LitWatch February: Valentine’s Day, Neko Case, Nikole Hannah-Jones, and Jess Walter

This month brings Hannah-Jones, author of "The 1619 Project," to Oregon, as well as appearances by poets Ross Gay and Judith Barrington, among others.

love is more thicker than forget
more thinner than recall
more seldom than a wave is wet
more frequent than to fail
it is most mad and moonly
and less it shall unbe
than all the sea which only
is deeper than the sea
love is less always than to win
less never than alive
less bigger than the least begin
less littler than forgive
it is most sane and sunly
and more it cannot die
than all the sky which only
is higher than the sky

“[love is more thicker than forget]” by e. e. cummings

Another February is around the corner, which means another excuse to share a poem from one of my favorite “love poets,” e. e. cummings. An American poet, painter, essayist, and playwright, cummings worked as an ambulance driver during World War I before being imprisoned in an internment camp. He is rumored to have written poems of love as letters before the war in 1917, before his first marriage, when he fell in love and shared a written exchange with a Parisian sex worker named Marie Louise Lallemand. They were separated during the war and unable to reunite, causing cummings great distress. In 1918, the writer is said to have returned to writing erotic poetry during a rumored affair with poet Scofield Thayer’s wife, Elaine Orr. Whether or not these exchanges — or an early start in writing education thanks to his Harvard professor father — inspired him to pen his love odes, they are some of the most widely revered and shared during February and Valentine’s Day, the day of love.

Nikole Hannah-Jones, Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of “The 1619 Project,” will speak Feb. 4 at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland. Photo by: Jason Hill

This month in literary events, Nikole Hannah-Jones, staff writer at The New York Times Magazine, former reporter for The Oregonian, and Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of The 1619 Project, will speak at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland as part of the Oregon Historical Society’s speaker series. At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4, the MacArthur Fellowship recipient will discuss The 1619 Project and its aim of reframing American history by emphasizing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans as central to the national narrative, as well as her career-long investigation into racial inequality and injustice. Hannah-Jones will also talk about her book, The 1619 Project, which was adapted for a six-part Hulu docuseries, and her children’s book from the same project, Born on the Water. Tickets for the event range from $46 to $111.

Singer-songwriter Neko Case will talk about her memoir, “The Harder I Fight the More I Love You” on Feb. 6 at Portland’s Revolution Hall. Photo by: Ebru Yildiz

Later that week, Neko Case, singer-songwriter and member of the Canadian rock group The New Pornographers, will be at Portland’s Revolution Hall in conversation with record producer Tucker Martine at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 6. Case will discuss her memoir, The Harder I Fight the More I Love You, which chronicles her transition from feeling invisible and being “raised by two dogs and a space heater” in Washington state, to independence, confidence, and international acclaim. Case writes about what it was like to be left alone for long periods as a child, how she developed a strong connection to the forest, and how that loneliness helped shape her art. Described as a “rebellious meditation on identity and corruption, and a manifesto on how to make space for ourselves in this world,” The Harder I Fight the More I Love You is a hopeful tale of metamorphosis and an ode to those facing seemingly inescapable obstacles. Tickets for the event are $40 and include a copy of the book.

Journalist Kara Briggs will read from her debut poetry release, “Rivers in My Veins,” on Feb. 20 at Broadway Books.

Later in the month, journalist Kara Briggs will participate in an author reading alongside Paulann Petersen and Sandra Yannone in honor of her debut poetry release, Rivers in My Veins. The free event will occur at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20 at Broadway Books in Portland. Briggs, a Sauk-Suiattle tribal member, wrote the collection while she was pursuing a second Master of Fine Arts degree at the Institute of American Indian Arts, using documentary-style poetry “to expose historic narratives while innovating rhythms from the social dances of her tribes” in work that aims to “take the reader to the heart of deep conversations.” Through sonnets, pantoums, and haikus, Briggs explores the etymologies of words about Indigenous peoples and re-examines the works of poets Carolyn Kizer and Janice Gould. Petersen, Oregon’s sixth poet laureate who most recent collection is My Kindred, will also read, joined by Yannone reading from The Glass Studio.

WEEK 1: FEB. 1-7

Author Reading: Olufunke Grace Bankole
Presented by Literary Arts
7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4
Literary Arts
716 S.E. Grand Ave., Portland
Free

Sponsor

Portland Playhouse Notes From the Field Portland Oregon

Olufunke Grace Bankole, Nigerian American writer, Glimmer Train Short-Story Award for New Writers winner, and Oregon Literary Fellowship in Fiction recipient, will read from her debut novel, The Edge of Water. The new release from Portland publisher Tin House chronicles the story of a young woman longing for life in America and the difficulty of navigating that dream amid familial bonds and expectations. Set between Nigeria and New Orleans, the work considers culture, transition, and “collision of traditional prophecy” throughout the personal and honest narrative.

Special Valentine’s Author Panel: Celebrating Romance
Presented by Willamette Writers
7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4
Willamette Writers Portland Chapter
3121 S. Moody Ave., Portland
Free

The Portland Chapter of Willamette Writers hosts a special reading in honor of Valentine’s Day. The evening will feature romance writers Alison Cochrun, Erin Connor, Chris Walters, and Katherine D. Morgan, author and owner of Grand Gesture Books, speaking about their processes and answering questions from the audience. Participants also can participate in Blind Date With a Book, an opportunity to purchase a surprise romance novel recommended by the local author panelists.

Lidia Yuknavitch, author of “Thrust,” will read from her memoir, “Reading the Waves,” at Powell’s Books.

Lidia Yuknavitch in Conversation With Rene Denfeld
Presented by Powell’s Books
7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4
Powell’s City of Books
1005 W. Burnside St., Portland
Free

Lidia Yuknavitch, author of Thrust, will read from her new memoir, Reading the Waves. In it, Yuknavitch writes, “I believe our bodies are carriers of experience … I mean to ask if there is a way to read my own past differently.” In addition to issues of the physical body, the book considers the author’s complicated relationship with her mother, her sexual relationships, her father’s abuse, and her creative life as she “uses the power of literature and storytelling to reframe her memories.” Yuknavitch will be joined in conversation by Rene Denfeld, author of Sleeping Giants.

NEA Big Read Finale With Jess Walter
Presented by Fishtrap
7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5
Fishtrap
107 W. Main St., Enterprise
$5 to $15

Join Fishtrap in welcoming Jess Walter, author of The Cold Millions, for its 2025 National Endowment for the Arts Big Read finale. Readers of the book will get a behind-the-scenes look at how Walter was inspired to write the story, set in Spokane, and how he created his characters, “two brothers who are swept into the turbulent class warfare of the early 20th century.” Those unfamiliar with the work are welcome to attend and learn about Walter’s writing process. Tickets for the event are available at a sliding scale, and the event will be streamed.

Sponsor

Portland Opera The Shining Newmark Theatre Portland Oregon

WEEK 2: FEB. 8-14

John Hicks, Lane County poet, musician, and artist, will read from his two new books of poetry on Feb. 8 at Tsunami Books.

Author Reading: Poetry and Music with John Hicks
Presented by Tsunami Books
2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8
Tsunami Books
2585 Willamette St., Eugene
Free

John Hicks, Lane County poet, musician, and artist, will read from his two new books of poetry, Creek Walking and Written in Water. The reading will be accompanied by musical interludes matched to the poems. Hicks will discuss his nature-inspired works and perform original music at Tsunami Books alongside celebrated local musicians Tom Kendall and Sam Jones.

Waubgeshig Rice, author of “Moon of the Crusted Snow,” will read from the sequel Feb. 11 in a Zoom presentation.

Dystopian Tropes From an Indigenous Perspective: In Conversation With Waubgeshig Rice
Presented by Jackson County Library Services
4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 11
Online via Zoom
Free

Waubgeshig Rice, Wasauksing First Nation member, journalist, and author of the award-winning short story collection Midnight Sweatlodge and the novel Moon of the Crusted Snow, will read from his newest book, Moon of the Turning Leaves. The sequel takes place a decade after a cataclysm created a blackout that caused the world’s infrastructure to descend into anarchy, prompting protagonist Evan Whitesky to lead his community to northern Ontario to survive. The new work, concerning the future of our infrastructure and natural lands, has been called a “brooding story of survival, resilience, Indigenous identity, and rebirth.” Pre-registration for the free online event is recommended.

WEEK 3: FEB. 15-21

Kim Dower will read from her new collection of poetry Feb. 19 at Powell’s City of Books.

Kim Dower in Conversation With Karen Karbo
Presented by Powell’s Books
7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 19
Powell’s City of Books
1005 W. Burnside St., Portland
Free

Kim Dower, author of I Wore This Dress Today for You, Mom: Poems on Motherhood, will read from her new collection, What She Wants: Poems on Obsession, Desire, Despair, Euphoria. Dower considers obsessive love through a comedic lens with poems that combine humor and heartache. She will be joined in conversation by Karen Karbo, author of Julia Child Rules and In Praise of Difficult Women.

Rogue Reads: Author Talk With Ross Gay
Presented by Jackson County Library Services
5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20
Medford Library, large meeting room
205 S. Central Ave., Medford
Free

Sponsor

Cascadia Composers and Delgani String Quartet Portland Oregon

Rogue Reads’ featured author, poet Ross Gay, will discuss his most recent book, The Book of (More) Delights, as well as 2023’s The Book of Delights. Gay, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry and recipient of the PEN American Literary Jean Stein Award, will also talk about poetry writing and answer questions from the audience about his poems and essay collections. A book signing with the author will take place after the free event, which is sponsored by the Jackson County Library Foundation.

WEEK 4: FEB. 22-28

Judith Barrington
Judith Barrington, poet and memoirist, will read from her work at Up Up Books.

A Conversation With Judith Barrington
Presented by Up Up Books
2:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 22
Up Up Books
1211 S.E. Stark St., Portland
Free

Portland poet and memoirist Judith Barrington will lead a discussion about short-form and book-length literary memoirs. Barrington’s books include Virginia’s Apple, Lifesaving: A Memoir, The Conversation, Horses and the Human Soul, and Writing the Memoir. Barrington will answer audience questions during her presentation and discuss her prolific literary career.

On This Land With McKenzie River Trust
Presented by Tsunami Books
3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23
Tsunami Books
2585 Willamette St., Eugene
Free

McKenzie River Trust, a nonprofit land trust formed in 1989 to protect critical habitats and scenic lands in the McKenzie River basin, will host Eugene poets and writers to explore the connection between people and place. Authors will read from pieces submitted to the On This Land Winter Writers Series. Additionally, community members will speak, sharing experiences in collective care and stewardship for the lands and waters of the Pacific Northwest.

Poetry Reading: Matthew Nienow, Ed Skoog, and Emily Kendal Frey
Presented by Annie Bloom’s Books
7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24
Annie Bloom’s Books
7834 S.W. Capitol Hwy., Portland
Free

Washington poet Matthew Nienow will be joined by Portland poets Ed Skoog and Emily Kendal Frey to read from their new collections. Nienow will read from If Nothing, about mid-life, the precariousness of alcoholism, and “the vulnerability of opening oneself to a second coming-of-age.” Skoog will read from Travelers Leaving for the City from Copper Canyon Press, while Frey will read from Lovability, from Fonograf Editions.

Sponsor

Portland Playhouse Notes From the Field Portland Oregon

Grant Faulkner, co-founder of 100 Word Story and co-host of the ‘Write-minded’ podcast, will read from his new book on Feb. 26.

Grant Faulkner in Conversation With Brian Benson
Presented by Broadway Books
6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 26
Broadway Books
1714 N.E. Broadway St., Portland
Free

Grant Faulkner, co-founder of 100 Word Story and co-host of the Write-minded podcast, will read from his new book, The Art of Brevity: Crafting the Very Short Story. The part-informational and part-instructional book contains prose, readings from other writers, and writing exercises to help heighten the reader’s awareness of the page and explore lyrical, compact storytelling. Faulkner will be joined by Brian Benson, Portland author of Going Somewhere: A Bicycle Journey Across America, co-author of This is Not for You, and creative nonfiction teacher at the Attic Institute.

Visiting Writing Series: Zoë Bossiere
Presented by Linfield University
5:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27
Linfield University Nicholson Library, Austin Reading Room
McMinnville
Free

Zoë Bossiere, managing editor of Brevity: A Journal of Concise Literary Nonfiction, will read from Cactus Country: A Boyhood Memoir, which Shelf Awareness called “gorgeously written” and “tough.” The memoir considers gender in a coming-of-age story set in the American Southwest. Bossiere will participate in a Q&A with audience members following the reading

Amy Leona Havin is a poet, essayist, and arts journalist based in Portland, Oregon. She writes about language arts, dance, and film for Oregon ArtsWatch and is a staff writer with The Oregonian/OregonLive. Her work has been published in San Diego Poetry Annual, HereIn Arts Journal, Humana Obscura, The Chronicle, and others. She has been an artist-in-residence at Disjecta Contemporary Art Center, Archipelago Gallery, and Art/Lab, and was shortlisted for the Bridport International Creative Writing Prize in poetry. Havin's dance background is rooted in classical ballet, Graham technique, and Gaga Movement language, and she is the Artistic Director of Portland-based dance performance company, The Holding Project.

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  1. Leanne Grabel

    Wow, what a full calendar.

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