Bozeman News

Western Book Roundup

Montana Festival of the Book Preview

By Jenny Shank, 10-27-10

Last week, the New York Times featured a profile of Thomas McGuane, in which Charles McGrath describes McGuane as “tall, raw-boned and authentically Western looking.” This makes me wonder, am I authentically Western looking?  Are you?

If you sometimes worry that you’re not raw-boned enough to be authentically Western looking, a good way to burnish your Western credibility would be to attend the 11th annual Montana Festival of the Book this weekend, from Thursday, October 28 through Saturday October 30.  Many of the authors we’ve featured in New West will participate.  (Follow the links below to find our interviews and reviews of their books.) Most of the events are free--a few exceptions include the fundraiser for CutBank, the University of Montana’s literary magazine, at The Top Hat on Thursday, October 28 ($10, 8 p.m.), and the author reception and book signing on Friday (5:30 p.m., $25).

On October 29:

• Jim Lynch, Kevin Canty, and Benjamin Percy—three novelists with impressive recent books—will read at the Holiday Inn (Three Rivers Room,1 p.m.).

• Jeremy Smith will discuss Growing A Garden in the City (Holiday Inn MT Boardroom, 2:30 p.m.).  You can read an excerpt from the book here.

• Jess Walter (author of The Financial Lives of the Poets, one of the funniest novels of last year) will participate on the panel “The Fact in the Fiction: Getting the Facts Right While You’re Making It Up,” along with Percy, Lynch, Stan Lynde and Rick DeMarinis (Holiday Inn, Salon A/B, 4 p.m.).

• The Gala Reading at the Wilma Theater will feature Walter, C.J. Box, and Robert Wrigley (8 p.m.).

On October 30:

• The Poetry Salon (Holiday Inn, Salon D, 1-4 p.m.) will include readings from New Poets of the American West, edited by Lowell Jaeger (which we featured several excerpts from last month) and I Go to the Ruined Place: Contemporary Poems in Defense of Human Rights edited by Melissa Kwasny and Mandy Smoker. Montana Poet Laureate Henry Real Bird will also read.

• Accomplished Montana paleontologist Jack Horner will present “How To Build a Dinosaur: The New Science of Reverse Evolution.” My fellow PNS sufferers (Paleo Nerd Syndrome) will remember Horner as the guy who discovered the Maiasaura, among other notable achievements (Holiday Inn Salon A/B, 2:30 p.m.).

• New West columnist Ednor Therriault (better known as around these parts as Bob Wire) will discuss and show photos of the Montana oddities featured in his book Montana Curiosities (Holiday Inn, Three Rivers Room, 2:30 p.m.).

• Chérie Newman, host of The Write Question on Montana Public Radio, and former Montana congressman Pat Williams, will present Selected Shorts from A Road Runs Through It, a Wildlands CPR anthology at the Missoula Art Museum (1-3 p.m.).

• A Shiver Runs Through It: The Ghost Gala will include Missoula Mayor John Engen reciting Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven,” music by Russ Nasset, spooky stories by Kevin Canty, Debra Magpie Earling, and Neil McMahon, and a play by Roger Hedden at the Wilma Theatre (7:30 p.m.).

• Meanwhile, in Wyoming there will be some Halloween literary fun, too.  Bon Nuit Publishing will host a book launch for Johan Adkins‘ novels Prismland, Earth 1 and Spirit Speaks-The Transformation Connection at the New Community House in Lion’s Park, Cheyenne (2-4 p.m.).  Halloween costumes are encouraged, people dressed up as characters from the books will mingle with guests, and Shirley Anderson will present a one-act play.

Please follow me on Twitter and with any regional books news or events.

Like this story? Get more! Sign up for our free newsletters.