On Mount Hood — Book blurbs and thanks
With the paperback of On Mount Hood coming out later this month (7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 24 at the downtown Powell’s to be exact), I had to find some solid and willing folks to offer up blurbs for the back of the new cover. Luckily, since the book first came out, I’ve met a few of those folks and they have been kind enough to lend some lines to the paperback.
Many thanks to them all:
Kim Cooper Findling, author of Chance of Sun and Day Trips from Portland.
Jon Tullis, spokesman for Timberline Lodge, vice chair of the Oregon Heritage Commission, and the author and editor behind the book, Timberline Lodge: A Love Story. He’ll also be part of the paperback launch at Powell’s on April 24th!
Jack Nisbet, author of David Douglas, a Naturalist at Work and other books.
A second round of thanks, also, to Bruce Barcott, author of The Measure of a Mountain, who gave me my first blurb ever, which is now on the cover of the On Mount Hood paperback.
On Mount Hood — The paperback
I got a box in the mail today with something inside that reminded me I should probably start spreading the word about an upcoming event at Powell’s on April 24.
The paperback version of On Mount Hood officially comes out the day before the event at Powell’s. More info on that event to come soon. In the meantime, though, I thought I’d share the paperback image as a little peek at the next chapter of On Mount Hood.
Brave on the Page: A Recap of the Powell’s Debut
Last night’s “Brave on the Page” event at Powell’s Books came off famously thanks in no small part to editor Laura Stanfill and everyone else who helped out.
In addition to several readings from the book, the event featured a panel with myself a few other writers, including Scott Sparling, Yuvi Zalkow, and Kristy Athens, to talk about the creative process and how we research and incorporate our own experiences in our writing. For me, that meant sharing a bit about climbing Mount Hood, researching the mountain’s history, and sitting down for tea with environmental activist Tre Arrow.
Here’s a snippet of Laura’s recap:
A new writer friend, Marcia Riefer Johnston, asked if I was floating after last night’s reading at Powell’s.
Absolutely.
We had an overflow crowd of 150, according to Powell’s staff estimates. We ran out of chairs, so some people sat in between bookshelves or stood around the edges of the gathering. There were people I know, writers and friends and even a row of my neighbors! Tom Spanbauer, a literary god here in Portland for his own work and how he cultivates talent in the writers he teaches, attended our event. There were friends of friends and writers who have studied with writers I have studied with.
But most amazingly, there were writers who came to be inspired, to ask questions about writing what we know (or not) and how we feel about writing groups. There were so many faces in the audience that I didn’t know, and it was so special to share Brave on the Page with them through readings by Kate Gray, Gina Ochsner, Gigi Little, Robert Hill and me. And to share the sense of writerly community and camaraderie through the panel discussion moderated by Joanna Rose and featuring Yuvi Zalkow, Scott Sparling, Jon Bell and Kristy Athens.
Brave on the Page at Powell’s, 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 7
A homegrown writing reference book, Brave on the Page: Oregon Writers on Craft and the Creative Life (Forest Avenue Press) is a multi-voiced collection of ruminations about authors’ habits, frustrations, and successes. Above all, it’s a celebration of what it means to be a writer in Oregon. Brave on the Page, edited by Laura Stanfill, features work by 42 Oregon authors, including original interviews and flash essays.
Joining Stanfill for this reading and panel discussion will be contributors Kristy Athens, Jon Bell, Kate Gray, Robert Hill, Gigi Little, Gina Ochsner, Joanna Rose, Scott Sparling, and Yuvi Zalkow.
Find out more here.
Last-minute Mount Hood gifts
A quick and last-minute list of some Mount Hood gifts for that alpine aficionado in your life:
1. On Mount Hood: A Biography of Oregon’s Perilous Peak — Shameless, I know, but sometimes that’s just the way the world works. If you’re in the Portland metro region, it’s not too late to get a signed copy for Christmas for just $15. You can also find it at Powell’s, Annie Bloom’s, Broadway Books and most other local bookstores. Here’s a list of stores outside of Portland, and you can always find it online at Powell’s, Abe Books, Biblio and Amazon.
2. A donation to Oregon Wild or Bark —
Feeling a little more philanthropic this holiday season? Consider making a donation to some of the great environmental groups that have worked — and are always working — to protect the region’s wild places, including, of course, Mount Hood. (Bark’s mission is more Mount Hood-centric, while Oregon Wild covers the entire state; both have played major roles in protecting Mount Hood and the Mount Hood National Forest.)
And as a bonus: both organizations are all about getting out and exploring the places they protect, so each offers regular outings as well.
On tap for Mount Hood from Oregon Wild at the moment: snowshoeing to Twin Lakes, Lost Creek and White River, all in January. And from Bark (in partnership with Cascadia Wild), a winter tracking snowshoe in the Mount Hood National Forest on Jan. 13.
For more information about either of these groups, visit www.bark-out.org or www.oregonwild.org. Note, too, that all donations to Oregon Wild through December 31, 2012, will be matched dollar-for-dollar by Mountain Rose Herbs.
3. Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries Lidar Map of Mount Hood — DOGAMI released this double-sided, water-resistant map last November. It includes 75 trails around Mount Hood, wilderness areas, roads, campgrounds, information for climbers and hikers, and a geologic overview. Just $6 at Nature of the Northwest.
4. Timberline Lodge Ram’s Head Fire Poker — Fashioned after the larger fireplace tools used at the storied Timberline Lodge, this hand-forged wrought iron poker is classic Timberline through and through. I met Darryl Nelson, the blacksmith behind much of the ironwork that’s been installed at Timberline over the past 30 years or so, and he told me guests regularly try to heist these out of the rooms. Not good. Instead, find them at the Timberline gift shop for $75. The shop also has a nice array of vintage-looking posters and artwork, books, souvenirs and more. Check it out.
On MOUNT HOOD 