WordFest next meets on Tuesday, June 3, 6:00-8:00 pm, at Cassava, 1333 Broadway in Longview.

Carlin Lohrey will read from her historical novel, The Caves of Lavar. The story, based on her research of early peoples in Europe and the life drawings found in their caves, centers on a young woman who is abducted by a man from another tribe.

 

 

 

 

 

Editor and former Kelso High School Librarian Ruth Thompson will read a nonfiction account she wrote of the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu Pandemic. An estimated 500 million people, about a third of the planet’s population, became infected, of which 50-100 million people died, making it one of the deadliest natural disasters in human history.

 

 

Janet Rubert will read her essay, “The Fortress: The Story of Charles and Marie Goodwin,”  which appeared in the March 2013 issue of Cowlitz County Historical Museum Quarterly. As a child, Janet was a piano student of Marie Goodwin and remained her friend throughout her life. It is a tribute to this eccentric musical prodigy who inspired, encouraged and demanded excellence from her students.

WordFest is a monthly gathering of readers and writers who meet the first Tuesday of each month, 6:00-8:00 pm.

Cassava offers a dinner menu for those who wish to enjoy a meal with the readings, as well as local wines and brews.

The events are free and open to the public. There is an open mic period following the presentations.

For more information, contact Alan Rose at 360-425-3430 ext 280, or at www.alan-rose.com

WordFest will next meet on Tuesday, May 6, 6:00-8:00 pm, at Cassava, 1333 Broadway in Longview.

Robert Michael Pyle will be reading from his first first full-length book of poems,  Evolution of the Genus Iris. The poems are based on or drawn from his personal experiences and perceptions, mostly out-of-doors, and will appeal to the intelligent general reader, lovers of land and literature, fans of a good poem and a good story, and naturalists—which means anyone interested in the world and its occupants.

Bob writes essays, poetry, and fiction from an old Swedish farmstead in Grays River. His eighteen books include Wintergreen and The Tangled Bank. A Guggenheim Fellow, he has received the John Burroughs Medal and several other writing awards. Bob’s poems have appeared in magazines including the North American Review, and in a chapbook, Letting the Flies Out.

 

Patrick Kubin will read an excerpt from his novel-in-progress, Foolish Fire. A coming of age tale, it tells the story of a girl as she deals with the loss of her mother and the imprisonment of her father. Alone on the family farm with her elderly grandmother and the Mexican hired hand, she learns about life and shapes her future amid turmoil and challenge.

Patrick is a local author and attorney, mediator and Court Commissioner. He has been published in The Salal Review, Portland Magazine, The Daily News, and The Columbia River Reader.

 

David Rorden will be reading from his novel-in-progress, drawing on his experiences as a public defender in involuntary mental commitment hearings. When a long-haired, bearded young man in a white robe sits down in the lotus position in the freeway, a rifle propped against his shoulder, he is taken to the hospital for mental evaluation. His lawyer will discover that there is more to the “gun-toting guru of Interstate 5,” as the media have dubbed him, than meets the eye.

Dave has practiced law for 14 years. Before that, he worked at The Daily News for 24 years, including a 6-1/2 year stint as city editor.

 

On April 1, WordFest will meet at Gyros Gyros, 1338 Commerce Avenue, lower level, in Longview.

John Simpson will be reading from his 2013 biography, Hub Perdue: Clown Prince of the Mound. Perdue was a devastating spitball pitcher from rural Tennessee who once won 16 games with the Boston Braves, but today is better remembered as one of the clown princes of the Deadball Era.

A retired Kelso High School history teacher and baseball coach of the school’s team for 15 years, John earned a Ph.D in American History from the University of Oregon in 1987, and has written four previous books on Civil War subjects. His first book won the Tennessee History Book of the Year award in 1995.

 

 

 

 

Karen Bonaudi will be reading selections from her poetry chapbook Editing a Vapor Trail as well as from new work.

Karen taught at Lower Columbia College for 18 years. A long-time board member and former president of the Washington Poets Association, she has published in the Bellingham Review, South Dakota Review, Pontoon 2, Salal Review, Snow Monkey, and WPA’s Cascade Journal.  She now lives and works as a private marketing contractor in Renton, where she edits www.sirensrock.com.

On Tuesday, March 4, WordFest will meet at Cassava, 1333 Broadway Avenue, in Longview, 6:00-8:00 pm.

Oregonian author Stevan Allred will be reading from his recently published book,  A Simplified Map of the Real World, a collection of short stories that portray the interwoven relationships over generations of several people who live in the fictional town of Renata, Oregon.

 

Ruth Thompson will be reading  A Home Run for Bunny, published by herself and her son John, who own Illumination Arts Publishing, which specializes in children’s books. Based on a true story, the book tells of a white Massachusetts baseball team in 1934, who stood up for their African American teammate named Bunny.

 

 

 

 

Peg Miller, a WordFest regular known for the wry humor in her short stories, will be reading, “Goin’ to the Potluck,” about a home-alone husband who tries his luck at getting food ready and then driving his sea-captain neighbor to a potluck meeting.

 

 

 

WordFest is a monthly gathering of readers and writers who meet the first Tuesday of each month, 6:00-8:00 pm.

Cassava offers a dinner menu for those who wish to enjoy a meal with the readings, as well as local wines and brews.

The events are free and open to the public. There is an open mic period following the presentations.

On Tuesday, February 4, WordFest will meet at Gyros Gyros, 1338 Commerce Avenue, lower level, in Longview, 6:00-8:00 pm.

 

Cam Parvitee will be reading from her as yet unpublished novel, Black Dragons, about two groups of people whose lives unexpectedly come together. One group is senior citizens who practice Tai Chi each morning; the other, a dozen middle-school children pushed into extortion, theft, and burglary to get money to buy protection.

Cam served in the Navy, taught in elementary and  high schools, and community college, and has practiced martial arts.

 

Terry Tack will read a short story titled, “Freedom Rings,” a true story from his military experience about a young Air Force medic in 1975, as the Viet Nam conflict was winding down.

 

 

Robin Weitzen will be reading from a novel she is currently writing, titled, The Beast, about a paleontologist, and former SEAL, working at a dig in the Yucatan when he is called home to find his sister who was kidnapped.

 

 

Gyros Gyros offers a dinner menu for those who wish to enjoy a meal with the readings, as well as local wines and brews.

The events are free and open to the public. There is an open mic period following the presentations.