Washington Books

Take 125 recipes from the areas hottest chefs and put them in one cookbook, and you've got a winner. Especially when the area is as vibrant in local ingredients such as Seattle with its seafood, Walla Wallas and cherries, etc.

Here are some nice offerings from this full selection: Pate de Campagne; Swiss Leek, Oat and Smoked Chicken Soup; Grilled Salmon with Lentils and Brown Butter Balsamic Vinaigrette;Pork Tenderloin with Bing Cherries and Mint; Coconut Curried Lamb Shanks; Baked Hawaii (with macadamia nut cake, coconut ice cream and chambord berry sauce).

Also includes a great Cocktails section.

The collaborative effort of Cynthia C. Nims and Kathy Casey, Best Places Seattle Cookbook collects 125 recipes from the most heavily patronized chefs in Seattle. Restaurant favorites such as Baked Oysters with Beurre Blanc; Heirloom Tomato Salad; Lemon Rosemary Biscotti; Fresh Blackberry Tart, Cadillac Margarita; and more come with exhaustively detailed preparation instructions to bring a luscious taste of Seattle into any home dining menu. The explicit text details the subtle nuances of each dish in this highly recommended resource for aspiring chefs of intermediate culinary skills and above.

The enchiladas, especially, were great, which they should be since it took one chef, two drunken sous chefs, and one person sitting on a stool shouting instructions about 2 solid hours to make them. But it was worth it.

I am not a cook, but after reviewing this book, i really want to be, not to mention that the recipes left me salivating. It may not be a book for the complete beginner but with some enthusiasm, the recipes in this book are very do-able. The side essays written by kathy casey are funny and informative and both authors clearly try to make the recipes understandable and do-able for the home kitchen. I am smitten with my kitchen and the tasty treats i can make in it. Thanks to Kathy Casey and Cynthia Nims for their tempting inspirations!

This is a tall tale adapted for a full length book. Full of highs and unbelieavable lows but fun to read. I have always loved John Straley and this is a good addition to his work.

Forget Cecil - Slip and Ellie blow the socks off the mystery adventure genre with an exciting saga up the Inside Passage. More twists and turns than the Needles Highway and a roaring ending that knocks your ribs in! John Straley is certainly the best American writer today.

With this book Straley has proven he can 'change horses' and still ride. Or, in this case, write. Although I will miss his Cecil Younger character, I found a whole new slew of characters to like in this new book. Setting it in 1935 is unique because Alaska barely existed in the eyes of the world prior to 1941 and the outbreak of WWII. The characters in this book, the misfits and the people they run into on their escape up the Southeast coast of Alaska are so 'real', I felt like I knew them all. People credit the gold miners with 'settling' Alaska but it was every bit the others as well, the bartenders, storekeepers, cannery workers, fishermen, and loggers, the everyday folks who people Straley's books who really pioneered Alaska. Hats off, John. It was a great read!! Keep 'em coming!

Once again, John Straley takes you into the misty, wild realm of Southeast Alaska in a way that few authors can. This time it's with a new cast of characters easily as rich and interesting as the old crew of Cecil, Todd and the rest. Straley fills a leaky dory with a cargo of innocence, strength, tenderness and hope then sets it on a journey as unpredictable as the waters it travels. A clever mix of mystery, action, history and heart, this story will pull you along with each stroke of the oars and each stroke of Straley's masterful pen. I loved this book.

Great book. Definitely got me inspired. Highly recommended.

If you are weary of cycling the same old routes and are looking for something different... check this book out. Biking Puget Sound is a cool collection of 50 rides.

Whenever I try to invent a new ride on my own...the results have often been frustrating. Other guides seem lackluster compared to this one. Biking Puget Sound is thorough, easy to use, and best of all.... fun!

This book is all someone would need in order to select an enjoyable bike route anywhere between Thurston County and the San Juans. Thorness has chosen 50 different tours, providing for each a clear map, elevation profiles illustrating terrain, and an interesting narrative describing the route and distinctive sights along the way. Each ride is ranked by difficulty; mileage and approximate riding time are also listed. Ranging from easy to difficult and from 10 miles to 50, there seems to be something here for any rider. A special benefit of the book is thorough description of many routes in heavily populated King County but those for other locations are equally helpful. Bill has ridden every one, most more than once I'd guess. In his introduction he says, "We are fortunate to live in a cycling wonderland, with the beauty of nature found everywhere, from diverse city parks to agricultural valleys, from waterfront lanes to island coastlines to mountainous back roads." These settings are accessible to bicycle riders and Biking Puget Sound contains all the details.

The book covers city rides, the suburbs and country rides. My favorite part was the San Juan Islands, a great place to get away for the weekend. the maps are clear, the book is easy to read and the route guides are simple. You won't get lost. I'm just getting back into bicycling again and this book has inspired me. It's a good book from new bicyclist to experienced riders.

This is an immensely enjoyable book from a very talented regional historian!

Mark Opsasnick's fervent attention to detail is merged with a deep understanding of artistic and social forces that shaped rock music during the third quarter of the 20th Century. The result is a captivating account that is simply a delight to read and reread.

On the surface, Capitol Rock is a nostalgic, hybrid portrayal of the DC area's musical history: the people, the bars and clubs, the records and labels, songs, and most of all, the artists. On a deeper level, Opsasnick careful scholarship asks, "Why did these dissimilar artists make this new music? What were its roots? Why did people react so intensely?"

Unlike so many other books with an obvious thesis to grind, Opsasnick's presentation is literally in the rich details associated with the music and musicians. He avoids the intellectual posturing that dominates too many books about popular culture. Opsasnick simply gives you plenty of facts and lets you generate your own interpretation.

We need more from Mr. Opsasnick and more writers need to imitate his subtlety and comprehensiveness. In the mean time, also try Larry Starr and Christopher Waterman's American Popular Music from Minstrelsy to MTV, another very good book, though without the regional connections.

Essential and detailed history of the Washington DC music scene from the 50s into the 70s. A must-have for locals, but any music aficionado will enjoy this book; includes numerous details on many of the world's most renowned guitarists: Danny Gatton, Roy Buchanan, Roy Clark, to name a few...This is my fourth Capitol Rock book - I keep giving them away to my friends and colleagues!

'Capitol Rock'is a treasure of memories for me, as Opsasnick, author, has painstakingly researched and documented the Washington DC music scene over a 25 yr. period.

Opsasnick provides facts about songs, musicians and clubs that are very personal to me. In the early 80's I did a little radio spot weekly and got to know Jerry Dallman who also had a spot. Until now, I was totally unaware of his major contribution to the 50's local music scene. More amazingly, I will never forget the original broadcast of the dance called "The Bug" that I watched on The Milt Grant TV show, and JUST learned from this book that Jerry wrote 'The Bug.'
Read about ALL the famous acts/artists Opsasnick lists who played at the Bladensburg Firehouse (WOW !!). Having grown up in PG County, it was thrilling to read about the history Opsasnick provided about the emergence (and demise) of each club.
There is even a chapter on my HERO, who many agree is the most talented AND influential drummer from DC's music scene.
What an awesome delight to read about the local musicians, many with whom I played, to follow chronologically, the migration of bands with whom each played, and to see who have become household names.
Opsasnick provides addresses, current and old, of many of the DC and MD clubs. This allows the reader to visit 'Stricks' (as I did) to see where artists like Patsy Cline, Jimmy Dean, Roy Clark, etc held house gigs.
I'm fortunate to have gotten to know the author, and it is clear, learning how he does his research, that what he writes IS accurate.
Thank you Mark Opsasnick for providing this beautiful snap shot of a very exciting time when hillbilly music spawned rock'n'roll and in turn, rock.
Thank you for the 'whole' story. From the teenagers who learned to sing, play guitar and drums for the teen club dances, grow up and settle down, to the ones who developed their craft and made a name for themselves, this book immortalizes them.

Opsasnick spent countless hours in libraries poring over old newspaper nightclub ads and interviewing musicians involved in Washington D.C.'s very vibrant rock and roll scene. The book covers 1953-1976 and includes several interviews with such notables as Nils Lofgren(now in Springsteen's band)and Jack Casady (bassist w/Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna). Also covered are some genuine guitar heros such as Roy Buchanon,Danny Gatton,John Fahey,Roy Clark,and the incomparable Link Wray , as well as scores of other bands.
Evidently the DC area was a real hotbed of clubs and talent, especially in the Prince Georges County area,although the M.L.King assassination riots began to put the nail in the coffin for a lot of venues. The book concludes with the advent of the punk and new wave scene (Slickee Boys, Bad Brains, etc)and has some succinct decriptions of these bands , too. My only complaint is that this book could really really have used an index at the end!!
Hey, kids, did you know that Led Zeppelin played at the Wheaton Youth Center in January 1969?...that the'Milt Grant Show' predated "American Bandstand' as the first television rock show in 1956? Find out this stuff and more with 'Capitol Rock'!

Third in a trilogy of novels by Eleanor Morris Wu
that began with Losing Plum Blossom (2003)and The Black King (2004), A Conspiracy of nations (2005) continues the dramatic tale of an American war widow and her Japanese-Taiwanese lover as they are enmeshed in a web of sexual tension and geopolitical intrigue over the fate of the island nation of Taiwan. China's burgeoning international ambitions, Japanese dreams of resurgent empire, and covert American scheming to maintain a favorable landscape in a changing world pursue the main characters from Taiwan to Thailand, Romania, and Hungary, where converging forces propel the lovers to an unexpected, tragic climax (and set the stage for the novel's sequel).
Ms. Wu, like Louis L'Amour, never writes about a place she hasn't personally visited and experienced in depth, lending A Conspiracy of Nations a texture of reality that immeasurably enhances the dramatic action of the novel. The reader should not expect a fast-paced action-adventure fantasy like those produced by Eric Van Lustbader for teenagers and airport readers. Rather, A Conspiracy of nations presents a fascinating tapestry of psychosexual and political interaction across a vast and colorful global landscape - a novel more to the tastes of a mature, sophisticated audience.

"A Conspiracy of Nations" Eleanor B. Morris Wu's third and last in her trilogy on romance, power and politics in the Far East and Pacific.

Centred around Clarissa, an American who stayed on after her countrymen pulled out of Taiwan, this is a story of her romance and marriage to a brilliant surgeon which quickly evaporates as her new husband is ordered away and drawn into the games of the regions major power players.

In consolation, Clarissa takes refuge in her second love, poetry and readily agrees to read some of her works for an international poetry conference in Hungary, thereby setting off a chain of events that she could never have foreseen. Unbeknown to her, the circles in which her ex-husband now operates, are generating some very powerful forces and some of them will use anybody or any methods to further their aims. Clarissa has become just the sort of person they are looking for.

Follow her adventures and scrapes with disaster as she attempts to make the conference and stay one step ahead of her abductors in Professor's Wu's best to date. A great read with substance for both action and travel aficionados alike.

In this fast paced drama, Eleanor B. Morris Wu has designed a tale that marries the fates of nations to the lives and loves of two individuals, the Japanese-Taiwanese Ahmed Wang Matsui and the American Clarissa Carleton. The future alignment of power in Asia depends on the relationship between Ahmed and Clarissa. Across an international landscape that spans from Taiwan to Hungary, spies, assassins, government agents and a host of other characters make their influence felt in determining the outcome of this suspenseful thriller.

Underlying the romantic adventures of Clarissa Carleton is an intriguing historical and political perspective on the past, present and future relations between China, Taiwan, Japan and the USA. At stake is power and influence in the East Asia sphere, as well as the continued existence of Taiwan as an autonomous country.

Eleanor B. Morris Wu gives us a story that works well both as a romantic thriller in the tradition of Helen MacInnes, and as a thought provoking historical/political commentary.

"A Conspiracy of Nations" is an enjoyable read with substance to it. A most rewarding experience.

Eleanor B. Morris Wu is not your average American expat in Taiwan. A popular university professor at Chinese Culture University in Taipei, an anthropologist and a practicing poet, Morris Wu embarked on a trilogy of novels about expat life in Taiwan a few years ago, and she has just published the final installment, titled "A Conspiracy of Nations".

Like the two earlier books "Losing Plum Blossom" and "The Black King," the third book delivers the goods, with graceful writing, a gripping plot and a cast of characters that readers will care about.

"A Conspiracy of Nations" is 452 pages long, and it's a real page-turner from the get-go. The cover art sets the stage for what is a very accomplished novel by a local writer who is now a veteran novelist.

Morris Wu's earlier novels in the series were described by local reviewers as Taiwanese versions of "Sex and the City" or "Gone With the Wind," and this last installment continues the sexual politics on a global scale.

There's Clarissa, an American widow who, following the death of her husband in Vietnam, married a Taiwanese orthopedic surgeon. But that marriage was never a sexual match because her then-husband, Ahmed, was gay and had a lover who worked alongside him in a local Taipei hospital he practiced in.

Now, in the third novel in the trilogy, Clarissa and Ahmed are divorced, and this woman of the world -- a poet to boot -- has new dreams and new loves.

With a literary dash of Dame Barbara Cartland, the queen of British romantic fiction, and some James Bond-like international adventures thrown in for good measure, Morris Wu has written a fabulous finale to her 1500-page trilogy, and readers will be duly rewarded.

There are local settings inTaiwan, of course, romantic overseas adventures in Hungary, where Clarissa attends a global poetry conference to read her own work to a gathering of world poets.

Many of the characters from the first two novels of the series reappear here, so it's easy to dig right in and back get into the swing of things.

After a series of thrilling adventures in Bangkok and eastern Europe, Clarissa resumes her love affair with Ahmed in the picturesque lake district of rural Hungary, while all around them, political intrigue swirls and boils over into a plot structure that never loses its tension and romance.

So is it over, the Morris Wu trilogy?

"No, it's not over," her lovingly-created character Clarissa tells ex-husband Ahmed in a heart-breaking conclusion on the final page. "You have a world to make right, dear. I will be rooting for you ... for signs that you have been victorious, that you have succeeded in mending the international relationships of Japan and the UnitedStates, saving Taiwan and giving it a destiny that it can call its own."

Morris Wu is working now on a new novel, with some of the characters from her trilogy in the cast, and whether it will be part of a new series or a fourth part of what will become her ''Asian quartet'' remains to be seen.

At the moment, "A Conspiracy of Nations" -- a wonderful title, by the way -- puts the final touches on a hard-working Taiwan-based novelist's song of life! Well done, Professor Wu!

Professor Walker's book is a solidly researched, comprehensive history of the environmental movement in the Bay Area. Written in a clear, accessible style, the book covers a century of landsaving, from the early days of the Sierra Club to the exciting years from 1965-75 when most of our environmental protection laws were passed, to the recent use of land trusts , conservation easements, and urban growth boundaries to safeguard the Bay Area's precious green heritage. This book will stand, along with John Hart's "Legacy" and Amy Meyer's "New Guardians for the Golden Gate" as the canonical texts in the environmental history of California for years to come.

THE COUNTRY IN THE CITY: THE GREENING OF THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA should be a 'most' for any San Francisco Bay Area or comprehensive California library, whether it be a college-level or public lending collection. Students of California history and geography alike will appreciate this story of how the Bay Area's greenbelt was planned into an urban environment - and how each piece of it was fought for. From environmental battles which spread out to affect urban policies across the country to the involvement of businesses and individuals like, THE COUNTRY IN THE CITY is packed with insights on how early conservation affects today's urban environment, making it a fine pick for any collection interested in urban planning, ecology, or Bay Area history alike.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This book really helped me understand the world I was born into--Berkeley in the late 1950s. As Richard Walker points out, that world reflected the work of countless Bay Area activists reaching back to John Muir. Many were civic-minded and dedicated women, and some started or built environmental organizations with national impact. This book describes it all: the people, the organizations, the issues, the victories (always temporary), the challenges, and the movement's shortcomings and unintended consequences.

Always attuned to class issues, Walker acknowledges that these movements were mostly led by upper-class folks and ultimately turned parts of the Bay Area (e.g., Marin) into lightly populated enclaves for the well off. Working families in the Bay Area have had great access to public parks and the coast, but activists so far have done little to impede the siting of toxic nastiness in low-income neighborhoods. Walker questions the link between efforts to slow or stop growth and the Bay Area's high housing prices, but he notes that the growth that has occurred--in the eastern part of Contra Costa County and the San Joaquin Valley, for example--isn't very smart and may be linked to the inner Bay Area's aversion to virtually any growth at all. At the end of the day, though, it's hard to resist Walker's conclusion that Bay Area residents have plenty to be thankful for. Highly recommended.

While this book was a bit academic and long on details, I found it a pleasant and easy read. I am a Bay Area resident and a NYC transplant and have marveled at the accessibility of the Bay Area's natural beauty and recreation.

I love the SF Bay Area for its beauty and outdoors and I wanted to know how it happened and who to thank. Now I know.

Another book worth considering, which is much more specific to the creation of one area is New Guardians for the Golden Gate: How America Got a Great National Park

This book deserves its reputation as a classic. Redman's story-telling skills are wonderful, he writes well, and clearly explains everything going on in the sometimes arcane world of legislative procedure. He makes the dullest-seeming motions and committee hearings come alive.

Scholars of the Congress should read this, if for no other reason than to get a basic handle on how the Congress actually works, rather than how they think it works in fancy regression analyses. But more than that, it's the starting point for a whole genre of work such as Showdown at Gucci Culch, Conflict and Compromise, and The Bill (all of which are must-reads as well). Even a casual observer of politics can get excited and interested.

This book is the most informative and best written book I have ever read on politics. It's filled with humor and candid comments about the United States Congress.

This book makes me nostalgic for the days when Members of Congress cooperated & got things accomplished. Great vignettes of Maggie! Very accurate rendition.

The year was 1970, President Nixon was still in office, however, an intern by the name of Eric Redman was on hand in the halls of Congress to witness the fascinating dance of legislation as The National Health Service Corps was attempting to be born. This book provides a personal account of the birth and struggles of the attempt to pass a piece of legislation from within the private confines of who was then the second most powerful United States Senator, Warren Magnuson from the State of Washington. While the names have changed, the struggle for a balance between power, influence, and social consciousness and survival remains the same. This book is as fantastic look behind the scenes of the most influential body of power on earth contains the essential ingredients today as a quarter of a century ago. It is a must read for anyone with an interest in political legislation and stands alone in its own right as a factual story that is as fascinating and compelling as any! fictional novel you will ever read.

If you have a bibliophile or a Washington State history buff on your Yuletide shopping list or just want something for your Amazon wish list, Dear Medora: Child of Oysterville's Forgotten Years just might fit the bill. Retired Ocean Beach School District teacher Sydney Stevens' most recent book, published this summer, brings to life the world of the remote village of Oysterville at the beginning of the 20th Century. Dear Medora is a collection of correspondence between teenage Medora, who is sent to high school in Portland, and her mother; enhanced by many photographs of the times and drawings which makes the Oysterville of that era come to life.
Oysterville is a tiny village of 48 that seems nearly frozen in time. Nestled on the shores of the Willapa Bay on North and East coast of the finger of land that is the Long Beach Peninsula, it can be difficult to find even if you know where to look. Founded in 1854 by Robert Espy and I.A. Clark, it was originally the county seat of Pacific County. It lost that distinction one night in 1893 when a group of South Bend townsmen came by boat across the Willapa and stole the court records, taking them back to South Bend which remains the county seat to this day.

Oysterville features a lovely little church, a one-room-school house turned community hall, a bit of the industry from which it derives its name and a handful of houses from the 19th Century, of which the Espy home place is one and where Sydney Stevens and her husband Nyle reside. Sydney is Medora's niece and also the niece of writer Willard Espy who wrote the forward for the book in 1998 while Sydney was working on the project. He died the next year. The letters between Medora and her mother Helen paint a picture of life in Oysterville during that time.

"Dear Medora" is unlike any other memoir, journal, diary, or correspondence collection I've read. What makes it special is that it allows us to look at life in the early 1900s through a "real-time" mother-daughter relationship. I love this book. I savored it, reading a chapter every day while quietly enjoying my first cup of coffee of the morning. I bought several copies of Dear Medora and gave them to friends and family members. My sister's reaction to the book was similar to mine--as she read it, she didn't want it to end. We both became emotionally attached to Oysterville. And we both became quite captivated by Medora's charms. My sister, who's about to become the grandma of a baby girl, actually crusaded for her kids to name their baby "Medora."

When Harry A. ("Papa") and Helen R. ("Mama") Espy returned to the family home in Oysterville on the north end of Washington's North Beach peninsula in 1902, their eldest daughter, Medora, was 3 1/2 years old. As the family grew, traveling throughout western Washington and Oregon for business, politics, or schooling become commonplace for family members, but Medora and Mama kept in touch through a lively and loving correspondence that lasted until tragedy struck the family in 1916. The Espys carefully preserved Medora's and Mama's letters, and Medora's niece, Sydney Stevens, has incorporated them into a wonderful book that not only documents the history of an area and an era, but allows us a glimpse into the deep emotional attachment between mother and daughter. Beautifully illustrated with vintage photographs, "Dear Medora" is a treat for the eye as well as sustenance for the heart and mind.

Medora Espy was the eldest daughter of Washinton State senator and dairy farmer Harry Albert Espy. She grew up in the quaint, somewhat remote, coastal village of Oysterville. "Dear Medora: Child Of Oysterville's Forgotten Years" is a collection of letters Medora wrote and received from 1902 to 1916 (as well as personal diary entrees) -- until a devastating tragedy occurred soon after her 17th birthday. Compiled and organized by Sydney Stevens (the daughter of Medora's youngest sister, Dale), "Dear Medora" is profusely illustrated with historical photographs and illustrations. This body of lively correspondence opens a 'window' into an American yesteryear through the life and observations of a sensitive young woman. "Dear Medora" is fascinating, rewarding, highly recommended reading and a welcome addition to American Regional History & Biography reference collections and supplemental reading lists.

This is a fun book focused on the wonderland trail. A great addition to you trail guide collection. We have purchased one for each of our three Mt. Rainier Cabins.

Ms. Filley has compiled all the information you will need to make the entire 92.6 mile journey around Mt. Rainier. Her attention to details from where to find water (a precious commodity on the trail)to place where the hiker must pause to smell the wild flowers, she provides a wonderful conversational tone to her book. Details as to miles hiked, elevation changes and what to expect at each camp along the trail really gives you the feeling you are there with her. After first 92 pages gives the reader insight into what to pack, how to pack it, what to leave behind, keys to having a success experience in the high country and bits of humor that offer encouragement. A great book for the price....something you must take with you.

If you're like me and in the intermediate to final stages of planning a Wonderland hike, then you've either already bought this book or you need to. Next asking Park Rangers yourself, this is easily the most complete and accurate source of planning information available. The authors have spent years compiling information on exact mileage, elevation, campsites and resupplies; most of their information is more accurate than the maps you'll use on the trail (or even the trail signs themselves!). They include lots of useful extras like sample itineraries for 8-14 day trips (the usual span of a complete hike).

However (as a warning to most people probably reading this), if you're looking for a quaint armchair adventure into the "Wonders of the Wonderland Trail" (as the name implies), you might try elsewhere. Heavy on data and light on campfire stories, this isn't a typical coffee table book for the whole family to enjoy.
It's a great book--if you need it!

This is an excellent reference I highly suggest one bring with them when hiking along the Wonderland Trail at Mt. Rainier National Park.

Gives wonderful descriptions of what to prepare for each day! Couldn't have done the Wonderland without it! Can't call yourself a real fan of Mt. Rainier without purchasing this book.

I first read this book for as a selection for MOHAI's bookclub and found it amazing. I was glad that Wes showed up to the bookclub meeting and talked for over an hour. I have lived on and off the 'Ave' for well over 10 years and I would often see him and have a cup of tea with him in the 'Ugly Mug Cafe.' This is a must read.

Wes Wehr had that unusual ability of being able to write exactly the way he spoke. The artists he knew come alive on his pages in such a way that I felt I was listening to him tell it to me personally.
I first came to know Wes through the Stonerose Museum in Republic, WA, which he helped to establish and support. As an artist, not only did I thoroughly enjoy his first book and the antedotes that he recorded, but it left me anxiously waiting for his next, The Accidental Collector. Here's an antedote of my own: while in Republic on a dig, a coffee shop in Seattle called him and told him he had left his only manuscript for the Accidental Collector laying on one of their tables that morning!
These two books were supposed to be part of a trilogy, but sadly that was not to be. Wes passed away before it could be completed and we are left to imagine what gems that third one would have held. I highly recommend both these books.

I have really enjoyed this book. For the first time I feel an insight into the Northwest Artists that I have not felt before. It really leaves me asking for more. I hope that Wes will follow up with more details on these incredibly interesting people and their respective relationships with each other. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in artists and their lives, as well as anyone looking for some honest, open and fun reading.

Not only is it one of the more delightful books I have read recently, it could very well be the best autobiography ever written by a lifetime resident of my hometown.

"The Eighth Lively Art" is at once a colorful history of Seattle in the 1950s, a thoughtful exploration of the artistic process, and a celebration of the connections that exist between people.

Wesley Wehr recounts his life as a young man in Seattle in the 1950s where, as a student of music composition at the University of Washington, he was befriended by such luminaries as painter Mark Tobey, poet Elizabeth Bishop, and actress Margaret Hamilton. He meets painters Morris Graves, Guy Anderson, and Helmi Juvonen, all of whom become lifelong friends. He has encounters with famous twentieth-century figures like photographer Imogen Cunningham and composer Ernest Bloch who offer there wisdom, hospitality, and encouragement.

The book is divided into chapters that focus, for the most part, on individuals he has known and people he has met. The artists convey their ideas about life and love while sharing their personal experiences with and approaches towards the composition process. Wes Wehr also relates his own, often unsuccessful, forays into music and painting during this early stage in his life.

For those of us who have grown up in Seattle, this book is a reminder of how this place has shaped our own sensibilities. How many of us, like the young Guy Anderson, wandered through the Burke Museum as a child looking at Northwest Coast Indian Art or, like Wes himself, spent our late teens hanging out on the Ave?

This book is, most significantly, about the power of friendship. I am so accustomed to living in a world where everything is assigned value based on net worth or earnings potential, I often lose sight of the things which have truly enriched my own life. After reading Wes' account of the various friendships he has established and maintained over the years, I recognized more clearly how very important such friendships have been to me.