Sedaris booked at Fox; Russo to appear at Get Lit!

Two big-name authors are headed to Spokane this spring: Richard Russo and David Sedaris.

Sedaris, whose latest book is “When You Are Engulfed in Flames,” is booked into the Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox on May 8.

One of the most in-demand authors in America, he has made several Spokane appearances, including a sold-out reading at Auntie’s Bookstore in June.

Russo, who won a Pulitzer Prize for “Empire Falls” in 2002, will be the headlining author at the Get Lit! festival this year.

His novel “Nobody’s Fool” was made into a Paul Newman movie.

His most recent novels are “Bridge of Sighs” and “That Old Cape Magic.”

Russo will be making a joint appearance with Spokane author Jess Walter on April 17.

Get Lit!, which runs April 14-21, will also include novelist Janet Fitch and nonfiction authors Reza Aslan and Sallie Tisdale. Tickets will go on sale in January.

Tickets for the Sedaris appearance – not part of Get Lit! – are not yet on sale, either. Keep an eye out for an announcement.

Get Lit! sponsorships

In other Get Lit! news, the region’s premier literary festival has unveiled a new sponsorship program.

Festival organizers are asking supporters to go to www.ewu.edu/getlit and click on “donate to Get Lit!” They are seeking donations between $50 and $100.

The festival has long been connected with the Eastern Washington University Press. However, that press fell victim to budget cuts this fall and will be phased out by June 30.

Get Lit! will continue as part of the College of Arts and Letters, but the change means “new budget restrictions and expectations, creating an imperative for greater community support,” according to a press release.

In other words, lovers of literature need to step up if Get Lit! is to remain the region’s premier literary festival.

‘Shaper of Seattle’

The Washington State University Press is still going strong, and here’s a new and intriguing regional history title: “Shaper of Seattle: Reginald Heber Thomson’s Pacific Northwest,” by William H. Wilson ($29.95).

This is the story of the man who became Seattle’s city engineer in 1892 and went on to create its water, sewer, street and power systems. With Thomson’s ambitious grading projects, he literally reshaped Seattle.

Wilson is a retired history professor from Seattle.

‘Legendary Lake Pend Oreille’

Sandpoint’s Keokee Press reports that the sales for “Legendary Lake Pend Oreille,” the part guidebook, part history book by Jane Fritz, are “the biggest we’ve ever had for a local book.”

It’s a comprehensive, well-designed compendium of information about this amazing region.

Fritz will be doing several signings over the next few weeks, including:

• Today, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., Foster’s Crossing, 504 Oak St., Sandpoint.

• Jan. 2, 1 to 4 p.m., Hastings, 101 E. Best Ave., Coeur d’Alene.

• Jan. 17, 12:30 p.m., Auntie’s Bookstore, 402 W. Main Ave.

The other Hill

In last week’s column, I wasn’t entirely clear about which Hill is the subject of the new book by John A. Harrison, “A Woman Alone: Mona Bell, Sam Hill and the Mansion on Bonneville Rock” (Frank Amato Publications, $19.95).

Sam Hill was the son-in-law of James J. Hill, the Great Northern Railroad magnate who gave his name to Hillyard. Sam married Mary Hill, James’ daughter.

The book is a biography of Mona Bell, who became Sam’s mistress.

It is just a coincidence, by the way, that Sam and James J. had the same last name. They were not related, except by marriage.