Sun Valley Writers’ Conference

Every year, the Sun Valley Writers’ Conference meets for four days in the summer to talk about the craft of writing and storytelling. Idaho Public Television’s Dialogue program has interviewed several noteworthy attendees, and the interviews are still available to stream online.  To wrap up this fascinating year in books, we’re providing the links to a few interviews and a list (with links to our catalog) of the authors’ most well-known works.  What a great way to “see” authors here in Idaho!

David Macaulay (interviewed in 2005)

1. Building Big
2. Cathedral
3. The Way We Work: Getting to Know the Amazing Human Body

Doris Kearns Goodwin (interviewed in 2006)

1. No Ordinary Time
2. Team of Rivals
3. Wait Till Next Year: A Memoir

Annette Gordon-Reed (interviewed in 2009)

1. The Hemingses of Monticello

Abraham Verghese (interviewed in 2009)

1. Cutting for Stone
2. My Own Country: A Doctor’s Story of a Town and Its People in the Age of AIDS
3. The Tennis Partner: A Doctor’s Story of Friendship and Loss

Philip Gourevitch (interviewed in 2009)

1. A Cold Case
2. Standard Operating Procedure
3. We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow We Will be Killed with Our Families

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WE’LL SEE YOU IN 2010!

Staff Favorites 2009

Just in time for Christmas, here’s the list of staff favorites for the past year. Apparently we’re a bit more diverse than you’d think – there are very few overlaps (and those are often because we’ve convinced our fellow coworkers to read one of our favorites). The books are linked to the catalog, but if you want more information, come on in and ask the person who recommended a specific title (I’ve included first names, which should make that a bit easier!). I’ll be adding to this list as the week progresses, so you might want to check back a few times.

BOOKS PUBLISHED IN 2009:

American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson (Beth)

Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell (Jennifer, Dylan, CJ)

The Bridge of the Golden Horn by Emine Sevgi Ã-zdamar (Ryan)

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Amy, CJ, Erica)

Chicken Cheeks by Michael Ian Black (Laura)

Fire and Ice by J.A. Jance (Barbara)

Killer Summer by Ridley Pearson (Barbara)

Made from Scratch: Discovering the Pleasures of a Handmade Life by Jenna Woginrich (Melissa)

Mounting Fears by Stuart Woods (Clydene)

Nice Girls Don’t Date Dead Men by Molly Harper (Erica)

Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry (Beth)

The Rose of Sebastopol by Katherine McMahon (Melissa)

The Shadow Queen by Anne Bishop (Sara)

Shannon: A Poem of the Lewis and Clark Expedition by Campbell McGrath (Jennifer)

Stephen Colbert and Philosophy: I Am Philosophy (and so Can You!) by Aaron Allen Schiller (CJ)

Stone’s Fall by Iain Pears (Jennifer)

The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig (Courtney)

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OLDER BOOKS READ THIS YEAR:

90 Classic Books for People in a Hurry by Henrik Lange (Havilah)

Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson (Laura)

Blindspot: By a Gentlemen in Exile and a Lady in Disguise by Jane Kamensky and Jill Lepore (Jennifer)

Blue Heaven by C.J. Box (Barbara)

Buffalo Coat by Carol Ryrie Brink (Beth)

The Chosen by Chaim Potok (Melissa)

Double Take by Catherine Coulter (Clydene)

Every Demon Has His Day by Cara Lockwood (Amy)

Fairest by Gail Carson Levine (Erica)

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls (Susan)

Graceling by Kristin Cashore (Amy)

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (Sara)

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (Amy, Havilah)

I Am America (and so Can You!) by Stephen Colbert (CJ)

In the Belly of the Bloodhound by L.A. Meyer (Erica)

Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell (Susan)

Little Britches by Ralph Moody (Melissa)

My Life in France by Julia Child (Susan)

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (Jennifer)

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (Courtney)

The Pollen Room by Zoe Jenny (Ryan)

The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz (Beth)

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein (Dylan)

Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace – One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson (Havilah)

Best of 2009

It’s the most wonderful time of the year – and I’m not talking about the holidays. It’s the time when the “Best of” lists come out! Okay, maybe I’m the only nerd, but I always enjoy seeing how many of the “best” books I’ve read – and I also get a few ideas for books to read in the next year.

We choose lists compiled by three organizations/businesses, each for different reasons. We like the Amazon.com list because they tend to look at many of the popular titles, while Publishers Weekly looks at the best titles in several different genres/subjects. Finally, The New York Times list represents a more literary point of view.

Only 10 books made all three lists – making them the Best of the Best. Wow, I just noticed that four of these books were written by a Dave/David. Do I smell a conspiracy here (or maybe “daves” are just better writers…)?:

Fiction –

• Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli
• Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon
• Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead

Nonfiction –

• Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Ford’s Forgotten Jungle City by Greg Grandin
• Born Round: The Secret History of a Full-Time Eater by Frank Bruni
• Columbine by Dave Cullen
• The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science by Richard Holmes
• The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann
• Cheever: A Life by Blake Bailey
• The Good Soldiers by David Finkel

Lists of the Best of Books that TFPL has in stock:

• Amazon
• NYTimes
• PW

Look for a list of staff favorites of 2009 next week!