 2002 Washington State Book Award. He has also written an autobiography and a collection of short stories. He has won three lifetime achievement awards for the body of his work.