Listen to 2009 Author Readings and Library Events

Greg Mortenson: 'Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan'

The Seattle Public Library presented a special evening with Greg Mortenson, author of the international bestseller "Three Cups of Tea," on Dec. 15, 2009 at Seattle Pacific University. Mortenson showed images and discussed his new book, "Stones into Schools."

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 7 minutes /file size: 31 MB]

William H. Wilson: 'Shaper of Seattle'

William H. Wilson presented an illustrated lecture on the life and career of Reginald Heber Thomson, Seattle's City Engineer, on Dec. 12, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 59 minutes /file size: 27 MB]

'Fueling disaster: Alcohol, Anger and Aggressive Driving'

Dr. Dennis Donovan presented correlations between drinking and aggressive driving, along with ideas for driver improvement, on Dec. 2, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 1 minute /file size: 28 MB]

Ken Auletta and Brier Dudley: 'Googled: The End of the World as We Know It'

Ken Auletta and Seattle Times technology columnist Brier Dudley discussed "Googled: The End of the World as We Know It" on Nov. 9, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 24 minutes /file size: 38 MB]

McLellan/O'Donnell Living History Series: Clay Jenkinson as Thomas Jefferson

Clay Jenkinson presented his portrayal of Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States, on Nov. 13, 2009 at Town Hall as part of the McLellan/O'Donnell Living History Series.
 

Clay Jenkinson as Thomas Jefferson Part 1

The scholar appeared in costume in the persona of his character.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 2 minutes /file size: 28 MB]

Clay Jenkinson as Thomas Jefferson Part 2

Jenkinson opened the floor to questions from the audience to President Jefferson and broke from character to respond to further questions based on his research.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 14 minutes /file size: 34 MB]

'Battling Blindness: New and Emerging Treatments'

Dr. Russell Van Gelder discussed the symptoms and causes of eye disease and blindness and emerging new treatments on Nov. 4, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 16 minutes /file size: 35 MB]

'2009 Jack Straw Writers Program'

The Washington Center for the Book and Jack Straw Productions celebrated the 2009 Jack Straw Writers Program on Nov. 7, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library with readings by literary artists who were selected for the program by curator Donna Miscolta.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 9 minutes /file size: 32 MB]

'Stones & Bones: Discovering Secrets in King County's Oldest Cemeteries'

Gwynneth Anderson presented "Stones & Bones," a photodocumentary on historic King County cemeteries, on Oct. 31, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 53 minutes /file size: 24 MB]

Greil Marcus: 'A New Literary History of America'

Journalist and cultural critic Greil Marcus read from "A New Literary History of America," co-edited with Werner Sollors, on Oct. 29, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 15 minutes /file size: 34 MB]

Barbara Ehrenreich: 'Bright-Sided'

Barbara Ehrenreich discussed her latest book, "Bright-Sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America," on Oct. 21, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 48 minutes /file size: 44 MB]

Halloween Concert with Captain Bogg & Salty

Ahoy jolly sea-rollers and land-locked lubbers alike! Join the roughest swaggerin' scallywags that ever sailed the seven seas. Captain Bogg & Salty played a Halloween concert on Oct. 31, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 5 minutes /file size: 30 MB]

2009 Washington State Book Awards ceremony

The Washington Center for the Book at The Seattle Public Library presented the 43rd annual Washington State Book Awards ceremony, recognizing six outstanding books published by Washington authors in 2008, on Oct. 14, 2009.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 26 minutes /file size: 40 MB]

Nick Hornby: 'Juliet, Naked'

Nick Hornby, the best-selling author of "High Fidelity" and "About a Boy," read from his newest novel, "Juliet, Naked," on Oct. 9, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 58 minutes /file size: 26 MB]

William Kamkwamba and Brian Mealer: 'The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope'

William Kamkwamba and co-author/journalist Brian Mealer showed images and read from "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope" on Oct. 4, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 2 minutes /file size: 28 MB]

Medical Lecture Series IV: 'Does Caffeine Reduce the Risk of Skin Cancer?'

Dr. Paul Nghiem presented research suggesting that consuming caffeine in coffee and other beverages may lower the risk of skin cancer on Oct. 7, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 58 minutes /file size: 26 MB]

Arthur Sze: 'The Ginkgo Light'

Arthur Sze read from "The Ginkgo Light," his latest poetry collection, on Oct. 6, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: http://www.spl.org/Audio/ArthurSze2009.mp3 /file size: Download Audio (mp3)]

Kate DiCamillo: 'The Magician's Elephant'

Kate DiCamillo read from "The Magician's Elephant" on Oct. 3, 2009 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 45 minutes /file size: 20 MB]

Seattle City Council Candidates Debate

Seattle City Council candidates engaged in a debate moderated by Ryan Blethen, The Seattle Times, and C.R. Douglas, The Seattle Channel, on Oct. 13 at The Seattle Public Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 25 minutes /file size: 39 MB]

SENSEable City Lab Trash Track exhibit

The Seattle Public Library and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) teamed up for a SENSEable City Lab Trash Track exhibit. This event on Sept. 19, 2009 at the Central Library launched the exhibit and helped people find out where trash goes.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 18 minutes /file size: 36 MB]

Seattle Mayoral Candidates Debate

Seattle Mayoral candidates Mike McGinn and Joe Mallahan engaged in a debate moderated by Joni Balter, The Seattle Times, and Dave Ross, KIRO Radio, on Oct. 5, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 27 minutes /file size: 40 MB]

Curtis Ebbesmeyer: 'Flotsametrics and the Floating World'

Curtis Ebbesmeyer showed images and talked about his recent book co-authored with Seattle author Eric Scigliano, "Flotsametrics and the Floating World: How One Man's Obsession with Runaway Sneakers and Rubber Ducks Revolutionized Ocean Science" on Sept. 26, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 4 minutes /file size: 30 MB]

Red Pine (a.k.a. Bill Porter): 'In Such Hard Times: The Poetry of Wei Ying-wu'

Acclaimed translator Red Pine (a.k.a. Bill Porter) presented bilingual readings in English and Chinese from "In Such Hard Times: The Poetry of Wei Ying-wu" on Sept. 22, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 6 minutes /file size: 31 MB]

Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Kidd Taylor: 'Traveling with Pomegranates'

Sue Monk Kidd, bestselling author of the "The Secret Life of Bees" and "The Mermaid Chair," and Ann Kidd Taylor read from "Traveling with Pomegranates" on Sept. 16, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 48 minutes /file size: 22 MB]

Sandra Day O'Connor: 'Education: A Big Idea in Today's America'

Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor spoke on "Education: A Big Idea in Today's America" on Sept. 14, 2009 at Town Hall.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 48 minutes /file size: 22 MB]

Cultural Collisions: Women Poets and Their Craft

Calling themselves La Jefa ("The Boss" in Spanish and Portuguese), four Seattle women writers, who collectively represent at least 16 cultures, presented a workshop and read from their work on June 27, 2009 at the Beacon Hill Branch.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 18 minutes /file size: 36 MB]

Douglas Brinkley: 'The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America'

Presidential historian Douglas Brinkley discussed "The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America" on Aug. 6, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour /file size: 27 MB]

Rebecca Wells: 'The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder'

Rebecca Wells read from "The Crowning Glory of Calla Lily Ponder" on July 10, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 9 minutes /file size: 32 MB]

Colum McCann: 'Let the Great World Spin'

Award-winning Irish novelist Colum McCann read from "Let the Great World Spin" on July 13, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 1 minute /file size: 28 MB]

Carlos Ruiz Zafón: 'The Angel's Game'

Carlos Ruiz Zafón discussed his latest novel, "The Angel's Game," on June 26, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 57 minutes /file size: 26 MB]

Bill O'Daly and Kisha Xiomara Palmer: Translations of Pablo Neruda

Bill O'Daly and Kisha Xiomara Palmer read from "World's End", O'Daly's ninth translated work of Chilean Nobel Prize poet Pablo Neruda on June 20, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 54 minutes /file size: 25 MB]

Lisa See: 'Shanghai Girls'

Lisa See discussed "Shanghai Girls" on June 16, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 58 minutes /file size: 26 MB]

Alan J. Stein and Paula Becker: Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition: Washington's First World's Fair

HistoryLink.org authors Alan J. Stein and Paula Becker shared photographs and stories from their new book, "Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition: Washington's First World's Fair," on June 13, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 10 minutes /file size: 64 MB]

Alain de Botton: 'The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work'

Alain de Botton discussed "The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work" on June 10, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 56 minutes /file size: 51 MB]

Lee Child: 'Gone Tomorrow'

Bestselling author Lee Child read from "Gone Tomorrow," his thirteenth novel featuring Jack Reacher, a character known by millions as a thinking person's action hero, on June 9, 2009 at the Central Library.

Diane Wei Liang: 'Lake With No Name: A True Story of Love and Conflict in Modern China'

Beijing-born mystery writer Diane Wei Liang read from her memoir, "Lake With No Name: A True Story of Love and Conflict in Modern China," on June 7, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 44 minutes /file size: 40 MB]

'Seattle Noir'

A panel of local writers read from and discussed "Seattle Noir," a new anthology of original crime fiction set in our city's sinful, soggy streets, on June 2, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 3 minutes /file size: 57 MB]

Poets Daniel Comiskey and Chris Putnam: 'Crawlspace'

Seattle poets Daniel Comiskey and Chris Putnam read from their book "Crawlspace" on May 28, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 36 minutes /file size: 33 MB]

Seattle Reads 'My Jim': Main Event with Nancy Rawles

Nancy Rawles spoke on "Living with Passion" for the main event of Seattle Reads "My Jim" on May 22, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 18 minutes /file size: 72 MB]

Lynda Mapes: 'Breaking Ground: The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe and the Unearthing of Tse-whit-zen Village'

Lynda Mapes presented a program about the excavation of the Tse-whit-zen Village of the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe in Port Angeles, one of the largest and oldest Indian village sites ever found in this region, on May 17, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 8 minutes /file size: 62 MB]

Seattle Reads 'My Jim': Contemporary African-American Writing

Two authors, Ta-Nehisi Coates and Attica Locke, discussed contemporary African-American writing on May 15, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 15 minutes /file size: 69 MB]

Joan Hockaday: 'Greenscapes: Olmsted's Pacific Northwest'

Joan Hockaday read from "Greenscapes: Olmsted's Pacific Northwest," a book about Olmsted's park system designs throughout the Pacific Northwest on May 2, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 57 minutes /file size: 52 MB]

A Conversation with Mark Morris and Peter Boal

Peter Boal, Pacific Northwest Ballet Artistic Director, engaged in a lively discussion with director and choreographer Mark Morris on April 28, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 52 minutes /file size: 48 MB]

Mende Nazer: 'Slave: My True Story'

Mende Nazer discussesed her memoir, "Slave: My True Story" on April 26, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 2 minutes /file size: 57 MB]

Jonathan Alter: The Seattle Public Library's 2009 A. Scott Bullitt Lecture in American History

Jonathan Alter, Newsweek senior editor and NBC News correspondent, discussed "The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope" on stage with Eric Liu on March 23, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour /file size: 55 MB]

Seattle Reads 'My Jim': Huck Finn: In or Out of School?

Two teachers, two students, and a parent discussed the merits and challenges of teaching "Huckleberry Finn" in the schools on April 11, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 17 minutes /file size: 71 MB]

Thomas Ricks: 'The Gamble: General Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008'

Thomas Ricks discussed "The Gamble: General Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008" on April 9, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 52 minutes /file size: 48 MB]

Seattle Reads 'My Jim': The Hansberry Project staged readings

The Hansberry Project, directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton, kicked off Seattle Reads 'My Jim' with staged readings on March 15, 2009, at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 3 minutes /file size: 57 MB]

Tavis Smiley: 'Accountable: Making America as Good as Its Promise'

Tavis Smiley, national television and radio talk show host, discussed "Accountable: Making America as Good as Its Promise" on March 12, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 18 minutes /file size: 72 MB]

Paul Bannick: 'The Owl and the Woodpecker'

Seattle photographer, author, educator, and naturalist Paul Bannick presented "The Owl and the Woodpecker: Encounters with North America's Most Iconic Birds" on March 11, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 3 minutes /file size: 58 MB]

Samuel Green, Washington State Poet Laureate, and Kim Stafford: Poetry Reading

Sam Green and Kim Stafford, longtime friends and admirers of each other's work, read poetry on March 3, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 6 minutes /file size: 61 MB]

Val McDermid: 'A Darker Domain'

The bestselling author of Scottish police mysteries read from her latest novel, "A Darker Domain," on Feb. 15, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 37 minutes /file size: 34 MB]

Bruce Barcott: 'The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw'

Award-winning author Bruce Barcott read from "The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw: One Woman's Fight to Save the World's Most Beautiful Bird" on Feb. 28, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 5 minutes /file size: 60 MB]

Inauguration of new Poet Populist Mike Hickey

Jack Hirschman helped celebrate the inauguration of new Poet Populist Mike Hickey on Jan. 25, 2009 at the Central Library.
 

Inauguration of new Poet Populist - Part 1: Mike Hickey, Cody Walker and other guests

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 2 minutes /file size: 57 MB]

Inauguration of new Poet Populist - Part 2: Jack Hirschman

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 53 minutes /file size: 48 MB]

Barry Unsworth: 'Land of Marvels'

Barry Unsworth read from his latest historical novel, "Land of Marvels," on Jan. 24, 2009 at the Central Library. In "Land of Marvels," a thriller set in 1914, Unsworth brings to life the schemes and double-dealings of Western nations grappling for a foothold in Mesopotamia (now Iraq) in the dying days of the Ottoman Empire.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 45 minutes /file size: 41 MB]

Azar Nafisi: 'Things I've Been Silent About: Memories'

Azar Nafisi discussed "Things I've Been Silent About: Memories" on Jan. 16, 2009 at the Central Library. Nafisi is the author of the international bestseller, "Reading Lolita in Tehran," and a visiting professor at Johns Hopkins University.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 9 minutes /file size: 63 MB]

King County Elections Director Debate

King County Elections Director candidates debated on Jan. 15, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 24 minutes /file size: 77 MB]

Mo Yan: The Re-emergence of Literary Voice in Contemporary China

Mo Yan read from and discussed his works with Christopher Lupke, associate professor of Chinese, Washington State University, and other panelists on Jan. 5, 2009 at the Central Library.

Download Audio (mp3) [play time: 1 hour 14 minutes /file size: 68 MB]