Great Michigan Read

[YMC]

Michigan Author Homecoming to commemorate The Great Michigan Read, free to the public.

WHAT: Michigan Author Homecoming.
WHO: Richard Ford, Jim Harrison, Thomas McGuane: A Conversation.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Thursday, July 10, 2008. Book signing follows discussion.
Doors open at 6:45 p.m.
WHERE: Pasant Theatre, Wharton Center at Michigan State University, East Lansing.
COST: Free to the public. Limited seating on a first-come, first-served basis.




More... (http://www.michiganhumanities.org/news/pressreleases/060308.htm)

[EMUJeff]

Richard Ford is best known for his novels ("Independence Day"-no, not that one), short stories and his contribution to the New Yorker titled "Leaving for Kenosha". An author diagnosed with mild dyslexia, he brings Updikian characters to life in many of his novels. He says this forced him to approach books in a slow, thoughtful manner that gave him greater opportunities to see what was being written. Though a native of Mississippi, his BA is from MSU.
Jim Harrison is a native of Grayling, MI and is best known for his essays, poetry (I've read and recommend "The Theory & Practice of Rivers"), and reviews as well as some fiction (compared often to Faulkner and Hemingway in style). He has taught at Interlochen, spends time in his cabin in Michigan, and one of his novella's was turned into the film "Legends of the Fall".
Thomas McGuane is a native of Wyandotte, MI and is a graduate of Cranbrook. He may be familiar to many who followed Hollywood for his tumultuous relationships earlier in his life with Elisabeth Ashley, Margot Kidder (with whom he has a daughter), and Becky Crockett (who went on to later marry Peter Fonda). His time in Montana greatly influenced his works. Common themes in his writing are the 1960's and 70's and the culture of disesstablishment that flourished then.
All three prosper from strong connections to their mother's sides of the family. For Richard and Jim, this comes from their father's both having died fairly young and the influence their single mothers display. For Thomas this comes from his attachment to his mother's families story telling traditions which drive his narrative thought.
Should be a great time!
EMUJeff