Fall Author Series 2024

Join us this fall in the Ledding Library Community Room for our 2024 Fall Author Series!

Wednesday, September 4 at 6:00 PM

Rebecca Clarren - author of The Cost of Free Land: Jews, Lakota and an American Inheritance

The award-winning author investigates the entangled history of her Jewish family's land in South Dakota, and the Lakota, who were forced off that land by the United States government.

Rebecca Clarren has been writing about the American West for more than twenty years. Her journalism has appeared in such publications as Mother Jones, High Country News, The Nation, and Indian Country Today.

Sunday, September 22 at 2:00 PM

Elizabeth Chai - author of How to Buy Essentially​​ Nothing for a Year

Elizabeth Chai is a graphic designer and coffee aficionado. In her book How to Buy Essentially​​ Nothing for a Year she tells the story of what led her to the completely unorthodox, outlandish, and incredible decision to buy nothing for an entire year. Now deep into her fifth consecutive year of Buying Essentially Nothing, she enthusiastically shares ideas, tips, and inspiration for those who would like to join the lifestyle. Her book includes self-reflection exercises and planning activities for those interested in buying less.

Saturday, September 28 at 2:00 PM

Deborah Jackson Taffa - author of Whiskey Tender: A Memoir

Whiskey Tender is a memoir about family and survival, coming-of-age on and off the reservation, and of the frictions between mainstream American culture and Native inheritance; assimilation and reverence for tradition.

Deborah Jackson Taffa is a citizen of the Quechan (Yuma) Nation and Laguna Pueblo. She earned her MFA at the Iowa Writers Workshop, and is the Director of the MFA in Creative Writing Program at the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her writing has appeared in Los Angeles Review of Books, Huffington Post, The Best American Travel Writing, and other outlets.

Wednesday, October 2 at 6:00 PM

Tessa Hulls - author of Feeding Ghosts: A Memoir

In her evocative, genre-defying graphic memoir, Tessa Hulls tells the story of three generations of women in her family: her Chinese grandmother, Sun Yi; her mother, Rose; and herself. Extensively researched and gorgeously rendered, Feeding Ghosts is a vivid journey into the beating heart of one family, set against the dark backdrop of Chinese history. 

Tessa Hulls is an artist, a writer, and an adventurer. Her essays have appeared in The Washington Post, Atlas Obscura, and Adventure Journal.

Wednesday, October 16 at 6:00 PM

Ferris Jabr - author of Becoming Earth: How Our Planet Came to Life

“Popular science writing at its very best.” (Kirkus Reviews)

Through compelling narrative, evocative descriptions, and lucid explanations, Ferris Jabr shows us how Earth became the world we’ve known, how it is rapidly becoming a very different world, and how we will determine what kind of Earth our descendants inherit for millennia to come.

Ferris Jabr lives in Portland, Oregon with his partner, Ryan, their dog, Jack, and more plants than they can count. He is also a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine and Scientific American.

Wednesday, October 23 at 6:00 PM

Omar El Akkad - author of American War and What Strange Paradise

Omar El Akkad’s debut novel American War was an international bestseller and has been translated into thirteen languages. His second novel, What Strange Paradise, centers on Amir, a young boy from Syria who has survived the sinking of a ship that was carrying him and other refugees, and his developing bond with Vänna, a teenage girl who resides on the island where Amir washed up after the shipwreck. It was named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, and NPR among others.

Omar El Akkad is an author and journalist. He was born in Egypt, grew up in Qatar, moved to Canada as a teenager and now lives in Portland, Oregon. The start of his journalism career coincided with the start of the war on terror, and over the following decade he reported from Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay and many other locations around the world. His work earned a National Newspaper Award for Investigative Journalism and the Goff Penny Award for young journalists.

Thank you to our co-sponsors: Spoke & Word Books, Milwaukie Environmental Stewards Group, Mama & Hapa’s Zero Waste Shop, and the City of Milwaukie's Equity Steering Committee & Climate and Natural Resources Division.

Special thanks to the Friends of the Ledding Library for providing the funding that makes this program possible.