Location: 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA 94704

A contributing writer for The New York Times, journalist Jon Mooallem presents his illuminating look at the importance of transitioning from a childlike fascination with wild animals to a realistic view of the dangers of their extinction with his book Wild Ones.

Location: Books Inc. Street: 1760 4th St. City: Berkeley, Province: California Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland welcomes local author Scott Johnson to the store to discuss and sign his new book, The Wolf and the Watchman, on Thursday, May 23rd at 7pm.

Growing up, Scott Johnson always suspected that his father was different. Only as a teenager did he discover the truth: his father was a spy, one of the CIA's most trusted officers. At first the secret was thrilling. But over time Scott began to have doubts. How could a man so rigorously trained to deceive and manipulate simply turn off those skills at home? His father had been living a double life for so long that his lies were hard to separate from the truth.

In the aftermath of 9/11, father and son found themselves on assignment in Afghanistan and the Middle East, one as a CIA contractor, the other as a reporter for Newsweek. Suddenly, an unsettled Scott was forced to keep his father's secret all over again. As their professional lives collided, Scott and his father inched toward a personal reckoning, struggling to overcome a lifetime of suspicion and deception.

The Wolf and the Watchman is a provocative, meditative account of truth and duplicity, of manipulation and loyalty. It is also a moving, intensely personal portrait of a bond between father and son that endured in the shadow of one of the world's most secretive and unforgiving institutions.

Scott C. Johnson was a Newsweek foreign correspondent for twelve years, often providing exclusive war reporting from Iraq, Afghanistan, and other fronts in the Middle East. He is now a freelance journalist and writer living in Oakland.

Location: Street: 5433 College Ave City: Oakland, Province: California Postal Code: 94618-1502 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Lurlene McDaniel (All the Days of Her Life, Always and Forever, Angel of Hope, Angel of Mercy, Angels in Pink: Holly's Story, Angels in Pink: Kathleen's story, Angels in Pink: Raina's Story, Angels Watching Over Me, A Rose for Melinda, A Season for Goodbye, As Long as We Both Shall Live, A Time to Die, Baby Alicia Is Dying, Breathless, Briana's Gift)

“I write the kind of books I write because I want to help kids understand that nobody gets to pick what life dishes out to them. What you do get to choose is how you respond to what life gives you. No matter what happens, life is a gift. And always worth living.”—Lurlene McDaniel Lurlene McDaniel is a recipient of the RITA Award and several of her works have received the IRA–CBC Children’s Choice Award.ABOUT THE AUTHOR Everyone loves a good cry, and no one delivers heartwrenching stories better than Lurlene McDaniel. But there’s more to her books than that. McDaniel has written over 40 novels about kids who face life-threatening illnesses, who sometimes do not survive. These are powerful, inspirational stories about courage, love, and strength in the face of overwhelming trauma. McDaniel’s books touch the hearts and spirits of the teenagers and adults who read them. Her following is a devoted group of appreciative fans. McDaniel says: “These are books that challenge you and make you think.” Some readers—and their parents—have wondered why McDaniel chooses to write about sad situations. “I tell them that sometimes tragedy hits people—kids, too. They want answers. They want to know ‘why.’ By using novels, I show ordinary kids confronting and overcoming great odds.” McDaniel’s books are ultimately optimistic and life-affirming. McDaniel began writing about young adults when her son Sean was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of 3. His illness changed the lives of everyone in her family forever. “I saw what life was like for someone who was chronically ill, and I experienced how it affected the dynamics of the family,” says McDaniel. She says she found that writing about the trauma and its effects was therapeutic. To make certain that her books are medically accurate, McDaniel conducts extensive research. She interviews health care professionals and works with appropriate medical groups and hospice organizations, as well as the Tennessee Organ Donor Services. “I study medicine and traditional grief therapy techniques to give the novels a sense of serious medical reality,” she says. “I also study the Bible to instill the human element—the values and ethics often overlooked by the coldness of technology.” Growing up, McDaniel lived in different parts of the country because her father was in the Navy. Eventually her family settled in Florida. She attended the University of South Florida in Tampa, where she earned a B.A. in English. She now lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee. In addition to her popular YA novels, McDaniel has written radio and television scripts, promotional and advertising copy, and a magazine column. She is a frequent speaker at schools, writers’ conferences, and conventions. McDaniel’s books have been named to several bestseller lists, including Publishers Weekly. Three of her novels were selected by children as IRA–CBC Children’s Choices: Somewhere Between Life and Death, Too Young to Die, and Goodbye Doesn’t Mean Forever. Six Months to Live has been placed in a literary time capsule at the Library of Congress, to be opened in the year 2089. The One Last Wish books focus on the interconnected stories of the residents and counselors of Jenny House—a group home for critically and terminally ill young girls. Through the kindness of a secret benefactor, each girl receives a cashier’s check for $100,000, to be used to make her last wish come true. Every One Last Wish novel is a compassionate story of triumph and inspiration that makes McDaniel’s dedicated fans come back for more. McDaniel’s works include To Live Again, one of the Dawn Rochelle books; Angel of Mercy, the companion to Angel of Hope; and How Do I Love Thee, three stories about young couples who are inspired by Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s beautiful sonnet. In her novel, Telling Christina Goodbye, McDaniel shows that everything can change in the blink of an eye.PRAISE ANGELS WATCHING OVER ME “An interesting blend of romance, mystery, and problem novel. The characters are captivating and sensitively drawn and the plot is fast paced.”—School Library Journal DON’T DIE, MY LOVE “Touching scenes abound in this crisis novel. . . . Fans of tear-jerker teen romances will enjoy this offering.”—Booklist I’LL BE SEEING YOU “A satisfying story for those who like to take their romance with tears and gutsy characters who know what it means to live beyond the pale of ‘normal.’ ”—School Library Journal SAVING JESSICA “Readers of McDaniel will enjoy; it’s good to read positive stories about teens.”—VOYA SHE DIED TOO YOUNG “McDaniel has a way of getting you to look at the complicated emotions experienced by YAs with major medical problems. . . . Another winner in her One Last Wish series.”—KLIATT STARRY, STARRY NIGHT “The stories are absorbing, the characters are well developed, and the author does not resolve the girls’ dilemmas with pat solutions. . . . This has solid YA appeal.”—School Library Journal TOO YOUNG TO DIE and GOODBYE DOESN’T MEAN FOREVER “These companion novels . . . cast the events of high school into a meaningful perspective and allow for convincing character development. McDaniel’s writing is light and well suited to this refreshing and involving story.”—Publishers Weekly (added from Random House)… (more)

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland welcomes local author Scott Johnson to the store to discuss and sign his new book, The Wolf and the Watchman, on Thursday, May 23rd at 7pm.

Growing up, Scott Johnson always suspected that his father was different. Only as a teenager did he discover the truth: his father was a spy, one of the CIA's most trusted officers. At first the secret was thrilling. But over time Scott began to have doubts. How could a man so rigorously trained to deceive and manipulate simply turn off those skills at home? His father had been living a double life for so long that his lies were hard to separate from the truth.

In the aftermath of 9/11, father and son found themselves on assignment in Afghanistan and the Middle East, one as a CIA contractor, the other as a reporter for Newsweek. Suddenly, an unsettled Scott was forced to keep his father's secret all over again. As their professional lives collided, Scott and his father inched toward a personal reckoning, struggling to overcome a lifetime of suspicion and deception.

The Wolf and the Watchman is a provocative, meditative account of truth and duplicity, of manipulation and loyalty. It is also a moving, intensely personal portrait of a bond between father and son that endured in the shadow of one of the world's most secretive and unforgiving institutions.

Scott C. Johnson was a Newsweek foreign correspondent for twelve years, often providing exclusive war reporting from Iraq, Afghanistan, and other fronts in the Middle East. He is now a freelance journalist and writer living in Oakland.

Location: Street: 5433 College Ave City: Oakland, Province: California Postal Code: 94618-1502 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

A current Jones Lecturer at Stanford University, Greg Wrenn shares his debut collection of poetry, Centaur. With voices as varied as Robert Mapplethorpe to Hercules, this collection skitters along the blurred lines between compulsivity and following one's heart, stasis and self-realization, human and animal.

Location: Books Inc. Street: 2275 Market St. City: San Francisco, Province: California Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

The International Forum’s Book Club meets once a month on Sundays from 11:00 AM until noon at Books Inc. in Opera Plaza.

This month's book is "Country of My Skull: Guilt, Sorrow, and the Limits of Forgiveness in the New South Africa" by Antjie Krog.

New members are always welcome! For more information, please contact ifbookclub@gmail.com.

This event was developed by members of the World Affairs Council's International Forum, a globally minded multicultural group that acts as an interactive arm of the Council. We host events, informal group discussions, social gatherings, book clubs and other networking opportunities.

To learn about upcoming events and ways to get involved, visit our website or like our Facebook page.

This event is free and open to the public.

Books Inc. Tel: 415.776.1111 (MDGentleReader)… (more)

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland hosts another installment of the always excellent Poetry Flash, this time with Tim Kahl and Joshua McKinney, on Sunday, May 26th at 3pm.

Tim Kahl's's new book of poems is The Century of Travel. Camille Norton says of it, "Tim Kahl's poems are an 'open source' for the end of the West. These big, bold poems swerve between history and pop culture, between nineteenth century bull and bear baiting to twenty-first century bull and bear markets." Also author of the collection Possessing Yourself, he is vice president and events coordinator for the Sacramento Poetry Center, appears as Victor Shnickelfritz on the poetry blog The Great American Pinup and the video blog "Linebreak Studios," and is editor of Bald Trickster Press.

Joshua McKinney's new book is Mad Cursive. In this collection, McKinney, an accomplished swordsman, moves toward the Japanese concept of binbu ichi - "the unity of martial and literary arts" - a Samurai ideal. Claudia Keelan says, "The poems in Mad Cursive move gracefully between beauty and destruction, the essential real locale of poetry in our times... A truly courageous book." McKinney is the author of two previous collections, Saunter, co-winner of the University of Georgia Press Poetry Series competition, and The Novice Mourner, winner of the Dorothy Brunsman Poetry Prize.

Poetry Flash readings are wheelchair accessible; ASL interpreters may be requested one week in advance from editor@poetryflash.org. Visit Poetryflash.org for more events and reviews!

Location: Street: 5433 College Ave City: Oakland, Province: California Postal Code: 94618-1502 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland welcomes The Seated Diesels back to the store to discuss Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner on Tuesday, May 28th at 7 pm.

Anita Brookner's Hotel du Lac tells the story of Edith Hope, who writes romance novels under a pseudonym. When her life begins to resemble the plots of her own novels, however, Edith flees to Switzerland, where the quiet luxury of the Hotel du Lac promises to restore her to her senses.But instead of peace and rest, Edith finds herself sequestered at the hotel with an assortment of love's casualties and exiles. She also attracts the attention of a worldly man determined to release her unused capacity for mischief and pleasure.

This event is free and all are welcome and encouraged to attend!

Location: Street: 5433 College Ave City: Oakland, Province: California Postal Code: 94618-1502 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland welcomes The Seated Diesels back to the store to discuss Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner on Tuesday, May 28th at 7 pm.

Anita Brookner's Hotel du Lac tells the story of Edith Hope, who writes romance novels under a pseudonym. When her life begins to resemble the plots of her own novels, however, Edith flees to Switzerland, where the quiet luxury of the Hotel du Lac promises to restore her to her senses.But instead of peace and rest, Edith finds herself sequestered at the hotel with an assortment of love's casualties and exiles. She also attracts the attention of a worldly man determined to release her unused capacity for mischief and pleasure.

This event is free and all are welcome and encouraged to attend!

Location: Street: 5433 College Ave City: Oakland, Province: California Postal Code: 94618-1502 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)

Lisa Hanawalt will discuss and sign copies of her newly released book, My Dirty Dumb Eyes. Hanawalt's comics and illustrations have appeared in The New York Times, New York magazine, The Hairpin, McSweeney’s, Chronicle Books, and Vanity Fair.

"For years I've encountered Lisa Hanawalt's comics and illustrations piecemeal -- in various magazines and periodicals. They're always a pleasant jolt. Now, they've been assembled into one thick, blazing bludgeon. I envy you getting walloped by them all for the first time. This is a Hanawalt assault. Succumb."–Patton Oswalt

Location: Street: Pegasus Books Downtown Additional: 2349 Shattuck Avenue City: Berkeley, Province: California Postal Code: 94704 Country: United States (added from IndieBound)… (more)