[
Editor's Note: Don't miss Nick Flynn reading from his memoir The Ticking Is the Bomb at Powell's City of Books on Friday, January 29th, at 7:30pm. Click here for details.]
I was in Boston last night, doing back-to-back readings at the Berklee School of Music, 939 Café. My pals Tom Johnston and Joyce Linehan put it together — both are geniuses and incredibly generous. Before each set there were two opening musical acts: the first set was Drew O'Doherty, followed by Eric Martin (of The Neats). The second set opened with The Franc Graham Band, followed by Buffalo Tom. Do yourself a favor and find all these musicians and pony up a few ducats and download their songs. I confess I was a little intimidated, before it all happened, to have to follow music with a reading, but one song flowed into another into the words and back again. I was strangely moved by the whole night, which felt like a homecoming, the crowd packed with nearly everyone I've ever loved. We had to turn people away at the door for the first show — when does that ever happen for a reading? I've always wanted to have to turn people away from a reading, but when it happened it ended up not feeling all that great. I went out into the lobby and offered to read to everyone who couldn't get in while the music played.
Now I have to board a flight to Vermont. Reading at Northshire Bookstore, one of the great independents.
Here's a Kahn/Selesnik photo, in honor of glaciers. And sailboats: