Northwest Passages Book Club

New York Times #1 bestselling author Nic Stone took to the downtown Spokane theater stage Thursday night, sitting cross-legged with no shoes, to talk about mental health and the unfortunate stigma that comes with it. The talk was part of The Spokesman-Review’s Northwest Passages book club series.Stone said part of the reason she wrote her latest book, “Chaos Theory,” was to destigmatize “brain health.” The novel chronicles a pair of high school seniors who struggle with mental health problems.“This was the most personal book I’ve ever written,” Stone said.

America's Favorite Librarian (and #1 Northwest Passages Fan) Nancy Pearl interviews prolific author Timothy Egan about his new book " A Fever in the Heartland" at the Northwest Passages Book Club Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at the Myrtle Woldson Performing Arts Center at Gonzaga University.

The Bing Crosby Theater was the place to be on March 15 as everyone showed up to celebrate the launch of Ammi Midstokke's collection of columns into a book published by Latah Creek entitled "All the Things." Fun was had by all!

Stephaine Courtney opens the event with a reading of her published book "Our Community." African American high school students in the Spokane area present their work for Spokane Black Voices, with discussion faciliatated by Kiantha Duncan and Mandi Price.

Prolific Author and Pulitzer Prize winner Edward Humes takes the stage at the Spokane Central Library with Gonzaga Law dean Jacob Rooksby to talk about the book " The Forever Witness" a true crime story of solving a cold case murder from the 1980s using genealogical DNA.

"Longmire" author Craig Johnson returns to Spokane with the latest installment in the series, "Hell and Back" (publication date 9/6/22), and will talk about it and also his prior titles, particularly "Daughter of the Morning Star" which focuses on missing Native Woman. Craig Johnson is the New York Times bestselling author of the Longmire mysteries, the basis for the hit Netflix original series Longmire. He is the recipient of the Western Writers of America Spur Award for fiction, the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award for fiction, the Nouvel Observateur Prix du Roman Noir, and the Prix SNCF du Polar. His novella Spirit of Steamboat was the first One Book Wyoming selection. He lives in Ucross, Wyoming, population 26.

New York Times bestselling author, Jamie Ford in conversation with Carolyn Lamberson about his research and the writing process behind "The Many Daughters of Afong Moy."

Dorothy Moy breaks her own heart for a living. As Washington’s former poet laureate, that’s how she describes channeling her dissociative episodes and mental health struggles into her art. But when her five-year-old daughter exhibits similar behavior and begins remembering things from the lives of their ancestors, Dorothy believes the past has truly come to haunt her. Fearing that her child is predestined to endure the same debilitating depression that has marked her own life, Dorothy seeks radical help.

Putsata Reang emigrated from Cambodia as an infant in her mother’s arms. Her mother fought off the boat captain's efforts to toss her child overboard, and that connection began their intricate relationship. Reang was raised in rural Oregon and spent time writing for The Spokesman-Review before the New York Times, Politico and The Seattle Times and the San Jose Mercury News. Her memoir, “Ma and Me” explores the legacy of trauma and cultural identity, and how Reang navigated her complicated upbringing. NAACP President and Spokesman-Review columnist Kiantha Duncan will discuss the book and the associated issues with feeling “other.”

The Northwest Passages Book Club meets for a discussion with author Jess Walter, interviewed by author Shawn Vestal, at the Bing Crosby Theater in Spokane, Washington. The interview was centered on Walter releasing a new collection of short stories, "Angel of Rome."

Eli Francovich was dispatched as correspondent to cover the war in Ukraine for The Spokesman-Review. With approximately 30,000 Ukrainian refugees calling Spokane home, what happens in Ukraine has a little more impact in the Pacific Northwest. Francovich talks about his experience and shares his behind the scenes photographs.