Among the more literary events in the Triangle area of North Carolina this weekend is an appearance by septuagenarian novelist Paule Marshall, touring with her new book Triangular Road, a memoir that Jonathan Yardley at the Washington Post said “reveals a strong gift for self-scrutiny made all the more revealing by quiet humor and what appears to be complete honesty.” Marshall was at Raleigh’s Quail Ridge Books last night and comes to Durham’s Regulator Bookshop tonight, Friday, March 20, at 7 p.m.
On Monday, March 23, at 7 p.m., WRAL-TV reporter Amanda Lamb visits the Cary Barnes & Noble to discuss her latest book, Deadly Dose: The Untold Story of a Homicide Investigator’s Crusade for Truth and Justice, an account of one of North Carolina’s more notorious murder cases: the arsenic poisoning of Eric Miller by his wife Ann. I reviewed the book for Metro last summer, and while I thought the perspective was slightly limiting (the story relies almost exclusively on Raleigh homicide detective Chris Morgan’s account of the investigation), the book succeeds in taking us behind-the-scenes and into the day-by-day of tedious (and often fruitless) police work.
Then, looking ahead to next Thursday evening, March 26, don’t miss short story writer Matthew Vollmer, author of Future Missionaries of America, at Quail Ridge Books. Vollmer was interviewed on Art & Literature a couple of months back when this debut collection was released, and I’m glad to see him making his way to the Triangle now.
For a full calendar of events for the Triangle and Eastern North Carolina, check out the MetroBooks Calendar at right.
In and Around D.C.
As usual, the D.C. area schedule is overflowing with author events over the coming week, including Michael Chabon at George Washington University on Monday, March 23, and Laura Lippman with her latest, Life Sentences, at Politics and Prose on Tuesday, March 24. (Please note: Mark Athitakis, at American Fiction Notes, maintains a comprehensive literary calendar for the D.C. area at his site, much like my MetroBooks Calendar. I turn to Athitakis’ calendar regularly and would urge readers here to do so too.)
One event that I’m definitely going to make is an appearance by George Witte, editor in chief at St. Martin’s Press and author of two volumes of poetry, most recently this year’s Deniability. Witte comes to George Mason University’s campus on Monday, March 23, to read from his recent work and talking about editing for a major publishing house; the talk begins at 5 p.m. in Research I, Room 163. (For those who can’t make it to Mason Monday afternoon, Witte and fellow poet Sue Ellen Thompson will also be appearing at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda the day before: Sunday, March 22, at 2 p.m.)
I also just got notice that a new poetry journal, Rooms Outlast Us, is hosting a launch party for their first issue. The event takes place at Iota Club & Cafe in Arlington on Sunday, March 22, beginning at 7 p.m. Featured readers include Eric Pankey, Wade Fletcher, and Mel Nichols — each of whom I’m pleased to call a friend. Check it out!
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