March 2012 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK |
By Olivia Boler
Phoenix Books at 3957 24th St. is the site for a literary feast and a 27th anniversary celebration on Thursday, March 15. |
Noe
Valley's annual celebration of the written word will run March
11 to 17, and this year the event has a new nom de plume.
Formerly
“Noe Valley
Celebrates the Book,” the six-year-old festival
is now “Noe Valley Word Week,”
say Peggy Cling and
Richard May, the Friends of Noe Valley “authors” of the event.
“Literature is more than just books,” May says. “It’s poetry and scrolls and ebooks, too. And ‘Word Week’ sounds kind of catchy.”
Taking
a cue from its fabulous big sister—San Francisco’s annual literary festival
Litquake—Word Week has
a little something for almost everyone, from kids to cooks.
Each day of the week has a theme,
and audience participation is encouraged with the online
inclusion of scribes who submitted prose or poetry to the
Friends of Noe Valley by March 1.
Word Week officially kicks off on
Sunday, March 11, from 3 to 4 p.m., at the Noe Valley Library on
Jersey Street. Local celebrities will read from their favorite
books and words of inspiration. Readers will include State
Senator Mark Leno, Supervisor Scott Wiener, Noe Valley poet
Ramon Sender, Noe Valley Association director Debra Niemann, and
District 8’s former supervisor, Bevan Dufty, as well as his
daughter Sydney.
On Monday, March 12, the fun
continues with two events. The first takes place at Omnivore
Books on Food, located on Cesar Chavez Street near Church
Street. From 6 to 7 p.m., Chloe Coscarelli, author of Chloe’s
Kitchen: 125 Easy, Delicious Recipes for Making Food You Love
the Vegan Way, will be on hand. Chef Chloe gained fame
after becoming the first vegan chef to win the “Cupcake Wars,” a
Food Network series.
Even Monday
After you’ve tasted the delights
of the cookbook realm, head over to Phoenix Books on 24th Street
for Nonfiction Night from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Organizing this event
are Judy Levy-Sender and Ramon Sender, of the Odd Mondays
Series. They will step out of the box a little, since, as Cling
points out, “this will be an even Monday.”
The lineup is full of local
literary luminaries including the prolific Bill Yenne with his
latest publication, Cities of Gold. Ginny Pizzardi,
author of Lessons in Loss, will join him. Sydney
Gurewitz Clemens is a teacher who has written a book
titled Pay Attention to the Children. Rev. Robert
Warren Cromey, a retired Episcopalian priest who speaks out
about the rights of gays, will have his book, Sex
Priest. Mike Miller, author of A Community
Organizer’s Tale, rounds out the evening.
Publishing Tips
Aspiring authors won’t want to
miss the next event. The theme for Tuesday, March 13, is “How I
Got My First Book Published.” From 7 to 8:30 p.m. at St. Philip
Church on Diamond Street, join four authors as they read from
their books and talk about their experiences in the publishing
world. Chris Cole has an unpublished book, which May says is in
the hands of a literary agent and is making the rounds of New
York publishing houses. Julia Flynn Siler has made a splash withLost
Kingdom: Hawaii’s Last Queen, the Sugar Kings, and America’s
First Imperial Adventure. Michael Aleynikov is the
award-winning author of the novel-in-stories Ivan and
Misha, and Carolyn Cooke penned a novel, Daughters
of the Revolution, that wowed the Chronicle.
Wednesday, March 14, brings Word
Week devotees back to Omnivore with a new cookbook from Kathy
Gunst, Notes from a Maine Kitchen: Seasonally Inspired
Recipes. The event is from 6 to 7 p.m.
New Voices
On Thursday, March 15, Phoenix
Books celebrates its 27th anniversary with a reading, music, and
food, starting at 6: 30 p.m. The reading will feature fiction
and poetry by “New Bay Area Voices,” including six graduating
MFA students from various San Francisco universities.
On Friday, it’s all about the kids
with a reading of winning literature by students from Noe Valley
schools, including Alvarado Elementary, James Lick Middle
School, and St. Philip School. Cling, a retired teacher, is
particularly excited about this event. “The children’s stories
will be online at the Friends of Noe Valley website (www.friendsofnoevalley.com),
and some submissions might be in Spanish since there are
language immersion programs at Lick and Alvarado.” The schools
will select the final winners. Join them from 4 to 5 p.m., at
the Noe Valley Library.
A Taste of Paris
Noe Valley Word Week wraps up on
Saturday, March 17, with “A Taste of Paris: Words, Wine, and
Crime!”
At Le Zinc French Bistro on 24th
Street, Noe Valley mystery writer Cara Black will read from her
latest in the Aimée Leduc series, Murder at the Lanterne
Rouge, which received a starred review in Publishers’
Weekly. This is also the one paid event of the week, and a
ticket ($62) includes appetizers, wine, the reading, and a
signed hardcover copy of Black’s book. Reservations are required
and can be made by stopping by Le Zinc, calling the restaurant
at 647-9400, or going to the website www.lezinc.com.
May and Cling encourage everyone
to check out the prose and poetry submissions on the Friends of
Noe Valley website and to look there for more information. “The
purpose of these events is to connect neighbors,” says Cling.
“Word Week is a good way to bring people together through words
and writing.”