Although it may be the unofficial start to summer, the day to fire up the grill and really start complaining about the weather, Memorial Day honors Americans who died in military service. Here are some nonfiction books by Pacific Northwest authors to help remember those who served: After the Flag Has Been Folded: A Daughter …
I started reading about modern warfare in elementary school and have kept at it steadily for more than five decades. One result, which I began to notice back in the 1970s, is that military thinking has become the default setting in my brain. Battlefield diaries and the memoirs of former combatants are filled with lessons …
When his band’s newsletter mentioned that Willy Vlautin (Lean on Pete) would be buying rounds of drinks if Vlautin takes home the IMPAC literary award for which he’s been shortlisted, we just took it to mean that there’d be a general cause for celebration. We then clicked the link for a little more info and, …
“This is no slapdash follow-up to a bestseller; it’s a thoughtful, nuanced treatise written by an eloquent, passionate author well versed in his topic. This is not a partisan political book (I honestly have no idea what party Marlantes might align himself with, if any), but a call to action for all of us to …
Back in January, when the awards were announced, Karl Marlantes picked Third Place Books (Lake Forest Park, WA) as his locale of choice to receive his 2011 Pacific Northwest Book Award for Matternorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War. That day finally arrived, as more than 150 fans turned out on Saturday night to hear him …
When the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association named their annual Book Award winners for 2011, they asked each recipient to pick his or her favorite local indie bookstore at which to celebrate the honor. Here are some neighborhood parties with an open invitation for you. “Librarian of the Year,” and in these parts the decade, Nancy …
I have been moved, often to tears, with the power of literature to heal, to reach the dark places where we hide pain or shame. I’ve seen literature bring to light the previously unmentionable. I had no idea of this power until I went on tour to talk about my novel of the Vietnam War, …
A committee of independent booksellers has announced the winners of the 2011 Pacific Northwest Book Awards. The committee chose four books from its Shortlist and are honoring a fifth author with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Congratulations to Brady Udall (The Lonely Polygamist), Karl Marlantes (Matterhorn: A Novel of Vietnam), Anthony Doerr (Memory Wall), Sarahlee Lawrence (River House: …
“Gritty, intense, and captivating from the first page, Matterhorn is a masterpiece, shedding light on the complexities of the U.S. Marine combat experience in Vietnam. The riveting narrative takes the reader up and down the chain of command, creating empathy with nearly every character. Marlantes demonstrates the ripple effect that small decisions can have, often to the …
Congrats to Northwesterners Anthony Doerr and Karl Marlantes, whose novels made the New York Times’ “100 Notable Books of 2010” list. The list will appear in the Dec. 5 print edition of the New York Times Book Review. Both books also appear on a 2010 Shortlist of the Best Books from Northwest Authors, which were …
