Check these titles for possible Father’s Day gifts
It’s a couple of Sundays away, but Father’s Day is coming.
So I thought I’d offer up a half-dozen book-related suggestions that a lot of dads might find interesting. Most of these came in as review copies, so I haven’t had time to do anything more than flip through each to get a sense of what’s inside.
“”Fanatic: 10 Things All Sports Fans Should Do Before They Die” by Jim Gorant (Houghton Mifflin, 222 pages, $24). Let’s start with the cliché gift for dads, something sports-related. From the Super Bowl to opening day at Fenway Park, Sports Illustrated writer Gorant takes us on a trek through just what the title says.
“”Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America, 1789-1989” by Michael Beschloss (Simon & Schuster, 430 pages, $28). Here’s a bit of popular history. From George Washington to Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Delano Roosevelt to Ronald Reagan, Beschloss looks at presidents who had the “courage to dismiss what is merely popular – and the wisdom to do that for causes that later Americans will come to admire.”
“”The Big Book of Duh! A Bathroom Book” by Bob Fenster (Andrews McMeel, 343 pages, $14.94 paper). Just the thing for toilet reading. In what he calls “Idiotology 101: The Stupid History of the Human Race,” author Fenster writes about every kind of fool from the guy who got bit trying to kiss a rattlesnake to the judge who threatened to give a witness “a thirty-eight-caliber vasectomy.”
“”Watching Baseball Smarter: A Professional Fan’s Guide for Beginners, Semi-experts and Deeply Serious Geeks” by Zack Hample (Vintage Books, 254 pages, $13.95 paper). Maybe all dads don’t like baseball, but many do. And whatever you might want to know about Abner Doubleday’s game, it’s here.
“”Endless Universe: Beyond the Big Bang” by Paul J. Steinhardt and Neil Turok (Doubleday, 284 pages, $24.95). This is for the father who would be a scientist, and it’s just the book that I’ve been waiting for. Want to know what came before the Big Bang? Or what might come later? Co-authors Steinhardt and Turok take readers through the bases of what they call a “Cyclic Universe” theory, which proposes that “our cosmic history consists of repeating cycles of evolution.”
“”Becoming the King Father: A Son’s Journey” (New Society Publishers, 157 pages, $15.95) by Calvin Sandborn. Finally, because Father’s Day is always an opportunity for self-reflection, we have this. Sandborn, a lawyer and law professor at the University of Victoria, takes a look at his evolution from being the son of an abusive drunk to a man trying to overcome his painful childhood memories and discover his own feelings. Robert Bly would be proud.
Father’s day?
If none of the books listed above meets your needs, you might try “Until the End of the Ninth.” The novel by Spokane author Beth Bollinger uses a kind of magical realism to tell the story of the 1946 Spokane Indians, the minor-league baseball team that was devastated by a bus accident on Snoqualmie Pass.
Bollinger will sign copies of her book, which has been rereleased in a second edition by Rooftop Publishing, on Friday from 5 to 10 p.m. at the Auntie’s Bookstore outlet at Spokane International Airport. Call (509) 624-5608.
Bollinger also will read and sign her book on June 16, the day before Father’s Day, from 1 to 4 p.m. at Interplayers Theatre, 174 S. Howard St.. Call (509) 455-7529.
Book talk
“Gay & Lesbian Book Group (“The Magician’s Assistant,” by Ann Patchett), 7 p.m. Tuesday, Auntie’s Bookstore, Main and Washington. Call (509) 838-0206.
“Hastings Valley Readers Group (“The Time Traveler’s Wife,” by Audrey Niffenegger), 7 p.m. Thursday, Valley Hastings, 15312 E. Sprague Ave. Call (509) 924-0667.
“Literary Freedom Book Group (“Small Wonder: Essays,” by Barbara Kingsolver), 1 p.m. Saturday, Auntie’s Bookstore.
The reader board
“MaryJane Butters (“MaryJane’s Stitching Room”), reading, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Auntie’s Bookstore.
“Niki Anderson (“What My Cat Has Taught Me About Life: Meditations for Cat Lovers”), reading, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Auntie’s Bookstore.
“East Valley High School writing students, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Auntie’s Bookstore.
“Beth Bollinger (“Until the End of the Ninth”), signing, 5-10 p.m. Friday, Auntie’s Bookstore outlet, Spokane International Airport. Call (509) 624-5608.