Andrew Shaffer, who grew up in Cedar Rapids and once worked for the Cedar Rapids Public Library, will be the next author to read as part of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series. Shaffer’s event is set for Sunday, May 22 at 2 p.m. All series events—which are free and open to the public with no tickets required—will take place in Ballantyne Auditorium on the Kirkwood Community College campus. The Out Loud! Author Series is a program of the Cedar Rapids, Marion, and Hiawatha Public Libraries.

Shaffer will read from his irreverent non-fiction book, Great Philosophers Who Failed at Love, which examines in hilarious detail the romantic tribulations of some of the world’s most famed thinkers, including Socrates, Rene Descartes, Immanuel Kant, and Bertrand Russell, among many others.

Publisher’s Weekly said of the book, “Shaffer’s jaunty compendium of highbrow heartbreak provides proof positive that even the most brilliant of minds can fall afoul of Cupid—and offers some measure of hope to the lovelorn.”

Following his reading, Shaffer will take questions from the audience and then sign books. The Cedar Rapids Barnes & Noble will be on hand with copies of the book available for purchase.

The Out Loud! Author Series received a grant of $500 from Humanities Iowa, a state-based affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, in support of Shaffer’s reading. The event will also include comments and questions for Shaffer from Professor Chris McCord of the Kirkwood Community College philosophy department. McCord has published “Teaching Ethics with Scrooge” and “Frankenstein Meets Kant” in Teaching Philosophy.

The Out Loud! Author Series will present three additional authors in 2011 including Laurell K. Hamilton, author of the popular the “Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter” novels, on Friday, June 10, at 7 p.m.; Steve Martini, author of the thrillers featuring Paul Madriani, on Friday, June 24, at 7 p.m.; and Meg Cabot, bestselling author for youth and adults, on Tuesday, July 12 at 7 p.m.

More information about the Out Loud! Author Series is available at www.metrolibrarynetwork.org. Shaffer’s web site can be found at www.greatphilosophersbook.com.

Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series is supported by the Giacoletto Foundation with media support from The Gazette and event book sales provided by Barnes & Noble Booksellers. While this event is supported by Humanities Iowa and the National Endowment for the Humanities, the views and opinions expressed by this program do not necessarily reflect those of either organization.

Mary Helen Stefaniak, an Iowa City resident and graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, will be the next author to read as part of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series.

Stefaniak’s event is set for Sunday, May 15 at 2 p.m. All series events—which are free and open to the public with no tickets required—will take place in Ballantyne Auditorium on the Kirkwood Community College campus. The Out Loud! Author Series is a program of the Cedar Rapids, Marion, and Hiawatha Public Libraries.

Stefaniak will read from her second novel, The Cailiffs of Baghdad, Georgia, which has been awarded a 2011 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Fiction. The Anisfield-Wolf awards “recognize books that have made important contributions to our understanding of racism and our appreciation of the rich diversity of human cultures.”

Juror Rita Dove described the novel as “a rollicking tale that manages to speak seriously to the tragedy of ignorance and the damage caused by fear.”

Previous winners of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award include Martin Luther King, Jr., Toni Morrison, and Alex Haley.

The Cailiffs of Baghdad, Georgia was also selected by independent booksellers as an Indie-Next “Great Read” in September 2010.

Stefaniak’s first novel, The Turk and My Mother, won the 2005 John Gardner Book Award and has been translated into several languages. Her first book, Self Storage and Other Stories, received the Banta Award for Literary Excellence from the Wisconsin Library Association. Stefaniak is currently an Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing at Creighton University in Omaha.

Following her reading, Stefaniak will take questions from the audience and then sign books. The Cedar Rapids Barnes & Noble will be on hand with copies of her work available for purchase.

The Out Loud! Author Series will present four additional authors in 2011 including Andrew Shaffer, author of Great Philosophers who Failed at Love, on Sunday, May 22, at 2 p.m.; Laurell K. Hamilton, author of the popular the “Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter” novels, on Friday, June 10, at 7 p.m.; Steve Martini, author of the thrillers featuring Paul Madriani, on Friday, June 24, at 7 p.m.; and Meg Cabot, bestselling author for youth and adults, on Tuesday, July 12 at 7 p.m.

This year’s edition of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series gets underway on Tuesday, April 19 at 7 p.m. with Stephen Lovely, whose novel Irreplaceable is the 2011 Linn Area Reads book. All series events—which are free and open to the public with no tickets required—will take place in Ballantyne Auditorium on the Kirkwood Community College Campus. The Out Loud! Author Series is a program of the Cedar Rapids, Marion, and Hiawatha Public Libraries.

Lovely attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and worked for seven years as a night clerk in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. In 2005, he became director of the Iowa Young Writers’ Studio, a summer residential creative writing program for high school students. Irreplaceable, which is set in a fictionalized Iowa City, explores the many issues surrounding organ transplants.

The Linn Area Reads program has already hosted several well-attended events related to the novel. The community reading program wraps up with Lovely’s Out Loud! reading.

Following his reading, Lovely will take questions from the audience and then sign books. The Cedar Rapids Barnes & Noble will be on hand with copies of Irreplaceable available for purchase.

The Out Loud! Author Series will present five additional authors in 2011 including Mary Helen Stefaniak, author of The Cailiffs of Baghdad, Georgia, on Sunday, May 15 at 2 p.m.; Andrew Shaffer, author of Great Philosophers Who Failed at Love, on Sunday, May 22, at 2 p.m.; Laurell K. Hamilton, author of the popular “Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter” novels, on Friday, June 10, at 7 p.m.; Steve Martini, author of the thrillers featuring Paul Madriani, on Friday, June 24, at 7 p.m.; and Meg Cabot, bestselling author for youth and adults, on Tuesday, July 12 at 7 p.m.

More information about the Out Loud! Author Series, as well as information about the Linn Area Reads program, is available at www.metrolibrarynetwork.org. Stephen Lovely’s web site can be found at www.stephenlovely.com.

Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series is supported by the Giacoletto Foundation with media support from The Gazette and event book sales provided by Barnes & Noble Booksellers. Stephen Lovely’s event is supported in part by a grant from the Iowa Arts Council, a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Vampires, political thrills, family dramas, and philosophers with lousy love lives are on tap for the 2011 edition of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series. For the first time the collaborative program of the Cedar Rapids, Hiawatha, and Marion Public Libraries will feature six events, all free and open to the public. All series events in 2011 will take place in Ballantyne Auditorium on the Kirkwood Community College Campus.

The series kicks off on Tuesday, April 19 at 7 p.m. with Stephen Lovely whose novel Irreplaceable is the 2011 Linn Area Reads book. Lovely attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and worked for seven years as a night clerk in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. In 2005, he became director of the Iowa Young Writers’ Studio, a summer residential creative writing program for high school students. Irreplaceable, which is set in a fictionalized Iowa City, explores the many issues surrounding organ transplants.

On Sunday, May 15, at 2 p.m., Mary Helen Stefaniak will read from The Cailiffs of Baghdad, Georgia, which was chosen as an “Indie Next” pick in September 2010. In the acclaimed novel, a hidden history of the American South emerges when a worldly teacher leads Threestep, Georgia, to reinvent itself as “Baghdad.” Stefaniak, who is also the author of The Turk and My Mother and Self Storage and Other Stories, is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and divides her time between Iowa City and Omaha, where she teaches at Creighton University.

Andrew Shaffer, author of Great Philosophers Who Failed at Love, will read at 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 22. Shaffer takes readers on an irreverent tour of the tragic love lives of great thinkers through the ages. A Cedar Rapids native who attended the University of Iowa and lives in the Quad Cities, he is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post and the creative director of greeting card publisher Order of St. Nick.

On Friday, June 10 at 7 p.m., bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton will answer questions from the audience. The latest release in her popular Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series, Hit List, will be released in June. Hamilton is also the author of the urban fantasy series featuring Merry Gentry, who is a Fey princess and private investigator. Hamilton’s presentation will include adult content and will not be appropriate for children.

Thriller writer Steve Martini will appear on Friday, June 24 at 7 p.m. Martini introduced his popular character attorney Paul Madriani in 1992’s Compelling Evidence. He will read from the twelfth novel featuring Madriani, which is set for June release. Prior to the publication of his first novel, The Simeon Chamber in 1987, Martini had careers as a journalist and an attorney.

On Tuesday, July 12 at 7 p.m., Meg Cabot will present a program for both her YA and adult readers. Well known for YA novels like The Princess Diaries and Avalon High (both of which have been made into Disney films), Cabot is also a bestselling writer for adults. She will be on tour supporting Overbite, which will be released in July and is the second entry in her vampire series that began with last year’s Insatiable. Her latest YA book is Abandon, which will be released in late April and is a retelling of the Persephone myth.

All Out Loud! authors will take questions from the audience during their presentations. Additionally, all authors will sign books following their presentations with the exception of Hamilton who will pose for pictures with fans. Pre-signed copies of Hamilton’s newest book will be available for purchase at the event.

More information about the Out Loud! Author Series, as well as information about the Linn Area Reads program, is available at www.metrolibrarynetwork.org.

Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series is supported by the Giacoletto Foundation with media support from The Gazette and event book sales provided by Barnes & Noble Booksellers.

Check back Monday for the announcement of the 2011 Out Loud! Author Series lineup!

Iowa City author will read from third entry in her Magic Thief series for YA readers

The 2010 edition of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series will conclude with a reading by Sarah Prineas. The author, who makes her home in Iowa City, will read from her work, take questions from the audience, and sign books on Saturday, June 26 at 2 p.m. at Theatre Cedar Rapids. The event is free and open to the public; no tickets are required.

Prineas is the author of The Magic Thief fantasy series for young readers. The books, which feature a boy who goes from a life on the streets to a life of magic, have received numerous honors. The third entry in the series, The Magic Thief: Found, was released in May.

The author’s web site can be found at www.sarah-prineas.com.

Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series is supported by the Giacoletto Foundation with media support from The Gazette and event book sales provided by Barnes & Noble Booksellers.

The week has finally arrived! We are so excited to be presenting Charlaine Harris this Friday, June 18, at 7 pm at Theatre Cedar Rapids. We’re very pleased that Johanna Parker, the Recorded Books narrator of the Sookie Stackhouse novels, will be joining Ms. Harris on stage to read selections from the books.

We’re expecting a big crowd! Theatre Cedar Rapids can accommodate 550 people. If the crowd is bigger than that, folks who don’t make it into the theatre will be allowed to wait outside (literally…outside) the building. With luck, we’ll be able to pump sound to the outdoor speakers so that people will be able to hear the program.

Following the presentation, everyone will be allowed into the facility for the book signing. Barnes & Noble will be onhand to sell books; you are also welcome to bring books from home. Ms. Harris will sign three books; if you’d like to have more signed, she requests you go through the line again.

So, you might wonder how early you should show up to avoid ending up on the sidewalk. Truthfully, I don’t know. I do know this: In addition to hearing from folks from all around Iowa, we’ve heard from people in Nebraska, Minnesota, Illinois, and Wisconsin. We anticipate that a line might start forming fairly early in the day.

My best advice is that you check in with our friends at Theatre Cedar Rapids a couple of times throughout the day to see if a line is developing and how big it is. You can reach TCR at 319.366.8591.

Theatre Cedar Rapids is located at 102 Third Street SE in downtown Cedar Rapids. Google Maps should be able to get you there.

Doors to the theatre will open at 6 pm. The program will begin at 7 pm. We are truly looking forward to seeing all of you there.

I also want to be sure you are aware of a related event at the Englert Theatre in Iowa City that will take place on Thursday, June 17. There will be a performance by the Jace Everett Duo (best known for the True Blood theme song, “Bad Things”), a reception with Ms. Harris (which may be sold out), and a free screening of the season three premiere of True Blood. Details are available at www.englert.org.

Thanks for your interest in the Out Loud! Author Series.

Best,
Rob Cline, series coordinator
Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series

Author of Sookie Stackhouse novels participating in Corridor events June 17-18

It caused quite a stir among fans when Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series announced that Charlaine Harris would be coming to Cedar Rapids on June 18. Fans throughout the Corridor now have twice as many reasons to be excited as the Out Loud! Author Series and the Englert Theatre announce that the author of the Sookie Stackhouse novels will be appearing in Iowa City on June 17, as well. And while she is a strong drawn on her own, both events will feature more than just Harris.

On Thursday, June 17, the Englert Theatre will host an evening featuring Harris, the Jace Everett Duo-best known for performing the theme song to HBO’s True Blood, the popular series based on Harris’ novels-and a screening of the season three premiere of True Blood.

The Jace Everett Duo performance begins at 7 p.m. and tickets are $15. Those wishing to attend both the concert and a reception with Harris, during which she will greet fans and sign books, may purchase a ticket for $30. The reception will begin at 8:30. The True Blood screening will begin at 10 p.m. and is free.

Tickets are available from the Englert box office (319-688-2653) or online at www.englert.org. Prairie Lights will provide book sales at the event.

On Friday, June 18, Harris will make her Out Loud! Author Series appearance at Theatre Cedar Rapids at 7 p.m. Harris will speak about the creative writing process and will take audience questions. She will be joined on stage by Johanna Parker who narrates the Recorded Books editions of the Sookie Stackhouse novels. Parker will read selections from the books. The presentation will be followed by a book signing. The event is free and no tickets are required.

Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series is a program of the Cedar Rapids, Hiawatha, and Marion Public Libraries and is supported by the Giacoletto Foundation with media support from The Gazette and book sales provided by the Cedar Rapids Barnes & Noble.

More information about Charlaine Harris can be found at her web site: www.charlaineharris.com. The latest book in the Sookie Stackhouse series, Dead in the Family, was released in early May.

More information about the Out Loud! Author Series is available at www.metrolibrarynetwork.org.

Author and humorist Michael Perry will read from Population: 485, the 2010 selection for the Linn Area Reads program, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 15 at Theatre Cedar Rapids. The event, which is free and open to the public, is part of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series.

Population: 485 is subtitled Meeting Your Neighbors One Siren at a Time. The book features Perry’s adventures as a member of the volunteer fire and rescue department in New Auburn, Wis. It is filled with colorful characters, real emergencies, and the quirkiness of a small Midwestern town.

In addition to reading from the book, Perry will take questions from the audience and sign books following his presentation.

Perry is also the author of Truck: A Love Story and Coop: A Year of Poultry, Pigs and Parenting.

More information about Michael Perry can be found at his web site: www.sneezingcow.com.

The Linn Area Reads program is supported by Barnes & Noble Booksellers, the Cole Library, East Central Library Services, Friends of the Cedar Rapids Public Library, Friends of the Hiawatha Public Library, Friends of the Marion Public Library, The Gazette, the Giacoletto Foundation, Hancher, the Linn County Library Consortium, the Lisbon Public Library, and the Metro Library Network.

Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series is a program of the Cedar Rapids, Hiawatha, and Marion Public Libraries and is supported by the Giacoletto Foundation with media support from The Gazette and book sales provided by the Cedar Rapids Barnes & Noble.

Information about both programs is available at www.metrolibrarynetwork.org.

The first 100 attendees will receive a free hardcover copy of Scottoline’s most recent novel, Think Twice!

The 2010 edition of Out Loud! The Metro Library Network Author Series continues with a appearance by Lisa Scottoline. The bestselling author of legal thrillers will speak, take questions from the audience, and sign books on Saturday, May 1 at 7 p.m. at Theatre Cedar Rapids. The event is free and open to the public; no tickets are required.

Scottoline’s thrillers are set in Philadelphia and feature gutsy and resilient female characters. USA Today hails her writing as “sharp, intelligent, funny, and hip” and says that she “gives fans of legal thrillers a good, twisty plot, lively characters, and an all-around fun read.” Her books draw on her experience as a trial lawyer as well as her judicial clerkships in the state and federal justice systems.

She also writes a weekly column called “Chick Wit” for the Philadelphia Inquirer and is a contributing editor to Justice magazine. She teaches a course she developed entitled “Justice and Fiction” at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

She is the recipient of a variety of honors including the Edgar Award, mystery writers’ highest honor. She has also been honored by Cosmopolitan Magazine for her “Fun, Fearless Fiction,” and named an “Innovator” by Publishers Weekly.

The author’s web site can be found at www.scottoline.com.

Upcoming Out Loud! Author Series events include Michael Perry (May 15), Charlaine Harris (June 18), and Sarah Prineas (June 26).