Dan Webster

Hegi

Sherman Alexie may live in Seattle, but he hasn't left his formative years - which were spent in Eastern Washington - very far behind him. In his continually growing body of work, which includes poetry, short stories, novels and various non-fiction pieces, Alexie confronts his past as a reservation Indian, as an outsider in white society, as a recovering alcoholic and even as an aging basketball player.

"Paradise Regained," a painting from artist Robert Gilmore's "Mann Gulch" series.

"The Bad Lieutenant" is a story of self-destruction that doesn't relent.

Billy Crystal, playing a gravedigger, is among the big-name actors in director Kenneth Branagh's "Hamlet."

(photo of scene from "The Empire Strikes Back")

1. Kenneth Branagh's "Hamlet" finally arives in Spokane on Friday, but the big question may be whether or not audiences here will support it. 2. Diane Keaton and Meryl star in "Marvin's Room."

1. Around 1910 the Indian Village was a popular exhibit. Here, visitors could watch re-enactments of battles between Nez Perce warriors and white soldiers. File photo 2. The wheat field across the street from the fairgrounds was harvested as part of an old-time threshing bee in 1957. File photo

(Photo of book jacket of "Atticus")

Erica Bauermeister, left, and Holly Smith continue to guide readers.

1. Ralph Finnes, left, and Kristin Scott Thomas fight the romantic tension between them as they move across the dance floor in "The English Patient." Photo by Associated Press 2. "Bridges of Madison County" has neither car chases nor explicit nudity.

(No Caption - Photo of movie)

C-3PO and R2-D2 return to the screen in the "Star Wars" trilogy.

"Trainspotting" follows a group of friends on the road to nowhere.

1. "Switchblade Sisters" is one of a series of films being re-released under Quentin Tarantino's Rolling Thunder label. 2. Joanne Nail, a Spokane native, 21 years after playing Maggie in "Switchblade Sisters." Photo courtesy of Joanne Nail

"La Suze," by Pablo Picasso, incorporates newsprint.

We've always celebrated explorers. It's not hard to imagine why. How much courage must it have taken to ship off into the unknown, braving ocean storms, the likelihood of sickness and very real possibility of starvation - all for the sake of expanding knowledge (and, of course, the chance at collecting the odd treasure or two)? In his book "The Explorers of the Pacific" (Kangaroo Press, 256 pages, $24.95 paperback ISBN 0-86417-794-1), which is now out in a second edition, author Geoffrey Badger gives a comprehensive view not only of the challenges the various sea-going explorers faced on the world's largest ocean but also of the explorers themselves.

As a culture, we're notoriously secretive about the specifics of sex. Not the glamour, mind you, but certainly the specifics. In other words, we can splash images of naked bodies over the airwaves ad nauseam, especially when if they are soaked in blood, but it's considered impolite to discuss the actual mechanics of making love.

Dante's Peak

Geoffrey Rush evokes the emotional fragility of David Helfgott's character in adulthood in the Australian film "Shine."

Spokane's own Joanne Nail knifes through her role in "Switchblade Sisters."

One year does not a trend make. But if the list of Oscar nominees for 1996 is any indication, Hollywood may have developed a split personality. Which plays out this way: While continuing to market movies that make money, Hollywood also is willing to reward movies that offer more than just Adam Sandler beating up (and getting beaten up by) Bob Barker.

1. Kenneth Arrasmith makes a point to the jury during his trial in 1995. Arrasmith was charged with murdering the couple who allegedly raped his daughter. Photos by Barry Kough 2. Arrasmith blows a farewell kiss to his family after being sentenced to life in prison.

When Somers, Mont., teacher/ writer 'Asta Bowen first decided to write the story that would become her novel "Hungry for Home" (Simon & Schuster, 218 pages, $22), she wasn't exactly an expert in wolf husbandry. "I was neither a wildlife biologist nor an animal tracker, and as an outdoorswoman I was more enthusiastic than accomplished," she declares in an author's statement included in her book.