Literopolis: A Weekly Roundup Of Portland Literary Events

Monday, September 15, 2014

Deborah Reeves, GoLocalPDX Contributor

Portland overwhelms with options sometimes and literary lovers are especially spoiled for choice this week. One hardly knows where to start, but the beginning is a good place, as they say.

Monday at Glyph, Tavern Books celebrates the release of Fire Water World & Among The Dog Eaters, by Adrian C. Louis. Tavern Books is dedicated to republishing poetry that has fallen out of print, which is quite wonderful! With readings by poets Jay Nebel and Jerry Harp. 5 p.m.-7 p.m., 804 NW Couch Street, Free

Later on Monday, Luke B. Goebel, author of Fourteen Stories, None Of Them Are Yours, will be in conversation with Portland author Vanessa Vaselka at Powell's Books on Hawthorne. 7:30 p.m., 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Free

On Tuesday, Blooming Rock Development launches a monthly book club with a focus on sustainability, urban planning, and architecture. The inaugural book is "One Less Car: Bicycling" and the Politics of Automobility by Zack Furness; this month the group meets at Cartopia food carts (see Facebook for more details). 6:30-8 p.m., 1207 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Free

Speaking of sustainability, on Tuesday Powell's presents Benjamin Parzybok whose novel, "Sherwood Nation" (Small Beer Press), reinvents the legend of Robin Hood in a dystopian, drought-stricken Portland. Alarming! 7:30 p.m., Powell's City of Books on Burnside, Free

Also on Tuesday is the latest from the Unchaste Readers Series, which has found a new home at The Knock Back bar on Alberta. Ever eclectic, the evening's readers include memoirists and essayists, as well as poets and fiction writers. See Facebook for further author details. 7:30 p.m., 2315 NE Alberta St., 21+ Free

On Wednesday, the wonderful Street Books hosts its annual Reception & Fundraiser on the Ecotrust building's rooftop terrace. Street Books' bicycle-powered library serves the people of Portland who are living outside. They are awesome and most worthy of support. The evening will feature talks by author Peter Rock and some of the street librarians. There will also be a light supper and a short screening from a documentary that is in development. 6 p.m., 721 NW 9th Avenue, $10 at Brown Paper Tickets.

Wednesday also sees the release of Susan DeFreitas' "itty-bitty" fiction chapbook, Pyrophitic (it's not as short as a short story, but not as long as a novella; it's itty-bitty). DeFreitas's reading at Corkscrew Wine Bar features a tasting of wines from around the Southwest, where the story is set. See Facebook for further details. 7:30 p.m., 1655 SE Bybee Blvd., Free

Also on Wednesday is an evening of poetry with Glyph-featured writers Allan Peterson and Andrea Hollander. Peterson is Glyph's visual artist for September, and poetry and writing ephemera from both writers will be on display at the cafe this month. 7 p.m., 804 NW Couch Street, Free

On Thursday, David and Lesley Solomon present The 12 Bottle Bar. With a pantry of only 12 'staple' bottles, this book offers 200 recipes for classic and unique cocktails - a must-read for all you mixologists out there. 7:30 p.m. 3724 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Free

Journalist Fred Leeson is at Broadway Books Thursday with his newly published biography of Portland icon and self-taught entrepreneur Fred Meyer: My-Te-Fine Merchant: Fred Meyer's Retail Revolution 7-8 p.m., 1714 NE Broadway Street, Free

On Friday, the IPRC throws a double book-release party for University of Hell Press authors Tyler Atwood and John W. Barrios. 7 p.m., 1001 SE Division Street. Free

Also on Friday: In Other Words bookstore presents Sam Orchard's Family Portraits, an inclusive comic book series of short stories about a range of LGBT, Queer, and Trans people. See Facebook for further details, 6:30 p.m. 14 NE Killingsworth Street., Free

Glyph is on fire this week! Saturday they bring us Blue Skirt Productions, and author Jim Ruland for a night of words and music. Ruland will be joined by a host of local authors, poets, and musicians Trevor Dodge and Gayle Towell. 7:30-9:30 p.m., 804 NW Couch Street.

Saturday also brings Bone Tax Reading #7 featuring Zachary Schomburg, Joshua Nathaniel Covington White, Nathan Wade Carter and Ryan Mills, at Ford Food & Drink. 7 p.m., SE 11th & Division, Free

Sunday: Poison Pen is a new reading series for LGBTQ Writers and Friends. The first night kicks off at Crush with music from PDX Queer Soul Dance-Party DJ, Action Slacks. Featuring writers Carter Sickels, Cooper Lee Bombardier, Rhiannon (Dexter) Flowers, and Kate Gray, whose lovely novel, "Carry The Sky," launched last week. 7:30 p.m., 1400 SE Morrison, Free

And, as always, the week ends with Sunday and another Portland Poetry Slam at Glyph. It's Nationals season and audience members will vote on the first two semi-finalists of the year. 7 p.m., 804 NW Couch Street. $5

Deborah Reeves is an Irish writer, happy to call Portland home after many years of traveling. An avid reader, she blogs about books and writing at deborahrosereeves.com. You can reach her @debrosereeves on Twitter.