Nancy's Bookshelf

Standup comedian Paula Poundstone is a popular panelist on NPR's weekly news quiz show, "Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me," and will be bringing her improvisational humor to Laxson Auditorium in Chico on September 21st.

Growing up in Northern California, each of today's two guests developed a passion for the outdoors. Wildlife biologist and photographer Jeffrey Rich has compiled a visual essay of America's national bird. His new book is Bald Eagles in the Wild . Former columnist for the Chico News & Review John Soares has hiked the trails of Northern California since he was five years old. His guidebook 100 Classic Hikes in Northern California is in its 4th edition, and he also has a new book, Day Hiking:

Attorney Bryan Stevenson was featured in a recent issue of Time magazine as an agent of change in the south. After Harvard law school, he went to the south to advocate for prisoners facing execution - almost all of whom were black. He is the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, and titled his best-selling memoir Just Mercy . Local author Lani Muelrath gives us a 30-day plan for finding health, balance, peace and happiness in her book The Mindful Vegan . She encourages us to shed

Many people in the North State have walked, or dream of walking, the medieval pilgrimage route across northern Spain to the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela. Now over a million pilgrims from across the world travel to Spain to walk the Camino, and about a fifth of them receive their certificate of completion when they arrive in Santiago. Two such pilgrims are Nancy's guests today. Kurt Koontz wrote of his pilgrimage in his book A Million Steps . Terrence Callery also wrote about his 500-mile

Throughout his life, Paradise author Garth Nielsen has participated in Native American ceremonies and talked to traditional elders. As an adult he was adopted by an Iroquois woman. His first book was a collection of essays about what he learned, and it described his personal discovery. After this first book, Odyssey of a Spiritual Nomad , he published a second collection of stories called Petroglyphs .

Palo Cedo author Steven Callan learned a love of nature from his game warden father, and Steve himself had a 30-year career as a wildlife protection officer for the California Department of Fish and Game conducting investigations that thwarted outlaws and saved wildlife. This week join Nancy for a conversation with the author of The Game Warden's Son .

Today's guests are husband/wife authors who share an interest in nature. Ornothologist Roger Lederer co-wrote Latin for Bird Lovers with his wife, retired English professor Carol Burr. Co-authors Roger and Helen Ekins collaborated on a trail guide to the flumes and trails of Paradise.

Retired political science professor Michelle Shover researched 19th century Butte County for her latest book. This week join Nancy for a conversation with the author of California Standoff: Miners, Indians and Farmers at War 1850-1865 .

Award-winning author T.E. Watson draws ideas for his many children's books from his own imagination, but his book Going West is a true story told by a 12-year-old girl who made the journey to California in 1852. This week join Nancy for a conversation with prolific author T.E. Watson.

The commonly accepted solution to weight loss is to eat less and exercise more. Not so says weight loss coach and author Michelle Hastie. Her approach may sound too good to be true. This week join Nancy for a conversation with the author of Have Your Cake and Be Happy, Too: A Joyful Approach to Weight Loss .