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THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, MAY 23, 2020
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DailyAstorian
Reading local
Enjoy a local
book with the
help of librarians
By ALYSSA EVANS
The Astorian
hroughout the Pacifi c Northwest, there
are dozens of talented writers, illustra-
tors and locally-focused books. Here
are some coastal librarians’ favorite local reads.
T
Astoria Library
Astoria Library Director Jimmy Pearson and
his staff have three suggestions.
The fi rst is “Trask” by Don Berry.
“(It’s my) favorite Oregon novel,” Pear-
son said. “(It’s) historical fi ction set in Clatsop
Plains.”
Other suggestions include “Red Clocks”
by Oregon author Leni Zumas and “The Turn-
ing” by Portland-based author Emily Whitman.
“The Turning” won the Oregon Spirit Book
Award, given by the Oregon Council of Teach-
ers of English.
Warrenton Community Library
‘The Turning’ is one of the Astoria Library’s suggestions.
Kelly Knudsen, the director of the Warrenton
Community Library, suggests Washington state
author Sherman Alexie. The fi lm “Smoke Sig-
nals” is based on Alexie’s short story “This is
What it Means to Say Phoenix Arizona,” which
is part of his collection titled “The Lone Ranger
and Tonto Fistfi ght in Heaven.” The movie
was marketed as the fi rst feature fi lm written,
directed and produced by Native Americans.
“The book is a collection of short stories and
is a mix of several genres, depicting life on the
Spokane Indian Reservation. Alexie shares the
struggles and dreams of urban Indians and res-
ervation Indians while also sharing traditions of
the past and how they survive into the future,”
Knudsen said. “The stories are honestly raw
and unfi ltered, and with characters that defy
odds and those that don’t, leaving readers with
just enough hope to read on.”
Librarian Carole Feldman suggests Oregon
author Devon Monk’s “Ordinary Magic” series.
“It’s set on the Oregon Coast,” Feldman
said. “In the series, there’s a female chief of
police in a city where the gods come for a vaca-
tion. They have to leave their powers behind,
leading to the chief having to deal with a lot of
off the wall things.”
Warrenton Community Library Director Kelly Knudsen
recommends Sherman Alexie.
Seaside Public Library
Seaside Public Library Director Esther Moberg recommends
‘Destination Astoria.’
Esther Moberg, director of the Seaside Pub-
lic Library, suggests “Destination Astoria:
Odyssey to the Pacifi c” by Brian Ratty.
“This is a fi ctional account of John Jacob
Astor and the fur trappers and traders who
made the journey to Astoria, and set up what
would one day become Astoria,” Moberg said.
Librarian Daniel Cawley suggests “Pinball
Theory of the Apocalypse” by Portland-based
author Jonathan Selwood.
“It’s my new favorite. The book is cool,
smart, weird and wickedly funny,” Cawley
said. “I will read anything by Selwood, even his
grocery shopping list. He’s a madman.”
Ocean Park library manager Jenny Grenfell recommends ‘A
Year in Paradise.’
Ilwaco Timberland Regional Library
Library manager Susan Carney’s pick is
“Deep River” by Karl Marlantes.
“This is my newest local favorite and the
best 700-page project I’ve tackled, possibly
ever,” Carney said. “I got to experience our
shared local geography, history and culture, all
tied together through a family saga-devine ...
My appreciation and respect for our Mouth of
the Columbia communities grew as well.”
Ocean Park
Timberland Regional Library
Library manager Jenny Grenfell suggests “A
Year in Paradise,” which is an autobiographical
work about Floyd Schmoe, who was the fi rst
naturalist assigned to Mount Rainier.
“This is an older title but I like to go back to
it,” Grenfell said. “This is the story of the year
he and his wife Ruth spent as a young couple
living in the lodge at Paradise. Floyd has a life-
long love of the mountain and an appreciation
for all its forms of life. He had the ability to
share that love with his readers.”
Naselle Timberland Regional Library
Susan Carney, Ilwaco’s library manager, recommends ‘Deep River.’
Library manager Michelle Zilli recommends
“The Highest Tide” by Jim Lynch.
“It’s about 13-year-old Miles, who explores
the Puget Sound at night, reads Rachel Carson
and can’t quite fi gure out the girl next door,”
Zilli said. “He has a vast knowledge and great
love of all things marine and begins to discover
unlikely creatures in his roamings, including a
dying giant squid. It’s a great coming-of-age
tale that also shares so very well a sense of
place and inhabitants of the Pacifi c Northwest.”
‘The Highest Tide’ is Naselle library manager Michelle Zilli’s pick.