December 2011 All events at The Bookstore unless otherwise noted.
Friday December 2 Susan Hartung @ 6 pm
Susan Hartung’s poetry takes me by surprise, but then again I find such familiararity in some of the lines I’m amazed nobody else ever said these things in the way that she does. I think they call that ‘the shock of recognition’.
Susan will start our month off right this coming Friday night December 2nd at 6 pm, reading from her just published book “Inclusion”. Here are poems that invite you in, take you aback, make you laugh or nod your head. Susan is a cancer survivor and some of her poems can be a little dark. But all of them do what poems want to do, in her own phrase, “burn through to what remains of love.”
As much as December 2 is going to be about Susan and her book, it is also about another friend of ours, and quite possibly a friend of yours as well, Denise Kaley.
For those who knew her, the mention of her name always brings a smile.
Oh, man, whenever she walked around the corner, or up the street, or into your doorway she brought you that smile. Even now, just writing her name, I can’t get away from it.
Kaley was not a survivor. She died in March 2010, at age 44, of lung cancer. A few months before her death she established a fund: to help support the needs of women in the Berkshires who would follow her on what she called “the cancer journey”.
She herself had a large and loving family, not to mention her legion of adoring friends. But she was also aware of women who had to fight their illnesses alone, or with very limited resources.
The Denise Kaley fund is for them. Go to www.berkshiretaconic.org and search Denise’s name for more information.
What we’re doing is taking this opportunity, at Susan Hartung’s request, to tell you about it. We’re not going to be asking for donations. This is just a poetry reading, a special one without a doubt, but that’s all that it is.
It’ll be an open bar, snacks too. Lots of laughter and good times. The Bookstore may be mine, but nights like this it belongs to all of you as well.
Susan Hartung, Friday night December 2 at 6 pm at The Bookstore. “Inclusions” is published by Elephant Tree House books. See you there
Sunday December 4 Mo Willems at The Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield @ 2 pm
Friday December 9 Peter Bergman @ 7 pm& Saturday December 10 Gladys Montgomery @ 4 pm
Keeping in the holiday spirit we’ve got two more author appearances for you this coming weekend, J. Peter Bergman on Friday night and Gladys Montgomery on Saturday afternoon.
Peter Bergman spends his days these last few years with a favorite poet of mine, Edna St. Vincent Millay! He is executive director of the Millay Society in Austerlitz, New York.
He has been a published author since 1961, when his first theater reviews appeared in The Nine Times, in Queens, NY. He is currently theater critic for The Advocate here in the Berkshires, the Chatham Courier in Columbia County, NY and Berkshirebrightfocus.com. His book of short stories “Counterpoints” won a Charles Dickens award in 2002. His poetry, fiction and non fiction have appeared in the New York Times, Berkshire Review, Artful Mind and The Independent.
His newest work, “Small Ironies”,his sixth published book, is his first published novel. In it Max Draper finds the difficulty of growing up in a hightly functional, supportive family and finding his way after a journey filled with the ironies of wanting to leave but ultimately coming back.
Peter will read from, talk about, and sign copies of “Small Ironies” on Friday night December 9 at 7 pm.
Gladys Montgomery of West Stockbridge is author of five books, two of which were published this year and are the ones we’ll be celebrating with her on Saturday Dec 10 at 4 pm.
“Storybook Cottages”, published by Rizzoli, tells the story of America’s Gothic Revival and the houses trimmed with decorative ‘gingerbread’ scrollwork we call Carpenter Gothic. Also “An Elegant Wilderness: Great Camps and Grand Lodges of the Adirondacks, 1855-1935” a stunningly beautiful coffee-table book was published by Acanthus Press early this last summer. Acanthus is the architectural press which has also published two editions of “Great Houses of the Berkshires”. Production quality is outstanding and we are especially proud of promoting their books.
Gladys has a day job, too, with Kinderhook Realty, where she specializes in architecturally distinctive properties, including historic ones here in Berkshire County. She’s a former Manhattanite as well as a former expatriate from Japan and the Philippines. She was the founding editor of “Berkshire Living Home + Garden” and has authored more than 200 feature articles, winning awards for her work on architecture, design, and historic preservation.
Saturday December 10 is also the day of the first annual Lenox Caroling festival so if parking may be at a premium, so will be the fun in town all day. Come to town early, stroll around and get over to us by 4.
J. Peter Bergman reading from “Small Ironies” Friday Dec 9 at 7 pm. Gladys Montgomery, author of “Storybook Cottages” and “An Elegant Wilderness” Saturday Dec 10 at 4 pm.
Oh, and we also have all the other books you’ve ever wanted or needed or didn’t even know about. for your holiday hunger. . .
Thursday December 15 Stella Elliston @ 5:30 pm
Friday December 16 Rich Berlin @ 7 pm
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