The Kansas Bathtub Writers Collective, are hosting their second annual “Bathtub Benefit” at Genovese Italian Restaurant (941 Massachusetts St.) on Thursday, April 1st, 2010 from 7:00pm-9:00pm. Many MFA and PhD students from the KU English department who are members of the collective will be traveling to the 2010 AWP Conference in Denver next month and presenting a panel titled “Bathtub Kansas Writers’ Collective: A Community of Writers.” The proceeds from this benefit will help to fund that trip, and other community projects, including a Writers in the Schools (W.I.T.S.) program organized with teachers from Lawrence High School.

The festivities at Genovese will include readings by featured national and local writers, and members of the collective. There will also be a silent auction of goods and services from local businesses, art from local artists, a raffle and Genovese appetizers.

Readers include Tao Lin, Linda Rodriguez (author of Heart’s Migration and Skin Hunger), and Shannon Draper-Gard (poet and English teacher at Lawrence High School), as well as several Bathtub members.

The subject of dysfunctional families is a cliche in literature, but with rich and diverse possibilities, when done right it can be a joy to read. THE LONELY POLYGAMIST taps into that realm with originality and empathy. I’ve been waiting for more from Brady Udall ever since reading his first novel, THE MIRACLE LIFE OF EDGAR MINT, back in 2001. Udall has finally returned and his success with this one makes the nine-year span between books understandable and well worth the wait. The story’s protagonist is Golden Richards, a southern Utah polygamist who juggles four wives, 28 children, a diaper-wearing dog, church duties, and a construction contracting business that has recently begun building a brothel in Nevada. When it seems things can’t possibly get more complicated, an overwhelmed Golden begins to fall for another woman. This book is less about the odd lifestyle of polygamy and more about the trials of a keeping a family (any family) together and, hopefully, happy. Udall’s greatest gift as a writer is his ability to create alternately heartbreaking and hilarious scenes with compassion for his characters as they search for meaning and acceptance. In THE LONELY POLYGAMIST he continues to succeed in grand fashion. Read an excerpt here To be released May 3. (Hardcover, 26.95) Recommended by Judd.

A very readable, fascinating analysis of North Korean propaganda’s unique symbolism and its effect on the North Korean world-view—THE CLEANEST RACE will change the way you see the country, and not necessarily for the better. Ordinary North Koreans are not yearning for liberation, and they see no contradiction in proclaiming a state policy of self-reliance while simultaneously accepting aid from the United States. As for the government, to most outside observers, the idea that the North Korean leadership can take its own personality cult and falsified history seriously is absurd. But Myers’s thesis is that they do take it seriously, and this is why our diplomatic approach to the DPRK is bound to fail. (Hardcover, $24.95) Recommended by John.

One of the perks of living in Lawrence is being able to attend the many great reading events that take place. An Actual Kansas Reading Series is one of them. The series is usually hosted by Wonder Fair, but this month it will be held at our favorite record shop, Love Garden Sounds. Kari Freitag and Alex Savage will read; it all takes place Friday, March 26 at 7 PM at Love Garden. For more info on the authors, go here.

THE SCENT OF RAIN AND LIGHTNING by Nancy Pickard will be published in May, and what a wonderful novel/mystery to look forward to. The writing is first rate, and the mystery involving.

Set in a small farming community in Kansas, the story follows the Linder family, the major ranching family in the community. The murder of the oldest Linder son and the disappearance of his wife is the focal point of the terrible secret that engulfs their young daughter and the whole community. The ending is very much a surprise.

I fell in love with the Linders, with all their warts as well as solid values, and didn’t want to put this book down. Hopefully Nancy Pickard will find a way to incorporate them into another novel. Recommended by Julie. (Hardcover, $25.00, to be released May 4, 2010)

See our Events page for more information.  See you there!

We’re getting very excited for tonight, when poet Ken Irby will be on hand to read from his work. The time is 7 PM and the place is The Raven. We’ve stocked up on copies of his recently released THE INTENT ON: COLLECTED POEMS 1962-2006. You can find more info on our Events page. See you tonight!