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Powell's Staff: 12 Books to Add to Your 2022 Summer Reading List (1 comment)

Summer has finally found its way to Portland. The bright, blue days are perfect for grabbing a blanket, filling your picnic basket with goodies, and going to the park with a good book...

Kelsey Ford: Powell's Picks Spotlight: Lidia Yuknavitch's 'Thrust' (0 comment)
Garrett Hongo: Ballads and Break-Ups: Garrett Hongo's Playlist for 'The Perfect Sound' (0 comment)

England in the 60s. The Pacific Northwest in the 90s. In the late 70s and 80' it was Australia,* and Clinton Walker was right there in the thick of it. Stranded is a classic of rock/punk literature and a must read for anyone who likes Lester Bangs, Hunter S. Thompson, and rock music that sounds like it fell off the rails before they even recorded it. Bands You Should Know: The Go-Betweens, Warumpi Band, Laughing Clowns, The Triffids, and... (read more)
Recommended by Fletcher O.

Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black New Edition Collected Stories

Cookie Mueller, Olivia Laing, Chris Kraus

Maybe I'm just weird, or maybe it's because my mom's favorite filmmaker is John Waters, but stories like Cookie Mueller's help me to see the tragic, paradoxical beauty inherent in being human. Reading these now for the first time is a bit like meeting an old friend I never knew I had.
Recommended by Fletcher O.

William Blake vs. the World

John Higgs

There's something about Blake that speaks to me. Well... not so much "speak" as "slaps me across the face with both hands before shaking me by the shoulders while jumping up and down, ranting and raving about god knows what," and I love it. Sometimes though, it would be nice to understand those ravings a little better, and luckily, John Higgs, scribe of The KLF and I Have America Surrounded: The Life of Timothy Leary, has... (read more)
Recommended by Fletcher O.

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama

Bob Odenkirk

At this point, we need to just wake up and accept that Bob Odenkirk is a school of comedy unto himself. Seriously, if I had a dollar for every one of his jokes I've laughed at, I could buy his book.
Recommended by Fletcher O.

Nina Simones Gum

Warren Ellis

I've often thought that nonfiction can tell you about a person, place, or thing, while fiction is more about the relationships between persons, places, and things. This is the rare book that does both. What could be a rather off footnote of a bearded violin player stealing a piece of gum transforms into an incredible meditation on humanity, collecting things, memory, and so much more.
Recommended by Fletcher O.

Occasional Views Volume 1 More About Writing & Other Essays

Samuel R Delany

Samuel Delany has one of those minds with whom it's always a pleasure to spend time. Ranging the gamut from silent interviews with Octavia Butler to extensively researched musings on Hart Crane, Occasional Views, Vol. 1, is an impressive display of the breadth of Delany's talent.
Recommended by Fletcher O.

Northern Wrath The Hanged God Trilogy Book 1

Thilde Kold Holdt

Historical fiction at its finest, and it happens to be the first book in an epic fantasy trilogy! An intoxicating blend of realistic characters and fantastical happenings, anyone with even a passing interest in the Norse pantheon needs to read this book.
Recommended by Fletcher O.

How Late It Was, How Late

James Kelman

Winner of the 1994 Man Booker Prize, How Late It Was, How Late follows the trials and tribulations of our main character Sammy after he unwisely picks a fight with some plainclothes police. Getting beaten senseless, literally, he wakes up the next day completely blind. Written in Kelman's inimitable style with an emphasis on the first-person stream-of-consciousness technique, Scottish literature is a law unto its own self and this book... (read more)
Recommended by Fletcher O.

Universal Tonality: The Life & Music of William Parker

Cisco Bradley

I had the privilege of standing in line behind William Parker about five years ago at Mississippi Studios. I still regret not buying him that cup of tea. He is, without a doubt, without peer as a composer, bass player, activist, and human being whose time is long overdue. This masterful portrait is a must-read for anyone interested in creative music and the idea of art as a force for social change.
Recommended by Fletcher O.

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