Peaks Island Press
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Love from “the Rock”: Peaks Island Reading and Silent Auction to Benefit Longfellow Books
Fans and humidifiers dry out Longfellow Books. MPBN photo.
On Sunday, March 10th, the Peaks Island community of authors, readers, and unabashed bibliophiles will gather to raise funds to benefit their beloved, award-winning independent bookstore, Longfellow Books. As most people know, “Nemo, the Blizzard of 2013″ delivered a destructive blow to the Longfellow Square-based bookstore, requiring it to close temporarily and undergo considerable repairs from damage incurred by severe flooding. Approximately half of the stock was damaged, and insurance will only partially cover the losses – you’re not surprised, I know.
Well, islanders aren’t afraid of rising waters and they’re prone to band together to make important things happen. Author Eleanor Morse is organizing a reading and silent auction to benefit Longfellow Books. Here is how you can get involved.
Eleanor Morse, at her recent reading at Longfellow Books
Love from the Rock
Brackett Memorial United Church
Sunday March 10th, 2:00 p.m.
- 2.00: Children’s book (ages 8 and up) readings begin–including authors Jamie Hogan, Scott Nash and Annie O’Brien;
- 2.30: Silent auction browsing and bidding.
- 2.45: Adult fiction reading from authors Nicole d’Entremont, James Hayman, and Eleanor Morse
- Coffee, tea, amazing baked goods, books for sale.
Longfellow Books is one of the last remaining indie bookstores in the Portland area. It’s
more than a store–it’s a place for people to gather, to browse, to attend readings and
events, to be a thinking and feeling human being. WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU CAN DO?
Donations of services for the silent auction (help-your-neighbor/brighten March). For instance:
- a drawing lesson
- magician tricks for children’s birthday party
- juggling lessons
- dump run
- clean the refrigerator
- shoot pictures for an hour
- walk the dog/feed the cat
- interior design color consultation
- birthday cake/pie
- teach dance moves
What else?–let your mind roam free! Please email Rhonda Berg at brhonda1@maine.rr.com or Eleanor Morse at eleanor.morse@gmail.com to set up your donation.
Donations of baked goods for the afternoon of March 10th. Coffee will be provided, and juice for kids. If you can bring a plate of goodies, please bring it to the Fellowship Hall of the Brackett Church by 1.45 on March 10th.
Celebrate the Publication of White Dog Fell From the Sky at Longfellow Books
Previously, I have written about Eleanor Morse and her award-winning novel, The Unexpected Forest. Since that time, Eleanor has written her third novel, White Dog Fell from the Sky, whose publication by Viking she celebrates next Friday, January 11th.
Advance Praise for White Dog Fell From the Sky from Publishers Weekly “Pick of the Week” calls it “Brutal and beautiful . . . Morse’s unflinching portrayals of extremes of loyalty and cruelty make for an especially memorable novel.”
Portland’s beloved Indie bookstore, Longfellow Books, will host a wonderful evening of Zambabwean music, beginning at 6:30 p.m., followed by Eleanor reading from her book at 7 p.m.
Interested in learning more about Eleanor and her newest novel, White Dog Fell from the Sky? Read my interview with Eleanor here.
-Patricia Erikson is a Peaks Island-based writer and educator who blogs about the literary community on Peaks Island at Peaks Island Press.
Valente and Nash Soar in Best Books of 2012 Amazon List
A little over a month ago, I crowed that two island authors launched books in the same week – Scott Nash with his High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate and Catherynne Valente with her The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There. Now, to my amazement (and yet, why should I be surprised?), both of them have soared to Amazon’s top 2012 Best Books of the Year list for Children’s Middle Grade readers. 
With much love and awe, I applaud them both and invite you to do the same. I already have my copies, do you?
Two island authors launch books this week
Catherynne Valente’s newest YA novel
Island Reading by Scott Nash of new novel
Islanders seem to be launching books as often as they launch boats these days. It’s a phenomenal literary week here on Peaks Island as both Scott Nash and Catherynne Valente celebrate and hold events for their respective new books. Catherynne has just released her next YA novel, a sequel to the New York Times Bestselling The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making. Her new book, The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There, has led Cat off on a month-long book tour of 19 different cities across the country – an epic journey she’s hashtagged #halloweentour. Good luck trying to keep up with her on her twitter stream @catvalente. Fair winds and following seas to you, Cat!
Scott’s epic launch party will occur tomorrow, Friday, at 7:00 p.m. at Portland’s beloved indie bookstore, Longfellow Books, where a three-dimensional window installation teases us to rush for the shelf and buy his new book. He’s also treating islanders to a reading on Saturday, October 6th from 1-3 p.m. at the Seaside Shop. Come help celebrate the publication of his middle-grade graphic novel, The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate.
Scott Nash: The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate
Illustration of the flying pirate ships in Scott Nash’s new young adult novel
If you knew that my bookshelves harbored a large selection of pirate-related fiction and non-fiction, you could imagine how excited I was to sit down with neighbor and author-illustrator Scott Nash to discuss the imminent release of his first young adult novel, “The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate.“
This week, the library’s annual meeting provides island residents and visitors with the opportunity to hear Scott speak about his swashbuckling bird-pirates who navigate air ships through their old-growth forest as they evade predators and the strictures of a 17th century colonial government.
Scott lives on Peaks Island with his talented wife, Nancy Gibson Nash, and their rascally dog, Zephyr. As a neighbor who has lingered over fondue dinners with Scott and Nancy during long winter evenings, I know that Scott is a Renaissance man – he’s as comfortable listening to Mendelssohn while he writes as he is playing Johnny Cash on his mandolin or transfixing neighbors of all ages with performance art installations. Scott is known as an illustrator of more than 40 children’s books (Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp is my personal favorite), but his talents extend more broadly. He assumes the Head of the Illustration Program at Maine College of Art this year and continues to lead Nashbox, a graphic design and creative studio based in Portland that focuses upon children’s media and brands.
It is the newest chapter of his career, however, that fascinates me most: becoming the author of a young adult novel. When I asked Scott what lured him from illustrating picture books to writing a chapter book, I discovered my own misconception that his writing and drawing would be separate processes. Scott said, “When I create a character in a sketchbook, it has a consciousness and I often find myself wanting to spend time with her, him or it. I draw to inform my writing and I write to inform my drawing. It is my peculiar way of realizing a story.”
High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate
Scott handed me the advance copy of his book as though he was handing over a newborn for the first time. The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirateis beautiful; I was struck by the classic look of its cover, font, and illustrations. Scott described how the classic chapter books of his childhood inspired him, “I loved how you would read the narrative and then you were rewarded with a picture. Then your imagination took over again with the narrative.” What inspired him to create this particular story? “Birds have always been important to me, but not the way they’re depicted in children’s media as just fluffy and cheerful. I see freedom, resilience, and a hardscrabble life when I look at them. And I’ve always loved pirates, of course. So, in this story, a 17th century colonial government [primarily an off-stage character] bans birds from migrating and condemns them to serfdom. The theme of migration allows me to explore what it means to be cultured, to be “civilized.”
Scott Nash in his studio
Like most books, this one had a long gestation period and a lot of hard labor behind it. “It was initially three times larger. I loved where the research took me. It makes the fantasy more real to touch down into the history of pirates.” Scott credits his editor for helping him to hone the book to its current form. “Mary Lee Donovan, senior editor at Candlewick Press, and I have worked together for many years. She helps to drive the creative process; there just aren’t many author-editor relationships like that these days.”
And where does Scott like to write? “I’m nomadic. I don’t like to write in just one place. I like to find the place with the right energy.” That means you might catch sight of Scott writing in his car, on the Eastern Promenade, in coffee shops, or in his hammock or studio wearing headphones. Wherever it is, he’s chasing that good energy that fuels amazing work. Take time out to hear him this Wednesday.
Annual Meeting of the Friends of the Peaks Island Library on Wednesday, August 16, 2012 7:00 pm
MacVane Community Room, Peaks Island
Peaks Island Branch Library Annual Meeting
Hayman to Participate in Literary Barn Raising for Cynthia Thayer
“Maine has an unusually strong, tightly-woven writing community, and when tragedy happens to one of us, it impacts us all.”
(writer Shonna Milliken Humphrey in Portland Press Herald)
Darthia Farm prior to the fire
When novelist Cynthia Thayer lost nearly one hundred farm animals (among them draft horses, calves, pigs, and sheep) to a devastating barn fire on the early morning of May 7th, injuring herself in an attempt to save them, Maine’s literary community collectively gasped. Cynthia is not only a beloved member of the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance community, but her Darthia Farm operates organically and participates in the Community Supported Agriculture program. Peaks Island author James Hayman joins dozens of other authors who will band together for what they’re calling a literary barn raising this Friday, June 1st from 5-8 pm at Longfellow Books in Portland.
In a Maine Crime Writers essay, Jim shared how he befriended Cynthia:
I initially met Cynthia when she came down to Peaks Island to conduct a writing workshop at the island branch of Portland Public Library. When I was introduced to her, I told her that I was hard at work on my first fiction.“How much have you written?” she asked.
“One hundred and fifty pages,” I replied.
James Hayman
“I have to warn you,” she said, “I’m not your mother. If I think it’s dreadful, I won’t spare your feelings.”
I told her I wouldn’t want it any other way. I emailed her the manuscript that night and she called me back less than twenty-four hours later.
“I have to tell you,” she said, “You kept me up all night. I think the book’s terrific.” Once again, I was thrilled. These were the first words from anyone whose literary judgment I respected that made me think that maybe, just maybe I might really become a novelist. She then offered a number of suggestions on how to improve the manuscript. In each case, she was right. Her suggestions did improve it.
From there, Jim explains, Cynthia became a good friend and mentor. He’s pleased to join the legion of friends and colleagues who are raising funds to help rebuild the barn and acquire new livestock. You can learn more about Cynthia’s writing here and either attend the book-signing event at Longfellow Books or donate to the Darthia Farm Fund.
Literary Barn Raising, June 1, 2012
Jacqueline Sheehan Offers “Creating Memorable Characters” Workshop
Almost two years ago, I sat down with Jacqueline Sheehan at fellow-author Eleanor Morse‘s house to discuss Jacqueline’s growing list of books, including Lost and Found a New York Times Bestseller that has been optioned for film by Katherine Heigl, star of Grey’s Anatomy. As her devoted readers already know, Jacqueline fancies Peaks Island (or fictionalized versions of it) as a setting for her novels; Picture This, her sequel to Lost and Found, also takes place here.
It’s the launch of this new book that brings Jacqueline back to Maine for an event at the award-winning indie favorite Longfellow Books. Fortunately for us, she will offer a free writing workshop during her visit to the island. Here are the details:
“Creating Memorable Characters” Writing Workshop
Wednesday, June 6th 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Peaks Island Community Room
During the first hour, Jacqueline will lecture and answer questions. The second hour will entail writing exercises. Those interested in participating should contact the Peaks Island branch of the Portland Library at either 766-5540 or email peaks@portland.lib.me.us
Laima Vince: “The Ghost in Hannah’s Parlor”
Author Laima Vince (Sruoginis)
Islands pull on people. Ferociously sometimes. People are compelled to live on them; sometimes they convince themselves that they can leave, yet the island draws them back again. I know this because it’s happened to me. Fellow writers Michael Steinberg and Twain Braden have also experienced the ensnaring quality of the island, leaving “the Rock” in their wake, only to have it reel them back. Of all those who have felt the island’s gravitational pull, Laima Vince’s orbit has the longest radius; after living on Peaks Island for ten years with her three children, she returned to Lithuania as a Fulbright lecturer to Vilnius University, where she had studied and translated poetry years earlier as a student.
Vince brought her own award-winning skills as a poet and translator to her scholarship in war-torn Lithuania, publishing several books, including “Lenin’s Head on a Platter” in 2008 with the Lithuanian Writers’ Union Press. But it was Laima’s tie to Peaks Island that led her to write “The Ghost in Hannah’s Parlor.” This YA novel starts one night in November on Captains Island when a nine-year-old named Hannah goes downstairs for a glass of water. The adventure begins when Hannah meets the ghost of Hilda De Witt Rose, a turn-of-the-century opera star who lives in a rose in Hannah’s parlor wallpaper along with an entire ghost cast of the opera Carmen.
Laima still spends as many months of the year as possible on Peaks Island and I caught up with her one day where all islanders do – on the ferry. “I call it Captains Island, but it’s inspired by Peaks – the neighborhood, the history of opera on the island, the path to the school. Islanders will recognize all of these things.”
Opera? On Peaks Island? Didn’t she mean the history of opera in Portland? When Vince’s characters go back to 1910 with the help of their ghost, they move through an island world difficult to imagine when walking the streets today, an island peppered with more than a dozen hotels, several grocery stores, and notably, multiple theaters and ferry landings, and an amusement park. “Writing this book made me interested in learning more of the history of the island. It’s so fascinating.”
Gem Theater and historic hotel on Peaks Island, both now gone
As the recipient of a Literature Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts and former Director of the Stonecoast Summer Writers’ Conference at the University of Southern Maine, it’s clear that Laima’s accomplishments have astonishing breadth. From poetry to the oral history of holocaust survivors to YA novels, Vince has demonstrated her love for writing and that Peaks Island still has a hold on her.
Here’s some footage of Laima reading from some of her Lithuanian work “Lenin’s Head on a Platter.”
Empowering from Within: Julie Fisher Melton
Julie works on her third book at a partners desk she shares with her husband
Chatting with Julie Fisher Melton is like taking a virtual round-the-world tour, so don’t do it unless you’re ready to either go where her professional travels have taken her or strap on your best walking shoes and keep up with her as she hikes around Peaks Island. Either way, you’re likely to see the world through her eyes, something that international organizations have sought for years. Julie – a Pomona College alum and doctoral graduate of John Hopkins University – has shared her extensive experience with and research about NGOs (non-government organizations) in two books: The Road from Rio: Sustainable Development and the Nongovernmental Movement in the Third World, Praeger, 1993; and Nongovernments: NGOs and the Political Development of the Third World, Kumarian, 1998. A third book is under contract with her former employer, Kettering Foundation.
Julie’s passion centers on empowering people, collectively, to address problems affecting their lives, their community, and their nation. We’re talking about poverty, unemployment, and every manner of exploitation – not issues for the faint of heart, but then a woman whose career began researching how civil organizations worked in Latin American squatter neighborhoods doesn’t shirk from challenges.
Julie holds a piece of her grandmother's rose medallion porcelain from 1850s China
In “Road from Rio” Julie wrote, “Poverty, population, and environmental degradation ride roughshod over the aspirations and hopes of people everywhere…Third World NGOs will be essential contributors to this process [of survival], provided their remarkable creativity is understood and supported.” As a former consultant for Save the Children, she knows a great deal about the challenges facing a large proportion of the world’s population. When I asked her more about her work, Julie articulated the broad gulf between typical forms of international aid interventions and the local facilitation and empowerment from the grassroots level upward. After researching in Latin America, Argentina, South Africa, and Tajikistan, she’s quite certain that the latter model promises the best potential for sustainable change and improvement in people’s lives.
If you’re looking for inspiration on how to make the world a better place, be thankful that Julie keeps writing.
Twain Braden: Ghosts of the Pioneers
Twain Braden
When it comes to journeys, Twain Braden knows how to take them – and how to write about them. Professional mariner, lawyer, camp director, and writer, this renaissance man has returned to Peaks Island with his wife, Leah, and their four children after “living “away” since 2003. He returns with several published books and articles to his name with more in the queue.
A graduate of Hobart College and Charleston School of Law, Twain braves not only legal tomes but the unexpected adventures that wilderness trips and sailing the Atlantic Ocean or Caribbean Sea can throw at him. I got to know Twain and Leah as near-neighbors who had a son the same age as my daughter. Our shared stories broadened when my husband helped Twain (then co-owner of Portland Schooner Co with Scott Reischmann), sail the historic schooner Bagheera from Delaware up to its new home in Portland. These days, when he’s not sailing or writing, he’s directing Camp Glen Brook in Marlborough, NH.
Twain has published articles with Wooden Boat, Northern New England Journey, and Ocean Navigator. He also authored The Handbook of Sailing Techniques: Professional Tips, Expert Advice, Essential Skills (2003) and the non-fiction thriller In Peril: A Daring Decision, a Captain’s Resolve, and the Salvage that Made History written with Skip Strong (2003[2005] – both published with The Lyons Press.
Ghosts of the Pioneers
The summer before Twain graduated from law school in the spring of 2007, he and his family embarked upon a cross-country journey that led to the publication of Ghosts of the Pioneers: A Family Search for the Independent Oregon Colony of 1844. Twain blogged as they camped from Charleston to Independence, Miss. and then followed the Oregon Trail. In places, such as along a stretch of Rte 80 in Nebraska, major roads overlay the historic trail’s path. In other more rural areas, wagon wheel ruts remained visible. Twain’s first-person narrative juxtaposes the story of the Independent Oregon Colony’s arduous journey westward with his family’s own modern-day trip. None other than documentary film director/producer Ken Burns said of Ghost of the Pioneers “This is a wonderful, close-to-the-earth book about the West, that magical place where the best of us met the worst of us and nothing was ever the same.”
Welcome back to The Rock, Twain, where writers are always welcome! We’re looking forward to the news of your next book, already in the hands of a publisher.
Twain's Writing Closet
