Frank Church, Railroads Get Historical Treatment
Northwest history is spotlighted in two books published this month by Washington State University Press.
“Frank Church, D.C. & Me” (WSU Press, 236 pages, $17.95 paperback) by Bill Hall is a memoir of a man who served for 16 months as press secretary to the late Idaho senator.
A chatty, approachable story told in the first person, Hall’s book is garnering praises from such newspapers as the Washington Post and the New York Times. An Idaho native, Hall is a columnist for the Lewiston Morning Tribune.
In contrast, “Across the Columbia Plain: Railroad Expansion in the Interior Northwest, 1885-1893” (WSU Press, 326 pages, $25 paperback) by Peter J. Lewty is a scholarly look at a period of great expansion for the railroads of the Inland Northwest.
What’s in a name?
The first paragraph of the letter was fine: “Thanks for the book notice for ‘Father Peter John De Smet: Jesuit in the West.’ I am grateful to you for helping to get the word out.”
The came the second graph - along with a warm flush of embarrassment: “And, I’m not upset that you consistently misspelled my name.”
So, for the record: “Father Peter John De Smet: Jesuit in the West” was written by Robert C. Carriker, professor of history at Gonzaga University.
Carriker kindly added that the misspelling in this column was hardly the worst he’s experienced. In a story by the St. Joseph (Mo.) News-Press, he was mis-identified as “Richard Carriger.”
Writerly awards
Wellpinit native Sherman Alexie, who’s made a name for himself as an author, was one of the judges in this year’s Western States Book Awards.
The 1995 winners included: For creative non-fiction, William W. Bevis for his book “Borneo Log: The Struggle for Sarawak’s Forests” (Univ. of Washington Press), and Ann Hammond Zwinger for her book “Downcanyon: A Naturalist Explores the Colorado River Through the Grand Canyon” (Univ. of Arizona Press); and for poetry, David Lee for his collection “My Town” (Copper Canyon Press).
The reader board
Eleanor Limmer, author of “The Body Language of Illness,” will share her views at 7:30 p.m. Monday at Auntie’s Bookstore, Main and Washington.
Marcy Houle, author of “The Prairie Keepers,” will read from her book at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Auntie’s Bookstore.
, DataTimes