Chapter 16
A Community of Tennessee Writers, Readers & Passersby

The Hamster Express

Legendary author-illustrator Chris Van Allsburg talks with Chapter 16 about his newest picture book

November 5, 2014 Chris Van Allsburg’s newest picture book, The Misadventures of Sweetie Pie, tells the story of one hamster’s journey from pet shop to freedom—with stops at various cages along the way. Van Allsburg will appear at the Nashville Public Library on November 12, 2014, at 6:15 p.m. The event, part of the Salon@615 series, is free and open to the public.

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Paging the Cake-Mix Doctor

Anne Byrn comes to the rescue with a whole new set of recipes for real life

November 4, 2014 Anne Byrn—famously known as the Cake Mix Doctor—talks with Chapter 16 about surviving her own culinary emergencies, the gift she brought Julia Child, and why home-cooking really is better than takeout (and not much harder to pull off). Bryne will discuss her new cookbook, Anne Byrn Saves the Day! at Parnassus Books in Nashville on November 11, 2014, at 6:30 p.m.

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Legal Literature

In an interview with Chapter 16, Scott Turow discusses Jeff Bezos, Monica Lewinsky, Warren Zevon, and his latest legal thriller, Identical

November 3, 2014 With nine bestselling novels and two books of nonfiction, Scott Turow, recipient of the 2014 Nashville Public Library Literary Award, has proven himself a master of the legal thriller. His latest novel, Identical, explores questions of betrayal, family, and identity set against the sweeping political backdrop for which his books are famous. In connection with his acceptance of the NPL award, Turow will appear at Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville on November 8, 2014, at 10 a.m. The event is free and open to the public.

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A Stubborn, Gentle-Hearted Survivor

Robert Bausch talks with Chapter 16 about his novel of the old West, Far As the Eye Can See

October 31, 2014 Bobby Hale, the protagonist of Robert Bausch’s Far As the Eye Can See, is a stubborn survivor and a bit of a con man but essentially a gentle soul. Caught up in the movement westward after the Civil War, Hale struggles to find some sort of human connection in a violent, unforgiving environment. Robert Bausch will appear at Burke’s Book Store in Memphis on November 7, 2014, at 5:30 p.m.

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Breathing Another Country’s Air

Dinaw Mengestu’s The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears, the inaugural selection for Memphis Reads, reveals the complexity of the immigrant experience

October 30, 2014 Sepha Stephanos, the immigrant protagonist of Dinaw Mengestu’s The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears, is not the archetypal ambitious newcomer, striving for American success. He’s a sensitive, troubled man bewildered by life in a culture not his own. The novel is the inaugural selection for Memphis’s first city-wide read. On November 4, 2014, Mengestu will visit Memphis to discuss the book at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library and Christian Brothers University. Both events are free and open to the public.

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Some Howling Beautiful Thing

A. Van Jordan’s latest poetry collection evokes the magic of movies

October 29, 2014 In his new poetry collection, The Cineaste, A. Van Jordan pays homage to both the makers and watchers of movies. Jordan will read from his work on November 6, 2014, at 7 p.m. in Buttrick Hall, Room 101, on the Vanderbilt University campus in Nashville. The event is free and open to the public.

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