Short stories, poetry and an eclectic mix of novels make
up the 2007-2008 Bathhouse Reading Series, sponsored by
Campus Life and the Department of English at Eastern Michigan
University.
The series kicks off with "Fiction & Politics: A Reading
and Discussion with Stephen Elliott," Tuesday, Oct. 9,
6 p.m., in the Halle Library Auditorium.
Elliott is the author of six books, including the reverse-chronology
story of an abused boy raised by the State of Illinois, "Happy
Baby" (Picador, 2004), and the "almost true," short
story collection, "My Girlfriend Comes To The City And
Beats Me Up" (Cleis Press, 2006). Elliott also is author
of "Looking Forward To It" (Picador, 2004), a non-fiction
memoir of the 2004 Democratic presidential campaign.
Elliott has written for Esquire, The New York Times and
GQ, and has been anthologized in Best American Erotica,
Best Sex Writing and twice in Best American Non-Required
Reading.
 |
Padgett |
Join poet Ron Padgett for a discussion, "When Poet Meets
Painter: The Pleasures of Collaboration," Friday, Nov.
9, 3:30 p.m., in the Halle Library Auditorium. Padgett
is the author of "Oklahoma Tough: My Father, King of the
Tulsa Bootleggers" (University of Oklahoma Press, 2003),
the story of his own infamous bootlegger father, and "You
Never Know," a collection of poems.
Padgett is the editor of "The Handbook of Poetic Forms",
as well as the translator of "Blaise Cendrars' Complete
Poems."
At 5 p.m., Michigan native Ander Monson joins Padgett
at Halle Library Auditorium for a reading.
 |
Monson |
Monson is editor of the literary magazine, Diagram, and
the New Michigan Press. Author of three books, "Neck Deep
and Other Predicaments: Essays (Graywolf Press, 2007), "Other
Electricities" (Sarabande Books, 2005) and "Vacationland" (poems,
Tupelo Press, 2005), Monson teaches poetry, fiction and
nonfiction at Grand Valley State University.
Well-known short story writer Lee Abbott and novelist
Yannick Murphy are scheduled Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2008, 5
p.m., in the Student Center Auditorium.
Abbott is the author of several acclaimed collections
of stories including, "Dreams of Distant Lives" (White
Pine Press, 1990) and "Wet Places at Noon" (University
of Iowa Press, 1997). His many works have appeared in such
journals and magazines as Harpers, The Atlantic Monthly
and The New York Times Book Review.
 |
Murphy |
A recipient of The O. Henry Award for Fiction, Abbott,
a professor of English, is largely considered the "cornerstone
of Ohio State's fiction writing program."
Murphy is the author of "The Sea of Trees" (Houghton Mifflin,
1997), the account of a poor family's coming-of-age in
1970s New York, and "Here They Come" (McSweeney's, 2006).
Murphy is the recipient of the Whiting Writer's Award and
a Chesterfield Film Project Fellow, awarded in conjunction
with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment.
Author of "AHWOOOOOO!" (Clarion, 2006), a children's book
about a young wolf's quest to "find the howl inside," Murphy
is set to release "In A Bear's Eye" (Dzanc Books), a collection
of stories, in February 2008.
Current and former EMU faculty round out the series Wednesday,
April 2, 2008, 5 p.m., in the Student Center Auditorium.
 |
Kauffman |
Janet Kauffman, author of "Loose, Obscene Gestures for
Women" (Kopf, 1990) and a collection of short stories, "Places
in the World a Woman Could Walk" (Greywolf Rediscovery,
1995), is a professor at EMU. She specializes in imaginative
writing and mixed media.
Her works include three novels, two volumes of poetry,
three collections of short stories, and numerous mixed
media and collaborative projects.
The formerly director of creative writing at EMU, novelist
Jeff Parker is author of "Ovenman" (Tin House Books, 2007),
the story of a skateboarding, tattoo-covered young man
named When who flags himself Post-it note reminders of
the prior night's events.
Recent works include a collaboration with artist William
Powhinda on "The Back of the Line" (DECODE, 2007). Parker
is an assistant professor of English at the University
of Toronto and has been featured in The Best American Non-Required
Reading.
